Re “Four Nations, Four Lessons” (Economic View, Oct. 23), in which N. Gregory Mankiw uses the examples of France, Greece, Japan and Zimbabwe to describe policies the United States should avoid:

In the column, he says that if taxes here approach those of Europe, “we can then see whether the next generation of Americans spends less time at work earning a living and more time sipping espresso in outdoor cafes.”

My several months spent living with a family in the French Alps three years ago exposed me to a more normal French experience — of working hard just to pay the bills. Higher taxes ensure public health, a safe retirement, cleaner streets and good schools. Gee, maybe you get what you pay for. France has a fairly thriving democracy without all the rancor we are suffering.

The French are no strangers to issues of immigration, racial tensions and health. Still, to suggest that they escape the “nose-to-the-grindstone American culture” assumes that a scraped nose is a good thing and that a balanced life is laziness. Neither is true, there or here. Rather than criticize progressive societies we should consider learning from them.

Edward McFadd

Encinitas, Calif., Oct. 23

To the Editor:

N. Gregory Mankiw concludes that “if American policy makers don’t rein in entitlement spending over the next several decades, they will have little choice but to raise taxes close to European levels.”

But he leaves a huge part of the federal budget out of his analysis: the hundreds of billions spent on the military.

Our deficit has been largely fueled by fighting two wars of choice while, at the same time, cutting taxes. A discussion of alternatives must consider substantial cuts to the military budget, not just to social programs.

Ben A. Solnit

Morris, Conn., Oct. 23

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