Modern Germany is an example of a perfectly functioning neoliberal state with a developed capitalist economy, which occupies an important place in the global structure of production and consumption. The powerful economy of the country relies on a high-tech industry, a developed service sector and the most modern information technologies, which are equipped not only with commercial firms, but also with state institutions and socially important organizations.
Life in Germany: how it works
Being one of the most developed countries in Europe, Germany attracts seekers for a better fate from around the world. Almost any person who is a professional in any field can find application for his talents in this country.
Almost all industries in Germany require specialists of an extremely high level of competencies, which can be acquired at traditional German universities. Many of these universities occupy high positions in the international ratings of educational institutions.
Following the principles of an open and hospitable society, the German authorities establish very loyal requirements for foreign students who wish to study at German higher schools. However, the main requirement for scholarships, grants and, of course, subsequent employment is still high-level German proficiency.
German hospitality
Angela Merkel will certainly go down in history as one of Germany’s most gifted Chancellors. Wanting to emphasize her special merits, the Germans introduced the feminitive "chancellor", which previously did not exist in German, into circulation. But first of all, Angela Merkel will be remembered for her humane approach to resolving the humanitarian crisis that has developed in Europe since 2014 and was caused, apparently, by the undulating increase in the number of refugees from the warring states of the Middle East and North Africa. Despite the growing discontent among citizens, Mrs. Chancellor continues to insist that Germany is obliged to accept those who really need patronage, providing them with at least the most necessary: shelter, basic medical care and a basic set of products.
The capital of Germany has accepted a large number of refugees from states in humanitarian distress, and this, of course, could not but affect the urban space, because the load on social infrastructure has increased many times. However, the governments of the country and of Berlin itself pay great attention to the development of urban infrastructure, which is so necessary in these difficult times. Thus, Germany is a home for millions of victims in need of help.
Geography and Economics
Germany, whose geography over the centuries has been extremely favorable for the comprehensive development of industry, crafts and trade, entered the phase of active capitalist development relatively late. Countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom and Spain had already achieved a fairly high level of economic and industrial development at the end of the XLX century, but Germany was still an extremely paramilitary alliance of disparate principalities, duchies and kingdoms.
Thus, political instability, conflicts between various interest groups and influential ruling houses did not allow rapid development to take place in a short time.
Everything changed with the advent of Chancellor Bismarck, who managed the incredible - he not only united the German people, but also achieved fairly rapid industrialization and modernization. Gaining strength, Germany initiated a war that radically changed the course of human history. Germany emerged from World War I completely devastated, plundered and virtually torn to pieces. Life in Germany after that catastrophic defeat was restored for a rather long time, but it all ended in another war, which ultimately led to even more humiliating consequences for the whole people.
After the disaster
After the Second World War, German policy was aimed at economic and social development, as well as peaceful coexistence with neighbors. Slowly but relentlessly, the German government corrected the mistakes of its predecessors by paying compensation and publicly admitting guilt. Germany after the war was an extremely miserable sight: destroyed cities, destroyed industry and the division into two states.
The initial division into zones of occupation of the defeated empire led to the creation of two states - the GDR and the FRG. It would be wrong to say that at that moment German policy was unified.
The German state, created with the participation of the United States and Britain, was called the Federal Republic of Germany and was under noticeable pressure from its democratic allies. The East German state was named the German Democratic Republic. At the same time, both countries claimed Berlin, which was also divided into two parts - western and eastern. Such a neighborhood could not but create excessive tension due to the fact that the citizens of East Germany were actively trying to escape from their all-seeing authoritarian government in the zone of responsibility of democratic states.
For a limited time, the problem of flight of citizens was practically solved when the Berlin Wall was built, dividing the city until 1990. However, the already uncontrolled flight of people to the west through extended borders with neighboring states nullified the effect of this structure.
Germany: East Germany and Germany
Two states symbolized a model of economic and social development, each of which fundamentally excluded the other. Moreover, it was on the border between the two Germanys that a very intensive cultural exchange took place, because citizens remembered that they had recently lived in one country.
The subsequent economic development of the two neighboring states was also due to the fact that German industries were evenly distributed over the territory of all German lands.
When the Berlin Wall was built, the great country was again divided and substantially weakened for many decades. However, after the collapse of the Warsaw block, a slightly simpler period began in the life of this European nation, because combining two such different life models is not an easy task. A significant difference in living standards also affected: East Germans lived significantly poorer than their fellow citizens in West Germany and were also used to other standards of public services and a different level of responsibility for their lives.
