This is a multi-part message in MIME format.
------=_NextPart_000_000C_01C5A8EF.82B6B7F0
Content-Type: text/plain;
charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable
MAGDEBURG, Germany (AP) -=20
Lutz Sigmund supported Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder three years ago. But =
now, as new elections approach, the unemployed east German metalworker =
says he's lost hope in politicians - as have many in Magdeburg, capital =
of the state with the country's highest jobless rate.=20
"Things are all wrong now," said Sigmund, 54, who sat on a bench on the =
drab concrete expanse of the city's main shopping street. "I don't have =
a job any more - they're just messing us around."=20
Sigmund voted for Schroeder's Social Democrats in 2002 but now plans to =
register a protest vote Sept. 18 for The Left Party - an alliance of =
ex-communists and Social Democrat defectors, "although I can't see much =
of a concept there either," he said.=20
Eastern voters, impatient with slow economic progress since German =
reunification and lacking deep-seated party loyalties, are seen as a key =
election factor. Schroeder did well in the east in 2002, but is slipping =
this time.=20
Conservative challenger Angela Merkel enjoys a big lead nationwide over =
Schroeder, and victory would make her Germany's first leader from the =
formerly communist east, as well as the first female chancellor.=20
But she too can count on little support here: Her economic prescription =
would generate even more pain for the depressed east than Schroeder's =
unpopular belt-tightening reform program.=20
Germany remains one of the world's leading economic powers, but there is =
a general sense the nation is in a rut as its fabled social welfare =
system drags on the economy and unemployment balloons.=20
Saxony-Anhalt state, of which Magdeburg is the capital, has an 20.1 =
percent unemployment rate, compared with 11.5 percent nationally, and up =
from 19.9 percent three years ago.=20
Three years ago, a beleaguered Schroeder donned rubber boots to head the =
fight against disastrous floods in east Germany and railed against war =
in Iraq - helping him secure an unexpected knife-edge victory with the =
help of eastern support.=20
He now faces a much tougher sell in eastern towns like Magdeburg.=20
A group of demonstrators greeted Schroeder with whistles and placards =
declaring that "the country needs new politicians" as he arrived for a =
Magdeburg rally Monday night. But in the streets of the town the mood is =
more one of weary resignation.=20
Last year, Magdeburg was at the forefront of protests against plans by =
the chancellor to cut benefits for the long-term jobless.=20
At his rally, Schroeder defended his cuts, asking: "Is it really =
solidarity for everything to stay the same when it has become impossible =
to finance it?"=20
Merkel proposes extending Schroeder's efforts to reform Germany's highly =
regulated labor market and insists she will tackle unemployment more =
decisively. That wins few fans in Magdeburg.=20
"The Christian Democrats aren't going to do any better," says Horst =
Popp, 65, a retired mechanic. "All she wants is power."=20
Popp says he will stick with the Social Democrats for lack of a more =
convincing alternative, even though "everything's going wrong in =
Germany."=20
Schroeder's Social Democrats did well in the east in 2002. They swept =
all 10 of Saxony-Anhalt's directly elected parliamentary seats, only =
months after voters dumped them in regional elections for a =
conservative-led state government.=20
The ex-communists fell below the 5 percent barrier for representation in =
parliament that year, their appeal sapped by Schroeder's flood =
leadership and anti-war stance. But they appear set for a triumphant =
return, gaining a strong voice for their platform of all-out opposition =
to cuts in social programs and potentially complicating other parties' =
efforts to form a governing coalition.=20
"A great chance has opened up for us," front man Gregor Gysi told the =
Welt am Sonntag newspaper this week. "We have to get rid of the =
neoliberal zeitgeist."=20
Polls have shown the party well clear of the 5 percent barrier and as =
high as 30 percent in the east - neck and neck with both the Social =
Democrats and Christian Democrats.=20
Merkel has not been helped by comments from a conservative colleague, =
Bavarian governor Edmund Stoiber, who suggested that easterners were =
less intelligent than western voters and saying he didn't want the =
"frustrated" east again to determine the outcome - an apparent reference =
to his own defeat by in 2002 by Schroeder.=20
------=_NextPart_000_000C_01C5A8EF.82B6B7F0
Content-Type: text/html;
charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable
<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN">
<HTML><HEAD>
<META http-equiv=3DContent-Type content=3D"text/html; =
