Were You Born On The Wrong Continent(Thomas Geoghegan)?:I Was

Thomas Geoghegan's book about social democracy in parts of Europe is well beyond informational because it clarifies the big difference between the United States(free market,Darwinian inequality)and Europe(free market,social,economic stability and equality) in terms of lifestyle as defined by the social net weaved by both democracies.This book was acquired through the public library and one might not find it in your local Barnes and Noble where celebrity pundits(to the right) prevail.

Geoghegan's book starts with a trip to Moscow by way of Zurich,Switzerland(rated best quality of life in world) in 1993.He can't believe how beautiful the city of two million people is and starts to compare it to American cities.Geoghegan is from Chicago(one of America's Midwest jewels) but he never has seen a city not just opulent(richest in the world)but opulent in such an elegantly intelligent way.The book would go on the talk about city/social planning in later chapters and it is a significant component of enhanced lifestyle.He starts to compare cities briefly by going down the alphabet."B" We have Baltimore,Baton Rouge..they have Barcelona,Bologna..As he goes down the alphabet,he gives the tangible impression that the European cities are nicer,safer and better organized for citizens to enjoy.He writes about GDP per capita and how from 1983 to 1993,Europe has climbed up to America and a few countries like Norway is even above us.The shock isn't per capita increase to Geoghegan but the per capita in the street(quality of life).The cities are elegant and safe with numerous subsidized entertainment venues(an opera cost $13..$80 in U.S.)Sweden is the richest country and it is the most Red(to the left) where 7.7 % of the elderly live in poverty.(U.S has 24.7 %)Children in poverty in Germany has a 9% rate(mostly in East Germany) while the U.S. has 21.9%.Geoghegan doesn't want to rely on graphs and tables to illustrate the difference in quality of life.He wants you to go there and touch,see,taste and smell the difference. He loves the intelligent order of the cities and the lack of disorder of mass poverty like we have in the states.Mass poverty,according to Geoghegan brings disorder and that disorder makes it impossible for everything to be "perfect" the way it is in Europe.

He eventually goes to Moscow and it was worse than he had imagined.Everyone was talking about the civil war,shootings and chaos.He wanted to talk about how beautiful Zurich was but everyone was more concerned with survival.Geoghegan returns to what he has found in Europe. He states that the NY Times and the Wall Street Journal repeatedly wrote (joblessness,high labor costs)about the collapse of Europe in the eighties and early nineties. He didn't realize it was so nice(from Milan to Paris over to the Rhine and up to Norway).Staying in Zurich was relatively cheap in 1993.He paid $125/night for a beautiful place(gardens,waiters view of city) that would have cost $1,000 in the states.Europe is set up for the middle class and America is set up to buy cheap gas and kitty litter at Walmart.He feels the bottom two-thirds of America would be better off in Europe especially if one hasn't got a raise in numerous years,don't have a 401(k),nothing but Social Security and no health insurance.Unemployment is lower there and even a single man can get on welfare.Most are in unions that have a golden parachute(stability on the job,shorter work week,six week vacations,pensions,health care,free tuition for school,paid maternity/paternity leave,parent care,quality,low cost transportation)that differentiates itself from the American style capitalism we have in the workplace.

Much more to come in the next days from Geoghegan.