The NYT reported on a conference of European leaders where Latvia’s approach to economic policy was held up as a major success story. The article told readers:

“The small country of Latvia, with a population of two million, was cited as a good, and rare, example for its relatively quick recovery from a 2009 bailout.”

It would have been useful to note that Latvia’s unemployment rate is still well into the double digits. It also would have been worth pointing out that close to 10 percent of Latvia’s workforce has emigrated to other countries in search of work. It is not likely that this record would be viewed as an attractive model to most other European countries.