The difference between the countries' investment and startup growth environments goes much deeper and can't be easily summarized by simple political sloganry.
Since you mentioned Nordic countries in general, let's look at Norway:
1) 28% flat tax on income (additional 9% on gross income if you earn between $73,641 - $119,662 and 12% on anything larger than this. 2) VAT on most things you purchase (25%) 3) 1% wealth tax, including your assets. 4) All tax returns are publicized. So everyone knows how much you make. This is a violation of privacy.
source: http://www.davemanuel.com/2009/09/08/the-norwegian-tax-syste...
It's not just corporate taxes that need to be factored in here. If I'm a VC, why would I invest where everything is going to cost 3X or 4X as much.
There also has to be a reason why there is almost no startup scene in Nordic countries. If taxes were great and the government made it really easy for businesses to startup and flourish, VC would be flocking there.
another article: http://www.inc.com/magazine/20110201/in-norway-start-ups-say...
"As a Norwegian, he pays nearly 50 percent of his income to the federal government, along with a substantial additional tax that works out to roughly 1 percent of his total net worth."
"And that's just what he pays directly. Payroll taxes in Norway are double those in the U.S. Sales taxes, at 25 percent, are roughly triple."
This article is filled with reasons why I would never want to start a business here.
By the same logic, no sane VC would invest in a Silicon Valley startup because engineers there are 3-4x more expensive than most other tech hubs.
The Norwegian employee pays a lot of tax, but actually a lot of that money goes to services that directly save money for you (the employer). For example, you don't need to pay for the employee's health insurance, dental care or pension plan, since these are covered by the state.
There also has to be a reason why there is almost no startup scene in Nordic countries.
That's nonsense. By European standards, the startup scene is great at least in Sweden and Finland.
You can get a great plan in the US for around $500-$600/month (an okay plan is considerably less). 30-40%+ more of my income is considerably more than this.
"By the same logic, no sane VC would invest in a Silicon Valley startup because engineers there are 3-4x more expensive than most other tech hubs."
They are more expensive because they are the best talent around.
"That's nonsense. By European standards, the startup scene is great at least in Sweden and Finland."
Compared to what? The statup scene in Michigan is great compared to that of Iowa or Kansas.