Economic realities in a unified Germany
Installment #3 of Brent Martin's "European Adventure"
Much of the journalist exchange program to Germany, as well as the few days in Brussels, Belgium, focused on the economy. The reunification of Germany created its own problems. It has also created opportunity.
Germany prides itself on its highly skilled workforce and the quality of its products. You don’t have to travel to Germany to know about the excellent products it makes, but once you arrive at the airport and ride to your hotel in a Mercedes taxi cab, you begin to truly understand.
I mentioned Wolfgang Lutterbach previously. He’s the enthusiastic cheerleader for unions in Germany. Lutterbach, a stout white-haired man with a booming voice who laughs easily, spoke to us about the role labor unions play in the German economy. Lutterbach’s official title is Head of the International and European Union Policy at the German Federation of Trade Unions.
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The Wall that divided West and East Berlin stood as a grim confirmation of former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill’s remarks in Fulton in 1946 when he warned that an “iron curtain” had descended on Europe. The Communist government erected the Wall in 1961 to stop the flood of immigration from East Germany into the West. It came down suddenly in 1989. Berlin has let some segments of the Wall remain. Mostly, though, the Wall is down with only a double-line of bricks outlining where the Wall once stood. The Wall might have come down, but Germany still struggles with the ramifications of reunification.
I had an incredible opportunity to travel to Europe this summer as part of a journalist exchange program. The trip’s primary focus was on Germany, though it also included a stop in Brussels, Belgium where the European Union and NATO have their headquarters. I flew into Berlin, Germany Saturday morning, June 9th, and returned to Missouri Sunday, June 24th.
