In late December 2007, at the Marginal Revolution web site, Prof Bug began his last exchange with some intelligent and courteous Scandinavians on their countries' recently improved economic performance the last few years.  What follows is a revised and much longer version of that exchange, with lots more empirical evidence.  Note that the argument as it unfolds is likely to be fairly long and will divide into several parts.

"Finnsense:"

Many thanks for your general comments, unusually balanced in their pros and cons about the US and Scandinavian economic systems.  A similar compliment is due Mogens, I believe.  I also thank Barkley, even though, I suspect, it will likely take far more evidence than can be mustered here, or maybe anywhere, to modify his apparently strong Social-Democratic leanings.  No matter.  He shows himself to be noticeably intelligent and articulate, and I appreciate my exchanges with him as well.

PART ONE: THE IMPROVED NORDIC PERFORMANCE CLARIFIED

To grasp just how markedly more vigorous the economic performance of Scandinavian countries has been since 2003 --- at any rate, except for Norway (always an outlier) --- consider the following table that ranks the various countries of the world by several dozen criteria, all summarized as each country's overall competitiveness. 

PART ONE: INTRODUCTORY COMMENTS

In the forum-thread at Marginal Revolution where prof bug recently had several exchanges with some Scandinavian posters, all well informed and very courteous, mind you, the buggy article that follows --- a revised version of the bugged out post at Marginal Revolution --- was praised by one of them, almost certainly a Swedish citizen or of Swedish origins. 

Why the Praise?f

Well, that brings us to a few personal comments.  As it happens, the Marginal Revolution --- run by Professor Tyler Cowan, himself a moderate libertarian (note the emphasis) --- posts mainly libertarian commentary by Tyler and lots of replies in the discussion forums by libertarians as well; and one and all, Cowan and his often zealous laissez-faire enthusiasts agreed that more free market reforms were needed if Sweden and the other Scandinavian countries --- Denmark and Finland, each about 4 million in population, plus Norway (also 4 million and not in the EU) --- were to revitalize themselves.  Enter prof bug's first post in reply. 

It isn't that the buggy doesn't share any of these free-market recommendations, for not just Scandinavia, but the rest of the EU countries.  He does, at any rate some of that advice.  Still, only up to a point.

The buggy prof, you see, is hardly a libertarian . . . rather, a political independent who believes that a moderate social security safety net is essential to modern capitalism and freer trade, and believes additionally that, at times, government regulations and taxes can be used effectively to offset certain market failures, such as environmental pollution, insufficient information for consumers to make intelligent choices (think of medicines), and public goods like infrastructrual investments.  Libertarians, by contrast, can seldom or even find any regulatory measure that improves the workings of the free market.  

Nor is that all.