Kultur Zwei

It’s no secret that Germany and its European neighbors, and in all honesty every major country in the world, are worried about the possibility of a massive failure of the Euro as a currency system. Der Spiegel highlights one of the reasons why this is the case. The system in which Germans are able to live for a prolonged period of time as students, who are a drain on state resources more so than a graduated member of the workforce, can be applied to other countries in Europe as well. Government welfare systems, “the Dole” as Spiegel calls Germany’s system, are ironically cited by German politicians as the source of the plight that Greece, Spain, and Italy currently find themselves; to an extent those officials have a point. Germany, for the time being, does have a sufficiently large export economy and industrial base to offset similar circumstances, but many fear that if the other countries fail, a domino effect could cause serious harm to the economic state of Germany.
On a lighter note, we all got a taste of the nonsensical side of the usually efficient and logical Germans. The aversion to drugs seems very alien to Americans, who are used to a market where drugs are monitored closely by the FDA, their sale and consumption generally a worry-free affair. While some could argue that the avoidance of prescription drugs is a good thing, as it promotes an attitude that values clean habits and reliance on organic remedies, I don’t think I’d be willing to give up my anti-biotics anytime soon. Similarly, the German “fear” of drafting air would most likely appear nonsensical to any American. Then again, I don’t think cruising down the Autobahn with the window down would be a very relaxing experience, anyway.