Top US columnist thinks we’re the biz, so why don’t we talk to him?

WHAT is it about us Irish that makes it so hard for us to take a compliment? In recent weeks the New York Times has carried two glowing tributes to Ireland’s economic success by its leading columnist, Thomas L Friedman.

His first column trumpeted the fact that Ireland, once the basket case of Europe, is now the second wealthiest European country after Luxembourg. In the second piece, Friedman called on the rest of Europe, particularly ailing France and Germany, to follow the Irish economic model.

Friedman cited seven main factors in Ireland's sustained economic success our well-educated population, our open and competitive economy, our low corporate tax rates, our social partnership model, our focus on attracting leading global firms, and a tight reign on public finances.