Counterpoint: Europe's economic system is superior, not socialist

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We all can agree that inequality in the U.S. is a problem that needs to be addressed. D.J. Tice's column ("Scrooge, Cratchit, and the enigmas of inequality, Dec. 18) cites a study from the Paris School of Economics finding that U.S. "redistribution" policies have been less effective at boosting the living standards of lower- and middle-income classes than the "pre-distribution" policies of European countries. The notion is that the U.S. policy of redistributing tax revenues in the form of social welfare payments has been less effective at easing wealth inequality than the European model.

The European countries impose higher tax rates on income than in the United States. But, unlike the U.S., those governments tend to spend revenue on programs that reduce the expense of essential social programs and benefit society as a whole — e.g., education, health care, retirement, extended paid maternity leaves, child care. As a result, health care, child care and education are inexpensive for everyone.

Also, everyone in Europe is guaranteed a livable retirement and fully paid annual vacation. In the U.S., we have chosen to privatize those programs and impose the cost on individuals. Our "redistribution" payments don't help reduce those expenses but, for the most part, are designed to help people avoid falling to or below the poverty line.

We do little to prevent poverty and more to ease its impact after a person has become impoverished. The European model does more to prevent poverty in the first place.

There is no shortage of stories in the U.S. press about families that are driven into bankruptcy by health care costs, or about an entire generation of students impossibly burdened by loans to go to college and post-graduate programs, or about families that cannot afford the cost of day care. We also have a generation of elderly who are bordering on impoverished.

The U.N. Highest Human Development Index of 2021 is based on data like life expectancy, years of schooling and gross national income per capita. It is considered a data-driven analog to more subjective "quality of life" rankings. The U.S. ranks 21st behind Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, Sweden, Denmark, Ireland, Germany, Netherlands, Finland, Belgium and the United Kingdom, among others — nearly all of the Western European countries.

Arguably, our policy of privatizing essential programs rather than funding them with tax revenues has impeded the ability of a greater portion of the population to maximize their employment opportunities and earnings. In turn, that dynamic has left an unacceptable portion of our population struggling financially and ill-prepared for retirement. As a result, we have both a higher level of wealth and income inequality and a lower score for "quality of life" than the European countries mentioned in Tice's article.

We have a national phobia about the term "socialism" that prevents us from rationally considering policies that could go a long way toward easing inequality. Along the way we might improve our quality of life. Here's hoping 2023 is marked more by rationality and less by phobias.