German Unemployment Passes 5 Million Mark

[ethics]

German unemployment hit a new post-World War II high in January, passing the politically sensitive 5 million mark for the first time in Europe's biggest economy, government figures showed Wednesday...

...

The unadjusted jobless rate in Germany rose to 12.1 percent, with 5.037 million people out of work in the nation of 82 million, as a new benefit system swelled the ranks of the registered jobless, the government's Federal Labor Agency said. The total rose by 573,000 from December.

I've been following Germany's economy and I am so confused by the ignorance of the Germans. Their entire policy, the political one, has been anti-American vis-a-vis the Iraq War. Someone forgot to look inside and find out why someone as popular as Helmut Kohl was ousted in favor of Schroeder in the first place?

Get ready for the opposition to sweep in the next elections. 12.1% unemployment is horrid.

[tke711]

12.1% is more than horrid. If the opposition can't win now, they are really doing something wrong.

[Stiofán]

Ahhhhh, the benefits of socialism. Regulate the big nasty businesses to death, offer plenty of high taxes to pay for all the social programs, and what do you know.

Plus, they've never done a good job of integrating the east's workforce into their economy.

[Kangaroo]

Hmmm. High unemployment. Next thing you know some communists will start making political in-roads and then some reactionary right-wingers will get into power promising leibensraum. Well - probably not.

France is at 9.4% unemployment. So the two economic powerhouses behind the EU are in trouble. Plus, they are attacking the Dollar in favor of the Euro. Hmm - I smell implosion, and soon. Hopefully it will be a long term economic disaster, like what happened to Japan.

[tke711]

It's looking that way. The entire EU has an average of 8.9% unemployment (http://europe.tiscali.co.uk/index.jsp?section=Business&level=preview&content=302047).

[Pyrion]

I can only hope it gets worse. Socialist economies are fated to implode in on themselves, so when the amount paid out to welfare recipients exceeds the supply and their governments go broke, we can see just how "superior" socialism is.

[Steve]

You, uh, talking about socialism, there, Pyrion, or making a comment about welfare and social security in the U.S.? ;)

[Pyrion]

The former. I'm not too fond of "social security" in the states either though. I just appreciate that there's a simple majority in the states that recognizes the inherent problems behind socialism.

[Steve]

I wonder if it's possible to have de facto socialist public welfare policies and yet maintain a more-or-less capitalistic economic system? In many respects, the U.S. is a blend of the two and it's easy to see how over-taxation for the purpose of funding social welfare programs could easily tip that scale toward outright socialism.

[Pyrion]

Up until you have more people feeding off the system than you have putting into the system, if all else is considered equal. Then you either slash other budgets to maintain the level of welfare or slash the welfare budgets and the majority is forced to cope, though you risk civil unrest as the people get their "entitlements" taken away.

[Stiofán]

And one reason the Euros in question are feeding on the muslim immigration teat to solve their future workforce problems to pay for the social programs promised to this generation. Like a junkie on Horse they denounce it while evermore falling into it's embrace. And the slow dance of death continues.

[Stiofán]

Gawd that post would have pissed "him that is not named" off. :thumbsup: