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Quote by: Matt Germany is a bogus example, and Mr.V knows it. You've effectively got one country trying to support two, with the burden of reunification. |
I doubt Vicchio wishes to know anything of the sort, but you're right. And in addition to the burden of supporting a whole extra country (a decision taken by a Christian Democrat government, let it not be forgotten) here's an interesting fact:
Germany derives about 40% of its national income from exports. For the US it's about 10%. So when you hear Americans chuckling about high unemployment in Germany, just remember that German workers are four times more heavily exposed to competition from cheap foreign manufacturers than their grinning US counterparts.