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Germany, it capital Berlin, and neighboring countries
Country Comparisons:
2010: see chart
2010: debt and reserves chart
Germany has a conservative government that supports national health care and maintains an unemployment benefits system more generous than that offered in the United States.
As of 2004, Germany had a health care plan in which working people paid from 8 to 16% of their wages into the system, while the unemployed and retirees received health care free. Those with incomes who were affluent enough could opt out of the system and avail themselves to private health care.
Germany ranks eleventh among advanced industrial powers in revenues as a percentage of GDP: 47.2% compared to 14.2% for the United States in 2010. Its health care figures (life expectancy and infant mortality) are better than those of the United States.
2010: Part of the credit for Germany's recovery goes to the spending habits of the German people. They did not go into debt to the extent that people in the United States did. Without this debt, German consumers are spending their money.
Germany has maintained its manufacturing base rather than shipping jobs overseas. Germany, according the the CIA World Factbook, "is a leading exporter of machinery, vehicles, chemicals, and household equipment and benefits from a highly skilled labor force."
Imports versus exports 2010: Favorable: imports $1.120 trillion, exports $1.337 trillion
The Germans have been working an average of 10% fewer hours than workers in the United States, but Siemens, the telecommunications giant, has extended the work week from 35 to 40 hours per week.
GDP annual real (not per capita) growth rate estimate
2010: 3.6%
2009: -4.7%
2008: 1.3%
2007: 2.5%
Unemployment rate
2010: 7.4%
2009: 7.5%
2008: 7.3%
Germany provides 90% of its food.
Military expenditures as a percentage of GDP
2005: 1.5%
Gender Gap: The World Economic Forum lists Germany as ninth in the world in the elimination of a gender gap. This is ahead of the United States, which does not appear among the top ten.
Living in an urban area
2008: 74%. A litle less than France.
Migration
2011: More arriving than leaving. A net gain of 0.54 persons per 1,000 population
2010: More arriving than leaving. A net gain of 2.19 persons
per 1,000 population.
Religion
2005: 15% of Catholics attend mass weekly (New York Times, April
19, 2005).
The Autobahn
Germany has stretches of highway with no speed limit. Cars are built for speeds over 100 miles per hour. And they do it with fewer
car accident deaths per capita than do people in the United States.
East of the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg and France. West of Poland and the Czech Republic. North of Austria. Germany has two northern coastlines, one on the North Sea, the other along the Baltic Sea. Together they are 2,389 kilometers (1,493 miles) long. At its widest point east and west, Germany is about 970 kilometers (400 miles). At its widest point north and south, it is 750 kilometers (450 miles). Capital: Berlin.
Official name: Federal Republic of Germany
Germany is a parliamentary democracy with a bicameral legislature. The Bundestag (lower house) is the principal legislative body. Either body can initiate legislation. To become law, most legislation must be approved by both bodies and by the executive branch of government -- the prime minister.
Germany is one of the founding members of what is now the European Union.
Big Tent Politics
Germany has twenty-four or more political parties, including the Animal Welfare Party, the German Communist Party, the Green Party, and
a party that some call neo-fascist: the NPD (Nationalist Party of Germany).
But the logic of politics gives dominance to two political parties:
the center-conservative CDU (Christian Democratic Union) and the center-left SPD (Social Democratic Party), historically a moderate
socialist party.
Vitualien Market in the city center is an example of good local government intervention in the a city's economy. It is in an area of expensive real estate, but the city keeps the rents low enough for old-time shops to continue rather than be replaced by fast food franchises.
Pedestrians are around, and a few bicycles and no cars. Rick Steves, the travel guy, says Viktualien Markt is a favorite with locals for fresh produce and friendly service. Says Rick Steves, the PBS travel guy, "The Viktualien Market's beer garden taps you into great budget eating. Stalls sell the best Wurst, sandwiches, produce and more."
Here is a look at Vitualien Markt, a bit different from the mall's in my home city and different from what I see from the parking lot at the local WalMart. http://www.stadtpanoramen.de/muenchen/viktualienmarkt.html
In 1949, the constitution of the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) abolished the death penalty.
The Federal Republic of Germany has been a member of NATO since May 5, 1955.
1990: The Federal Republic of Germany absorbs what had been East Germany (German Democratic Republic).
In the year 2000, the German government banned corporal punishment in child rearing. (My German-American mother would have been dismayed by such a law.)
August 23, 2010: Germany is getting attention because of its recovery from the recent recession and financial crisis. Germany's economic growth for April, May and June (the 2nd quarter) is 2.2%. This stretched to a performance of one year would be a growth rate of almost 9%. And Germany's unemployment rate continues to decline: to 7.5%, or approximately 7.0 using the U.S. method of measurement. This is more than a point lower than it was a few years ago before the financial crisis.
Part of the credit for Germany's recovery goes to the spending habits of the German people. They did not go into debt to the extent that people in the United States have. German consumers are not paying off personal debt to the extent that people are in the United States. Without this debt, German consumers are spending their money.
German exports are booming again. Germany has maintained its manufacturing base rather than shipping jobs overseas. Germany, according the the CIA World Factbook, "is a leading exporter of machinery, vehicles, chemicals, and household equipment and benefits from a highly skilled labor force."
November 24, 2010: In his Washington Post column today, Harold Meyerson writes:
Manufacturing still accounts for nearly a quarter of the German economy; it is just 11% of the British and U.S. economies (one reason the United States and Britain are struggling to boost their exports). Nor have German firms been slashing wages and off-shoring -- the American way of keeping competitive -- to maintain profits.
One key to Germany's miracle is the mittelstand, as the family-owned small and mid-size manufacturing firms that dominate the economy are known. Last week, I visited AWS Achslagerwerk, a factory of one such firm, in the farmlands of Saxony-Anhalt, about two hours west of Berlin. As in many such companies, this factory turns out specialized products: axle-box housings for Chinese and German high-speed trains, machine tools requiring climate-controlled precision measurement. With annual revenue of 24 million euros, the factory has won a significant share of the world market, though it employs only 175 production workers.
Copyright © 2009-2011 by Frank E. Smitha. All rights reserved.