Check out this lecture by Helle Dale -- Challenges Facing Europe in a World of Globalization. It isn't nearly so dry as the title.
Some interesting bits:
"French workers . . . like their job security; according to opinion polls, 70 percent say that their ideal job would be as a civil servant, which offers a job for life. Here the state is still considered the source of all things good and bad."
"Most countries in Europe are shrinking, failing to sustain their population. . . By 2050, more than half of Germany’s population will be over 55 years old."
"Between 1990 and 2003, the U.S. economy created almost 20 million new jobs. Italy, Germany, and France combined created 3 million. If current trends continue, per capita income will go up in Germany over the next 20 years by 44 percent, while it will double in the United States."