Schröder faces humiliation at polls (HOLD MEIN BIER!)

The Sunday Times ^ | February 2, 2003 | Peter Conradi

[KLT]

Could be a hole ok.....bet his brains leak out....

[The Vast Right Wing]

'Is this a good thing? Right wing Germans have their own history.'

You have to remember that this is europe we are talking about. Right wing in europe typically means you think the state should only control 90% of the economy.

[LiberalBuster]

I guess Germans are getting a bit tired of "All Socialism, All the Time."

[LiberalBuster]

>>You have to remember that this is europe we are talking
>>about. Right wing in europe typically means you think the
>>state should only control 90% of the economy.

Of course, what they don't realize is it is the "socialism" part of National Socialism (NAZIsm) that gives the state the "right" to own the means of production. For an allegedly educated people, they sure are thick.

[nicollo]

This man's arrogance is equal only to that of Clintoon. Blair's recent leadership marks an unimaginable contrast to the "third way" types we heard so much of before.

Does anyone say the word anymore? I haven't heard it in the U.S.ofA since 9/11 or, a year before then, i.e. Bush's ascension. God, how I love to hear from Germans how smart is their Chancellor. He's smart straight into his political grave.

And what of his soon-to-be after life? Have they a library planned for him at Hamburg? Perhaps he can become the Poet Lauriet of Auschwitz. Or Baghdad.

PS Oh how I pine for a peek into the mind of Tony Blair -- what thinks he of our x42 today?

[You Dirty Rats]

I lived in Hanover in 1994. It's long past time for this original home of the current British Royal Family to kick Schroeder's party out of the state premiership of Lower Saxony.

[Stultis]

How small a European government is really means nothing to us here in the States. Ditto with tax rates, social security, ad infinitum.

I'm no expert, but I suspect that the big problem in Europe, overwhelming these other issues, are labor markets that are frozen solid, and other obstacles to corporate restructuring. From the article:

The first signs of a new, more pragmatic Schröder were seen last week when Wolfgang Clement, the economics and labour minister, unveiled plans to cut unemployment benefits and make it easier for small firms to lay workers off.

Reforms like this are essential but, as the article suggested, will meet huge resistance. Wasn't it only last spring that the Red Brigades reemerged in Italy and assasinated the government minister leading the effort to reform Italian labor law?

Europe needs about a dozen Maggie Thatchers to face down the labor unions, but I'm not optimistic. Will conservative parties in Europe have the testicular fortitude to see through the necessary reforms?

[Check6]

Socialism sucks, lernt yet again.

[sushiman]

>His wife is sort of a German Hillary. Flying ashtray?

No , the heel mark of her leather boots stomping on his forehead !

[expatpat]

No, he's thinking of the National Socialists.

[Bonaparte]

"The Christian Democrats are fairly close ideologically to the Republican Party."

The CDU wants to tighten gun control laws even more than they already are. They oppose any foreign deployment of their armed forces. They support all sorts of state pay-outs to families with children, even the continuation of pay-outs to "children" who are well into adulthood. They have completely given up on the rights of the unborn -- it's not even mentioned in their platform. Doesn't sound a whole lot like the Republican party to me.

[elhombrelibre]

Nothing could improve Germany's image in the civilized world like a good and decisive defeat for Saddam's favorite ideological hitman, four times married and working on his fifth, simply "I" Schroeder.

[elhombrelibre]

Today's right-wing Germans are not very far to the right. They're more like country club conservatives. There are libertarians in Germany, but there's no sizable racist party, besides the left-wing anti-Semites.

[Michael81Dus]

The Bundesrat is in control of the opposition yet.
CDU/CSU/FDP/PRO parties have a 35 votes majority in the house (69 members). After taking Lower Saxony over, the majority would be 41 votes.

Now:
35 CDU bloc
11 neutral bloc (SPD/CDU or SPD/FDP governed states)
23 SPD bloc

But more interesting, this more comfortable lead of 41 votes also will bring us a new president in 2004, because we´re having a majority in the Federal Assemby electing the President on May 23 2004.

[MadIvan]

I solemnly predict that none of Germany's problems will receive any sort of resolution until a new government is in place; Schroeder has only one card to play, is playing it repeatedly, and playing it in place of actually making progress on anything.

Regards, Ivan

[Michael81Dus]

It is a good thing, Righ-wing doesn´t mean far-right. We´re a centre-right party, not equally to the Republican party in the US, but if you had the right to vote here, you´d vote CDU. The CDU has enforced German rearmament and integration to the West after WWII, we´re the party of German reunification and Pershing II.

We always defended our young Republic against all enemies from far-right and far-left.

[Michael81Dus]

No, the CDU/CSU is not equally to the Republican party, but you´d vote CDU here, if you had the right to do so!

[Michael81Dus]

He´s isolating Germany completely. He is gone mad... we´re facing interesting times.

[Michael81Dus]

LOL, I hear it always I´m criticizing him in the public. "But he looks so smart - a lot better than your challenger!" Was one of the most popular answers to me during the election campaign in 2002, our candiate was the conservative Governor of Bavaria.

[Michael81Dus]

WHAT?? Wrong, we´re satisfied with our gun laws, and we do not oppose deployment of our troops to the foreign, we were the first to do so in 1994 (Somalia) - then our highest court ruled that it´s ok regarding our constitution.