Walter, from what I hear, Dresden is suffering the effects of the economic crisis as are other areas. The whole of Germany is suffering from a high unemployment rate. Their system is bloated and at risk of collapsing in the longrun if things don't change. I have friends who go there every year and all of them were really depressed after their most recent visits. I have friends (Germans, not Americans) in Wuerzburg and Giebelstadt who report the same thing.

http://www.destatis.de/indicators/e/arb210ae.htm

Our unemployment rate was 4.6% in May 2006. Not bad at all given the extremely slow job growth for the same period.


>John,
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>>For example, the freedoms taken for granted in Europe and Eurasia today would have been impossible if not for American arms.
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>A much heard statement, but actually a pretty vague one. If the US did not step into WWII, at some point there would be a new world order, with or without the US intervention. Europe has a very rich history of wars, but in between wars there always were periods of peace. 50 years after WWII is a long time and no one knows what would have happened if the US would not have stepped in. Even if hitler was able to get his 3rd empire, we know from history that empires fall appart at some point. OTOH, I doubt if hitler would have survived the red army, and of course we know that the sovjet empire of the warschau pact fell appart by itself anyways. And of course we should not forget there were considerable other allied forces like Canada and the british.
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>That does not take away that we should not be thankfull of liberating us from the Nazis WWII though. OTOH, I can tell, as well as my german colleages that living in germany today isn't that bad at all :) . We are peacefully accepting that they conquer our beaches every summer, digging big defense holes on the beach :)
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>Walter,
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>>IMHO we just need to remember the good as well as the bad, and to be as ready to praise as we are to blame.
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>>As for the invasion: many if not most Americans look at that war and wonder what they have gotten themselves into. They do not need a wave of hatred pouring down on them to be able to ask questions of themselves. It is no wonder some Americans wish they could just slam the door and leave the rest of the world to it.
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>>I have a question for you. I remember one occasion when the Armenian genocide in Turkey was mentioned and you got quite angry. That was sonmething that happened a long time ago and you could not possibly be blamed, but still you were not pleased that somebody raised the accusation about your homeland. I'm wondering what sort of reaction you expect from Americans who are the targets of highly personal attacks and accusations every day?