Posted on 12/28/2002, 7:53:03 PM by jimbo123
BERLIN (AP) - They re-elected him only in September, but these days Germans who voted Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder back into office are letting their anger flow freely - workers, corporate bosses, even his political allies.
Insurance salesman Guenter Pehnemann grouses about the tax hikes Schroeder said he wanted to avoid, then announced by the dozen after his re-election. Physiotherapist Claudia Muhlke supports Schroeder, but complains of a "chaotic" government with no apparent strategy for reviving the economy and keeping Germany's costly social safety net from going bust.
The complaints echo those of millions of Germans whose loss of faith in their 58-year-old leader has sent his approval ratings plunging from a pre-election 55 percent to as low as 33 percent and even forced him to slap down media speculation that he might quit. "The chancellor will not leave the ship," he insisted this month.
Schroeder's Social Democrats and their coalition partner, the Greens, eked out a narrow victory Sept. 22 after taking a strong stance against war in Iraq that chilled Berlin's relations with its American ally. But discontent over taxes has eclipsed war worries since then.
"Things can't go on like this," said Pehnemann, venting his frustration at a newsstand near Schroeder's fenced-off chancellery in Berlin. "Nobody has any idea what to expect anymore. I talk with three or four small businessmen every day, and the mood is down in the dumps."
Perhaps most damaging is the charge of deception - that Schroeder waited until after his re-election to reveal a large budget hole and raid people's pockets for more taxes.
"What drives me up the wall is that no one told us the truth before the election," Pehnemann said.
Schroeder denies misleading voters. But conservative opponents are calling it "election fraud" and demanding a parliamentary inquiry, and a rap song satirizing the chancellor as a tax-grabber tops the German charts.
Schroeder's hastily drafted revenue-raising plans hit so far and wide that Germans find plenty to be outraged about. Plane tickets, flowers, heating oil - all are set to become more expensive next year, and a popular government subsidy for homebuilders is to be slashed by nearly $3,000.
Even a children's favorite is being targeted: "Surprise eggs," chocolate candies with a toy inside, are taxed as food, but will now be slapped with the full rate for toys, upping the price 8 percent to 54 cents.
The rush to raise taxes has also raised alarm bells among Greens. "Either this government gets back on track or we'll all sink together," Dieter Salomon, the Green mayor of the southern city of Freiburg, said recently.
Schroeder's troubles are raising deeper questions about the future of a welfare-state economy that is among Europe's most generous, but takes about 40 percent of a single-earner household's income in payroll and income taxes, plus an income tax surcharge to rebuild formerly communist East Germany, and even a "church tax" to finance congregations of Germany's various faiths.
As the population ages and the birthrate dwindles, many wonder who will replenish the coffers. And Germany has the added burden of being looked to by the rest of Europe to pull the continent's economy.
Launched in the 19th century by conservative chancellor Otto von Bismarck to blunt the rise of socialism, the welfare system has steadily grown since World War II to encompass cradle-to-grave coverage. One-time payments range from "motherhood money," up to $1,670 to help offset costs of bringing home a new baby, to "burial money" of around $1,000 toward funeral costs.
There's free school tuition and health care, subsidized spa visits and help with the rent. Lost your job? The state will pay up to two-thirds of your salary for two years and eight months. Working fewer hours because of production cuts? The state may make up the lost pay. Construction workers, meanwhile, can ask for "winter money" to tide them over during the cold months.
Nearly every second euro spent in Germany is spent by the government, the majority for social programs. In the United States, government's share of spending is about a third.
Some programs have actually become more generous under Schroeder, like the subsidy for families that lets parents of all incomes claim at least $157 a month per child, besides motherhood money.
Economists have argued for years that trimming benefits would help lift Europe's biggest economy, stuck at near-zero growth and a 9 percent jobless rate.
But Schroeder, whose party depends on labor union support, has avoided addressing the issue head-on. Instead, soon after the election the government ordered a 2 percent hike in the payroll tax that finances retiree benefits. Already, experts say more increases are virtually inevitable.
Schroeder's conservative predecessor, Helmut Kohl, also bucked the persistent call for overhauling the welfare system, resisting cuts in benefits for 16 years. When he finally took action near the end of his term, he provoked howls of protest, and as soon as Schroeder was elected in 1998, he revoked the measures.
Some Social Democrats, keen to preserve their image as defenders of the welfare state, have suggested Germans can stand even more taxes than Schroeder has imposed.
Physiotherapist Muhlke said she had no regrets about voting for a second term for Schroeder, yet she too found something to fault: a planned 50 percent rise in a tax on people using a company car.
"Totally absurd," said Muhlke, 32, bundled up against the cold outside a department store in Berlin's blue-collar Wedding neighborhood. "It just means more people will lose their jobs in the car industry."
Melanie Organista, a 20-year-old geriatric nurse trainee, says she has lost faith.
"I like working for old people, but I want to get something out myself when I retire," she said. "I'm not counting on Schroeder anymore. I'm asking myself: Why did you vote for him?"
When the greens are worried about high taxes, you've got a big problem. Seriously, that's Armageddon.
But hey, my German brethren.. you got what you wanted, you got your "anti-American" president.
Hope it was worth it.
Maybe we will see that in California!
To Schroeder and those who voted for him, to heck with 'em. How could anyone vote for him on his record. He broke every promise.
Here's hoping Schroeder needs a favor from Bush before he gets thrown out or quits. He can eat dirt for what he said about the good ole USA!
Way Kool! But please don't tell Gray Davis.
Makes you wonder why people over there even bother get up for work in the morning. Nothing kills incentive to do a good job better like guaranteeing safety nets like this. I'm sure there are millions of Germans actually looking to get laid off so they can enjoy over two years of paid "vacation" time. As it is, even the workers get six weeks a year guaranteed.
"What drives me up the wall is that no one told us the truth before the election," Pehnemann said.
Well, duh!!! What else do you expect from a liberal? The truth? Get real!
LOL! By the 40's that socialist was running amok all over Europe! ;-)
This is what the Founding Fathers meant to abolish when they drafted the First Amendment, not the saying of "Merry Christmas" at public schools.
Most people forget, because there are other things more important-like being enticed by all the wonderful promises made by the deceivers. They are also more happy when they drag other people down into the socialist muck.
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