Germany. Third biggest economy of the world. Airports are bright, clean and quiet. Fast trains only slightly less comfortable than a living room. Incredible levels of wealth wherever you look. The world is coming to Germany and is marveled. Yet, have a look into the newspapers and all you see is doomerism. How can one explain this?
+bonifartius 𒂼𒄄
@dmoser because anyone who lived here for longer than 15-20 years remembers how good it was compared to now.
@bonifartius @dmoser Whoever lived there 15-20 years ago is not 15-20 years older and sicker. What is objectively worse? Except for 15% voting for the neo-fascists?
@StephanSchulz @dmoser
i assume you mean "now" not "not".
let's start with "sick": there were more hospitals. you didn't have to pay for every recipe and quarterly to go to the doctor. there actually were sane unemployment benefits, not the bullshit we have now. you didn't have to pay for public broadcast as quasi tax. medics and firemen weren't regularly attacked. middle school degree was enough for almost all apprenticeships, ...
@bonifartius @dmoser 15-20 year ago was 2004-2009. Hartz-IV was introduced 2003. You seem to think more about rose-coloured version of the 1980s.
@StephanSchulz @dmoser that you have to nitpick about some years give or take only does prove my point :)
@bonifartius @dmoser On the contrary: If you have to grasp far and wide to find your examples, while ignoring all the positive changes, that's a hint that you are cherry-picking (probably not on purpose, but still).
@StephanSchulz @dmoser i'm not sure what was far and wide about my examples. the things i picked are something almost everyone can relate to. i know how things were, don't try to gaslight me nor accuse me of cherry picking while you picked the one example off by a year.
the cutoff should be 2001 anyway.
> The towers are gone now, reduced to bloody rubble, along with all hopes for Peace in Our Time, in the United States or any other country. Make no mistake about it: We are At War now — with somebody — and we will stay At War with that mysterious Enemy for the rest of our lives.
still waiting on the positive changes aside boring technocratic ("highspeed trains!!1") or hedonistic ("legalize weed!!1") bullshit.
