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| Europe |
| Germany went from envy of the world to the worst-performing major developed economy. What happened? |
| 2023-09-25 |
| ESSEN, Germany (AP) — For most of this century, Germany racked up one economic success after another, dominating global markets for high-end products like luxury cars and industrial machinery, selling so much to the rest of the world that half the economy ran on exports. Jobs were plentiful, the government’s financial coffers grew as other European countries drowned in debt, and books were written about what other countries could learn from Germany. No longer. Now, Germany is the world’s worst-performing major developed economy, with both the International Monetary Fund and European Union expecting it to shrink this year. It follows Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the loss of Moscow’s cheap natural gas — an unprecedented shock to Germany’s energy-intensive industries, long the manufacturing powerhouse of Europe. ...A 2011 decision to shut down Germany’s remaining nuclear power plants has been questioned amid worries about electricity prices and shortages. Companies face a severe shortage of skilled labor, with job openings hitting a record of just under 2 million. And relying on Russia to reliably supply gas through the Nord Stream pipelines under the Baltic Sea — built under former Chancellor Angela Merkel and since shut off and damaged amid the war — was belatedly conceded by the government to have been a mistake. I notice there's no mention of the word "sanctions" or how nordstream was "damaged" |
| Posted by:Grom the Reflective |
| #16 Israel did not sign whatever treaty involves nuclear weapons, therefore it is not subject to the inspections required by the treaty. They are not the only country not to do so. Deliberate, not merely convenient. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2023-09-25 23:24 |
| #15 US bombing Nordstream 2 is the world's most blatant open secret, right up there with Israel's nuclear weapons. Which, because Israel "doesn't have" any nuclear weapons, they are not subject to international inspections like all the other nuclear powers. Convenient! |
| Posted by: Harcourt Tholuse6841 2023-09-25 21:37 |
| #14 Come on, man! We warned the Germans that if they got in bed with the Russians, they were vulnerable to Russian energy blackmail and would be in trouble if the output from the pipeline suddenly became unavailable. Which it somehow did. So we told you so! |
| Posted by: SteveS 2023-09-25 21:22 |
| #13 To be fair, Germany would not be in this particular pickle had they not shut down their last nuclear power plants last April — even re-opening their old coal power plants has not been enough to make up for that loss. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2023-09-25 21:08 |
| #12 You really gonna make us trot out the 10 minute video of Biden and generals saying "this pipeline will not stand"? Gonna insist that TEH ROOSHINS blew up their own pipeline that gave them immense leverage over Germany? And lose a great customer? |
| Posted by: Harcourt Tholuse6841 2023-09-25 20:33 |
| #11 Prove it |
| Posted by: Frank G 2023-09-25 18:04 |
| #10 #5 Well gosh, the US did commit an act of war against Germany by blowing up their pipeline. Which totally fucked the German economy and is why they're in this state. But hey... |
| Posted by: Harcourt Tholuse6841 2023-09-25 15:02 |
| #9 It has been inevitable for decades. The population has gotten so old, there is no domestic market for the things Germany makes. It was patching over the cracks with exports, but their biggest customer China, is collapsing as well and not buying German stuff. Combine that with higher prices for natural gas to power factories and it is the perfect storm. |
| Posted by: DarthVader 2023-09-25 13:18 |
| #8 Tennessee family faces deportation 15 years after fleeing Germany to homeschool kids: A 'well-founded' fear |
| Posted by: Skidmark 2023-09-25 12:23 |
| #7 re: #5 You're being too general. It is specifically Trump's fault. |
| Posted by: AlanC 2023-09-25 10:09 |
| #6 Socialism couple with the abject failure of Greens to deliver actual alternative energy. In a nutshell! An astute observer might note that the same things which don't work in Europe also don't work here in the Americas. |
| Posted by: SteveS 2023-09-25 09:27 |
| #5 I am certain, that when things are studied closely, this will be found to be the US's fault. |
| Posted by: ed in texas 2023-09-25 08:33 |
| #4 Socialism couple with the abject failure of Greens to deliver actual alternative energy. |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2023-09-25 07:32 |
| #3 While it is clear Germany is having some tough times right now. I also noted it had dramatic increased in immigrants. Persons of foreign birth that felt it was far better than their country of origin and migrated there. Foreign Nations (non-Citizens) numbers have risen to 18.13% of the total German population. eg. Listing a few of the born abroad migrant origination points. Turkey 1,109,615 Ukraine 1,153,755 Africa 611,630 Asia 2,607,930 |
| Posted by: NN2N1 2023-09-25 05:33 |
| #2 "damaged amid the war" This is what propaganda looks like. The journalist is literally lying but slips it in there like she's not. |
| Posted by: Harcourt Tholuse6841 2023-09-25 05:30 |
| #1 I wonder what'll happen to EU without German funds? |
| Posted by: Grom the Reflective 2023-09-25 02:02 |