Article

2004-08-18 Europe

Germany Slides To End Of The List Of 20 Industrial Countries

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Posted by tipper 2004-08-18 10:10:20 AM|| || Front Page|| [1 views since 2007-05-07] Top

#1 What happened in 1990? West Germany absorbed East Germany. Germany did not do a great job of bringing their easterners back into the fold.

It took about 100 years for the south to be fully re-integrated into the U. S. after the civil war, so we shoiuld not expect Germanys aggregate numbers to return to the top of the heap anytime soon.

Posted by Mrs. Davis 2004-08-18 10:20:52 AM|| 2004-08-18 10:20:52 AM|| Front Page Top

#2 But they just invented the anti-Stehpinkler device! I can't believe this!

If we do pull more troops out of Germany and close down bases, it doesn't look much better for their economy in the short term.

Posted by Dar 2004-08-18 11:59:54 AM|| 2004-08-18 11:59:54 AM|| Front Page Top

#3 I guess acquiring Chrysler wasn't the answer. :-)

On a reality note - I don't know who theses 20 states are but with respect to economic power Germany is definitely not 21.

Posted by Super Hose 2004-08-18 11:12:04 PM|| 2004-08-18 11:12:04 PM|| Front Page Top

#4 Last time I checked, Germany was still the 3rd largest economy in the world, and we export more goods (services excepted) than any other country in the world.

Yes we have problems, we missed opportunities in the 90s, we let ourselves be dragged down somewhat by the rotten East German economy.

If you took the figures for West Germany alone, you'd see what I mean. Unemployment in Southern Bavaria or Baden-Wuerttenberg hovers around 5-6 %, while in the East it can jump to 25% in some regions.

What we need to do:

Enact radical labor market reforms
Push for tax cuts Bush style
Push for social security reforms
plan for a smart immigration policy (mandatory integration, not parallel "multiculturalism")
abolish unnecessary bureaucracy

As for foreign policy, I don't need to explain again what needs to be done

Posted by True German Ally 2004-08-18 11:34:56 PM|| 2004-08-18 11:34:56 PM|| Front Page Top

#5 TGA, whoever barfed out this new list demonstrates a total lack of understanding about what the industrial base of a country really is. I am sure that India or China can chunk out an impressive GNP, but the most important part of an industrial country is the infrastructure and production equipment - some of it so old that it has been depreciated off the books. An example can be seen in Iraq where Sadaam spent his hords on weapons and palaces instead of powere generators. Now lack of power generation will strangle their growth for at least the next decade and the problem will only be eventually be solved if they decide to bite the bullet and invest continuously.

Posted by Super Hose 2004-08-18 11:59:00 PM|| 2004-08-18 11:59:00 PM|| Front Page Top

#6 And check how the average Chinese away from Shanghai or Indian away from Bangalore lives...

China, with its ever growing needs for energy, would probably implode if we faced a real energy crisis.

Posted by True German Ally 2004-08-19 12:06:34 AM|| 2004-08-19 12:06:34 AM|| Front Page Top

#7 TGA, when Germany was reunited, the industrial base must have been as unbalanced as America was after the Civil War. Has there been any progress with respect to improving infra-structure or is the process still in the hazmat clean-up stage?

Posted by Super Hose 2004-08-19 12:30:36 AM|| 2004-08-19 12:30:36 AM|| Front Page Top

03:50 Katta
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