Want Good News?

Just make it up. Start cherry-picking in 2007 for a good-looking trend in data for 2004 to 2005!

According to the Commission's Joint Employment Report, published on 19 February 2007, "unemployment in the EU-25 fell from 9.1% in 2004 to 8.8% in 2005 and employment rose by 0.8% in 2005 - the largest increase since 2001.

Indeed. The Lisbonian magic is clearly at work. By 2010, the hard-working elves of the EU were scheduled (through the miracle of saying so,) to have the worlds leading economy. Instead a recent report warned that by some measures they were 22 years behind the US (where supposedly people live in cardboard boxes and eat cat-food.)

In two years’ since 2005, the gap EU-US has widened for all economic indicators:

- Income (GDP per capita). The current EU level for income was achieved by the US in 1985. Since the first edition of the study, the time gap has increased by 3 years;

- Employment and R&D. Both the current EU levels for employment and R&D investment per capita were reached by the US in 1978. (+3 years and +5 years respectively);

- Productivity (GDP per employed). The current EU productivity level was achieved by the US in 1989 (+3 years).

- The current EU level of Internet users per capita was reached by the US in 2002. Obviously, there hasn’t been enough ranting about predatory capitalism this winter to keep the good burgers of Outer-Lisbonium warm and dry long enough for them to enjoy the way high taxation and low wealth-creation is breaking their knees.