Alternative models

Exposure to only a narrow subset of perspectives undermines students' ability to think critically about the economy.

Our article on how German automakers treat their workers in the U.S. less well than those in Germany highlighted a critical national choice: create structures that help to level the playing field between management and labor, or surrender to the pernicious idea that nothing can or should be done to restrict an employer race to the bottom.

Our article on German automakers in the U.S. (lower wages, non-union) versus German same automakers in Germany (higher wages, fully unionized) generated a series of questions and criticisms.

Proposed short-term solutions for Detroit's immediate financial crisis likely to exacerbate long-term problems.

The big three German automakers pay high wages and have high union membership at home, the opposite of the conditions in their U.S. factories. The difference is that, here, a race to the bottom is encouraged.

An interconnected network of social institutions in Denmark reinforces a conception of citizenship rooted in collectivity, trust, and civic-mindedness.

Danish policy-makers have made a conscious decision not to rely on low-wage labor.

Public policy choices are both the building blocks and the reflection of the kind of society in which people want to live: “It’s obvious that in Denmark, both the public and business leaders regard the state as a partner,” said Stine Bosse, who until recently served as the group CEO of TrygVesta, Denmark’s largest insurance company. “A strong state is not just something you have to live with…it’s something we reckon is pretty important, a positive thing for business.”

The first installment in Remapping Debate's new series on how different Danish choices are from those being made in the U.S.