charset=3Diso-8859-1">
<META content=3D"MSHTML 6.00.2900.2722" name=3DGENERATOR>
<STYLE></STYLE>
</HEAD>
<BODY bgColor=3D#ffffff>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2>
<P>MAGDEBURG, Germany (AP) -=20
<P>Lutz Sigmund supported Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder three years ago. =
But now,=20
as new elections approach, the unemployed east German metalworker says =
he's lost=20
hope in politicians - as have many in Magdeburg, capital of the state =
with the=20
country's highest jobless rate.=20
<P>"Things are all wrong now," said Sigmund, 54, who sat on a bench on =
the drab=20
concrete expanse of the city's main shopping street. "I don't have a job =
any=20
more - they're just messing us around."=20
<P>Sigmund voted for Schroeder's Social Democrats in 2002 but now plans =
to=20
register a protest vote Sept. 18 for The Left Party - an alliance of=20
ex-communists and Social Democrat defectors, "although I can't see much =
of a=20
concept there either," he said.=20
<P>Eastern voters, impatient with slow economic progress since German=20
reunification and lacking deep-seated party loyalties, are seen as a key =
election factor. Schroeder did well in the east in 2002, but is slipping =
this=20
time.=20
<P>Conservative challenger Angela Merkel enjoys a big lead nationwide =
over=20
Schroeder, and victory would make her Germany's first leader from the =
formerly=20
communist east, as well as the first female chancellor.=20
<P>But she too can count on little support here: Her economic =
prescription would=20
generate even more pain for the depressed east than Schroeder's =
unpopular=20
belt-tightening reform program.=20
<P>Germany remains one of the world's leading economic powers, but there =
is a=20
general sense the nation is in a rut as its fabled social welfare system =
drags=20
on the economy and unemployment balloons.=20
<P>Saxony-Anhalt state, of which Magdeburg is the capital, has an 20.1 =
percent=20
unemployment rate, compared with 11.5 percent nationally, and up from =
19.9=20
percent three years ago.=20
<P>Three years ago, a beleaguered Schroeder donned rubber boots to head =
the=20
fight against disastrous floods in east Germany and railed against war =
in Iraq -=20
helping him secure an unexpected knife-edge victory with the help of =
eastern=20
support.=20
<P>He now faces a much tougher sell in eastern towns like Magdeburg.=20
<P>A group of demonstrators greeted Schroeder with whistles and placards =
declaring that "the country needs new politicians" as he arrived for a =
Magdeburg=20
rally Monday night. But in the streets of the town the mood is more one =
of weary=20
resignation.=20
<P>Last year, Magdeburg was at the forefront of protests against plans =
by the=20
chancellor to cut benefits for the long-term jobless.=20
<P>At his rally, Schroeder defended his cuts, asking: "Is it really =
solidarity=20
for everything to stay the same when it has become impossible to finance =
it?"=20
<P>Merkel proposes extending Schroeder's efforts to reform Germany's =
highly=20
regulated labor market and insists she will tackle unemployment more =
decisively.=20
That wins few fans in Magdeburg.=20
<P>"The Christian Democrats aren't going to do any better," says Horst =
Popp, 65,=20
a retired mechanic. "All she wants is power."=20
<P>Popp says he will stick with the Social Democrats for lack of a more=20
convincing alternative, even though "everything's going wrong in =
Germany."=20
<P>Schroeder's Social Democrats did well in the east in 2002. They swept =
all 10=20
of Saxony-Anhalt's directly elected parliamentary seats, only months =
after=20
voters dumped them in regional elections for a conservative-led state=20
government.=20
<P>The ex-communists fell below the 5 percent barrier for representation =
in=20
parliament that year, their appeal sapped by Schroeder's flood =
leadership and=20
anti-war stance. But they appear set for a triumphant return, gaining a =
strong=20
voice for their platform of all-out opposition to cuts in social =
programs and=20
potentially complicating other parties' efforts to form a governing =
coalition.=20
<P>"A great chance has opened up for us," front man Gregor Gysi told the =
Welt am=20
Sonntag newspaper this week. "We have to get rid of the neoliberal =
zeitgeist."=20
<P>Polls have shown the party well clear of the 5 percent barrier and as =
high as=20
30 percent in the east - neck and neck with both the Social Democrats =
and=20
Christian Democrats.=20
<P>Merkel has not been helped by comments from a conservative colleague, =
Bavarian governor Edmund Stoiber, who suggested that easterners were =
less=20
intelligent than western voters and saying he didn't want the =
"frustrated" east=20
again to determine the outcome - an apparent reference to his own defeat =
by in=20
2002 by Schroeder. </P></FONT></DIV></BODY></HTML>
------=_NextPart_000_000C_01C5A8EF.82B6B7F0--
.
