Speaking from my haughty perch of hundreds of economics charts per day, the largest determinant of blue collar revival is policy.

To be (undeservedly) charitable towards The Economist, this is likely less obvious in Europe. Europe has long had a better social safety net, a higher wage standard and a more equitable tax structure. The Marshall Plan, fundamentally, rebuilt Europe's economy the way the Democratic Party would shape America if the Republicans weren't in the way. Europe's COVID policies, as a result, largely reflected a tepid enhancement of the status quo because the status quo was almost good enough... at least when compared to hypercapitalist economies like America's. American COVID policies, on the other hand, were "quick, Republicans are sleeping, pass massive social reforms" because there were (and are) plenty to pass.

Do you remember walking into the gun section of Bass Pro Shops and not being titillated, not being amused, not being intimidated, not being agitated but being genuinely and truly awed? The sheer Americanness of it all left you speechless for several minutes. It was useful for me to see that reaction because frankly, it's the water I swim in. Preposterous amounts of gun culture has been a given going back to Lea Thompson with an AK-47. It's like that backpack you wore up the mountain - you don't truly realize how heavy it is until you take it off.

Remember that feeling and recognize that's the way Americans feel when they learn about things like European healthcare. European college. European vacations. It's a fundamental, speechless recognition of a vast difference that has no supporting evidence for its existence beyond cultural choices. It's a horrified, irreversible recognition of a great wrong that you have no way to right.

It's important to understand that COVID relief, for Americans, was a realization that the wrongs can be righted. It was discovering that shitty treatment was a choice. The minute you make more money sitting at home than you do driving a forklift? You're never driving a forklift for that much ever again. You could watch it in everyone's eyes. Families getting $700 a month just for being families - even though it was their own money, from their own tax credit, that they were getting anyway - the government sending them checks just for having kids felt like a dream. Bartenders recognizing that no, they're not going to get abused by drunks for $2 and tips ever again because clearly, that's a choice by their employer.

We did a funny thing up here. We raised the wages on service staff from $2 to $15. And for a while, all the restaurant owners got salty and put things on the receipts telling you that you didn't have to tip. And you know what? After COVID? The little receipt notes went away and the tips stayed the same. Do people eat less at restaurants? Yeah. Are the restaurants doing fine? Yeah. And when you do go? Your service is hella better. Go figure. as Quatrarius points out, there's a massive difference between being "underpaid" and being "grossly underpaid."

By almost all metrics, American productivity is on trend or better compared to where we were prior to COVID. By almost all metrics, Europe is not. This is not because Europe is a bunch of laggards, it's because Europe had less room for improvement. Energy insecurity? Yeah for Europe. The US and Canada are the 4th and 5th largest oil exporters in the world and the 3rd, Iraq, is effectively a vassal state. What we got was the CHIPs act and the American Rescue Plan, both of which were tailor-made to grow blue-collar industry in red states.

From 2010 to 2020 I got emails telling me how to "offshore" my production. Since 2021 I have been getting emails telling me how to "onshore" or "nearshore" my production. There's a real and deserved recognition that the United States fundamentally gave up its position as a manufacturing leader in exchange for the financialization of American industry. There will be a real and deserved recognition that the United States fuckn' up and decided not to do that anymore in 2021. Partly? That's China being too expensive. Partly? That's global polarization and the unpredictability of trade in a world where history has decidedly not ended. But mostly it's the result of the Republican Party giving up any attempts whatsoever to throw sops at business once Paul Ryan left, leaving the Democrats to go

Remember the '50s? Worked out pretty well for you guys, right? Yeah taxes were high but so were profits and you had no problem attracting labor because the government made sure everyone was mostly okay most of the time. How would you like the '50s again? 'cuz we're thinking errbody loves the '50s, unless you were black, but that's a whole other issue we'll sidestep for now. So how 'bout the '50s?

It is fair and accurate to recognize the Trump administration as a kernel panic of the American operating system. Things have not fully reset but the vacancy of an empty stack was rapidly filled by Democrats, who care about wonky shit more than gay penguins in children's books.

The Economist should know this. I want to believe they see the same charts I do. I want to believe they have better sources of information than I do. But they are not demonstrating it.