Creative Destruction: A Risky Idea Nobody Wants to Try (Correct)

The U.S. is usually better than Europe at reshaping its economy after recessions, partly because it’s easier for American entrepreneurs to streamline their business by firing workers, or even start a new one by going bankrupt.

In the coronavirus crisis, that advantage isn’t immediately apparent.

The speed and severity of the downturn –- and the extraordinary uncertainty about what comes next –- raises the costs of a rapid restructuring as the pandemic passes. Governments everywhere are struggling to figure out how much leeway they should allow for what economists call creative destruction -- when outmoded companies and practices get ...