Chart of the Day: Stereotyping in Europe

From a poll conducted by Pew Research.

I don’t believe in stereotyping, but it must be emphasized that social policies (such as the welfare state or various forms of government interventionism) plays a significant influence on people’s value scales and preferences which consequently shapes work habits.

As former chancellor of West Germany known for his leading role in the "German Miracle" or West Germany's postwar economic recovery, Ludwig Wilhelm Erhard (1897–1977), once wrote,

Social policy must not damage national economic productivity even indirectly, and must not run counter to the basic principles of the market economic order.

If we desire to guarantee a permanent free economic and social order, then it becomes essential to achieve freedom with an equally freedom-loving social policy. That is why, for example, it is contradictory to exclude from the market economic order private initiative, foresight, and responsibility, even when the individual is not in a material position to exercise such virtues. Economic freedom and compulsory insurance are not compatible.