Spend a couple years in Italy. Spend a couple years in Syria. Come back and tell me which you prefer.
If you think my statement sounds like a shallow cliche then I would remind you that a group of people connected loosely by the idea of a state have cultural norms and traditions that make their little corner of the world unique...and Id say this surpasses the idea of materialism/unbounded consumption that undertones every conversation about "Europe Vs ...." measuring progress by how many cappucino cafes per square kilometer is a rather dull way to view the world at the very least.
It's not an argument that we should replace all culture with a European facsimile, merely that some movement towards the proven model for success is needed.