|
|
| User: "" |
|
| Title: Re: Germany's a fucking mess. Choked by social programs. |
24 Aug 2005 09:45:26 PM |
|
|
*HIS* "ELECT" *WROTE*:
*ANOTHER* "PRIME" *EXAMPLE* "OF" *HOW* "MUCH" *THE* "PEOPLE" *HAVE*
"SERVED" *THE* "WRONG" *GOD* "AND" *NOW* "THESE" *CRIMINALS* "IN"
*OFFICES* "OF" *LEADERSHIP* "DON'T" *GIVE* "A" *DAMN* "ABOUT" *THE*
"LIVES" *OF* "ALL" *THESE* "PEOPLE" *AND* "WILL" *USE* "THEIR" *BOMBS*
"AND" *NUKES* "TO" *GET* "RID" *OF* "THEM" *JUST* "LIKE" *THEY* "HAVE"
*SO* "MANY" *TIMES* "BEFORE"!!!
.
|
|
|
| User: "" |
|
| Title: Re: Germany's a fucking mess. Choked by social programs. |
28 Aug 2005 05:30:30 AM |
|
|
--- said...
*HIS* "ELECT" *WROTE*:
*ANOTHER* "PRIME" *EXAMPLE* "OF" *HOW* "MUCH" *THE* "PEOPLE" *HAVE*
"SERVED" *THE* "WRONG" *GOD* "AND" *NOW* "THESE" *CRIMINALS* "IN"
*OFFICES* "OF" *LEADERSHIP* "DON'T" *GIVE* "A" *DAMN* "ABOUT" *THE*
"LIVES" *OF* "ALL" *THESE* "PEOPLE" *AND* "WILL" *USE* "THEIR" *BOMBS*
"AND" *NUKES* "TO" *GET* "RID" *OF* "THEM" *JUST* "LIKE" *THEY* "HAVE"
*SO* "MANY" *TIMES* "BEFORE"!!!
That's right. I liked that movie. It was because of
the Assyrian King Tukulti-Ninurta I.
.
|
|
|
|
|
| User: "Aidan" |
|
| Title: Re: Germany's a fucking mess. Choked by social programs. |
24 Aug 2005 11:22:16 PM |
|
|
dreamwalker wrote:
MAGDEBURG, Germany (AP) -
Lutz Sigmund supported Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder three years ago. But
now, as new elections approach, the unemployed east German metalworker
says he's lost hope in politicians - as have many in Magdeburg, capital
of the state with the country's highest jobless rate.
"Things are all wrong now," said Sigmund, 54, who sat on a bench on the
drab concrete expanse of the city's main shopping street. "I don't have
a job any more - they're just messing us around."
Sigmund voted for Schroeder's Social Democrats in 2002 but now plans to
register a protest vote Sept. 18 for The Left Party - an alliance of
ex-communists and Social Democrat defectors,
<*snip*>
Good to see he recognises that any move to the right of the political
spectrum would worsen the situation....
posted by dickwad no less... fabulous
.
|
|
|
|
| User: "Aidan" |
|
| Title: Re: Germany's a fucking mess. Choked by social programs. |
24 Aug 2005 11:22:24 PM |
|
|
dreamwalker wrote:
MAGDEBURG, Germany (AP) -
Lutz Sigmund supported Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder three years ago. But
now, as new elections approach, the unemployed east German metalworker
says he's lost hope in politicians - as have many in Magdeburg, capital
of the state with the country's highest jobless rate.
"Things are all wrong now," said Sigmund, 54, who sat on a bench on the
drab concrete expanse of the city's main shopping street. "I don't have
a job any more - they're just messing us around."
Sigmund voted for Schroeder's Social Democrats in 2002 but now plans to
register a protest vote Sept. 18 for The Left Party - an alliance of
ex-communists and Social Democrat defectors,
<*snip*>
Good to see he recognises that any move to the right of the political
spectrum would worsen the situation....
posted by dickwad no less... fabulous
.
|
|
|
|
|
Related Articles |
|
|
