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The “natural disasters” of this summer show that our political and economic model has reached its limits – By Harald Welzer
Here is the good news from the summer of 2010: The economic crisis has
been overcome in Germany; automobile sales are booming, especially of
luxury cars; German exports are reaching high levels thanks to the weak
euro, and skilled and specialized workers, especially engineers, are in
demand; BP has supposedly capped the oil bubbling up from the Gulf of
Mexico, the DAX and the Dow are at permanently high levels.
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Germany reports encouraging figures but what if… – By Uwe Jean Heuser
The economy is growing and even consumer spending has turned a corner. Yet the underlying dangers remain. Banks are uncontrolled and unstable, and foreign markets anything but robust.
As late as April, the German government was forecasting 1.4 percent GDP growth for this year. At the time, that seemed optimistic. In the fall, when the government’s next official forecast is due, those numbers may more than double. Germany’s economic output could expand by 3 percent. Carmakers, machine builders, you name it – many industrial firms are producing full tilt again, needing every pair of hands they can find, and are glad they kept most of their staff on.
THIS ARTICLE WILL BE AVAILABLE ONE WEEK AFTER PUBLICATION.
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The middle class in Germany is in decline – By Ulrike Herrmann
The number of full-time workers paying into the social security system in Germany has been dropping for years. In 2008, it accounted for only 22.4 million of the 40.3 million-strong labor force.
Thomas Greiner, a geologist with a doctorate, has never had a long-term job. He is now 45 years old, and still living from project to project. A two-year post at a research institute in Berlin has just come to an end. Now he is hoping to get a job substituting for a junior professor on sick leave for the next three months.
Greiner has been forced to accept the ups and downs of his employment situation. “At least I can usually get up in the morning when I want to,” he said. He is not the only German who has had to come to terms with an uncertain working life. The number of full-time workers contributing to the social security system is experiencing a steady decline.
THIS ARTICLE WILL BE AVAILABLE ONE WEEK AFTER PUBLICATION.
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The voyeurs’ revolt against Google’s Street View is vastly overdone – By Peter H. Koepf
As Street View goes online in Germany, a number of leading politicians say Google isn’t doing enough to protect privacy. But the critics include lawmakers who back expanding state surveillance.
THIS ARTICLE WILL BE AVAILABLE ONE WEEK AFTER PUBLICATION.
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Dirk Rossmann’s trade secret is quality brands cheap – By Hannes Koch
Dirk Rossmann loves books. For years, he has probably spent more time reading than he has keeping up to date with his company’s fortunes. He is currently reading four different titles simultaneously, one of them a biography of German poet Theodor Fontane. “Achieving composure is the beginning of being effective,” he said.
THIS ARTICLE WILL BE AVAILABLE ONE WEEK AFTER PUBLICATION.
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