And although the destruction of the barrier between the two states marked the beginning of a new period in the life of the German people, everyone understood that one should not forget about their past. The wall, of course, was not completely destroyed, preserving its separate sections for posterity as a reminder of what excessive belligerence could lead to. The pieces of wall found here and there in Berlin are very popular among tourists who do not forget to capture their meeting with history in the photo.
Twenty years later, in May 2010, a memorial complex called the “Window of Remembrance” was opened in Berlin. Such a romantic name is fraught with the history of many tragic incidents. The dividing line mercilessly cut the living fabric of the city, disregarding the interests of residents, and in places where the border passed under the windows of residential buildings, many GDR citizens died, jumping from the windows in the hope of finding themselves in a capitalist paradise.
Modern Germany: demography
The study of the composition of the population of the republic is carried out by a special statistical agency, which examines the demography of the country. According to the statistics office, after the unification of the country, the population reached eighty million people. Such its number puts Germany in sixteenth place in the world. The composition of the German population is diverse and motley.
Of particular interest is the fact that for many years in a row German demography and the economy have been characterized by slow but steady growth. Even in times of crisis, the population grew, and the economy never went into decline to such an extent that one could speak of a significant recession.
The statistical agency has detailed information not only about the population of the federal republic, but also about its national and religious composition. The availability of such information allows you to plan social spending. For example, it is well known that people who do not profess any religion have fewer children than their religious fellow citizens. At the same time, educated women prefer to have children later than women with low education or completely refrain from childbearing.
However, it is worth clarifying that the stable, albeit small, population growth is based primarily on the fact that Germany, according to the UN report, is the second country in the world in terms of the number of migrants accepted. In the first place, of course, are the United States. It is also noteworthy that the most significant in terms of number and influence of the diaspora is represented by immigrants from Turkey and their descendants. Most of the Turkish immigrants came to the country during the construction boom, which fell on the post-war reconstruction. However, not only workers come to Germany today, but also refugees, to whom the German constitution guarantees political asylum. True, it should be reviewed every year.
Federated device: how it works
One of the most typical federations in the world is Germany. The history of the state indicates that the traditions and customs of individual regions are very important for the construction of a stable and democratic political system. Each of the lands has an impact on national policy through parliamentary elections and presidential elections.
At the same time, citizens are arranging local life through elections to municipalities and land parliaments, which are engaged in the redistribution of funds collected in the form of taxes.
Administratively, Germany is divided into sixteen lands, each of which has its own parliament and government. The most populated is North Rhine-Westphalia with seventeen million inhabitants, the smallest is the free Hanseatic city of Bremen - a land consisting of two cities: Bremen and Bremerhaven proper.
Interesting is the fact that Bremen is the only land in which there is a speed limit on the autobahns: it should not exceed one hundred and thirty kilometers per hour. It is in such seemingly trifles that the true spirit of federalism and democracy is manifested, because citizens themselves establish the rules that most accurately reflect the local way of life.
So, it becomes clear that Germany is a developed democratic country with rich traditions of self-government and federalism.
As for North Rhine-Westphalia, the special status of the region is enshrined in both the Federal Constitution and the laws of the land itself. The united Germany includes the North Rhine in the status of a state, which allows it to have its own parliament and executive body.
Berlin is the youth capital of Europe
Despite the fact that capitals such as Budapest and Prague are gaining more and more popularity among traveling youth, Berlin is still a leader in the ranking of the most dynamic and cultural cities of the European Union. This fame has a solid foundation, because more than six thousand registered artists officially live in the capital of Germany.
Such a number of art workers is connected with the fact that in Berlin the system of art education is very developed, both public and private, as well as non-formal. At the disposal of artists there are a large number of art residences, workshops and, of course, galleries that willingly provide venues for young and talented artists. There are more than four hundred such galleries in the capital, but in reality much more, because there are a huge number of unofficial exhibition venues.
In addition to hundreds of galleries and dozens of museums with world-famous collections, Berlin is also famous for its dance culture, which is represented by a variety of clubs, regular nomadic parties.
State symbols
As mentioned above, Germany is a modern democratic federal state. However, one must remember that, despite all the progressiveness and technological effectiveness, he has a rich and long-standing imperial history, which caused the German people a lot of suffering.
Thus, the modern civil flag of Germany goes back to the first republican flag of the Weimar Republic, which existed from 1919 to 1933. After the Nazi regime was approved in Germany, the flag was abolished, but re-adopted in 1949. The flag and coat of arms of Germany, the importance of which is difficult to overestimate, are an important component of national identity and symbolize the unity of the nation.
The modern flag of the Federal Republic is a three-color canvas with historically important colors for Germany - black, red and gold (top to bottom). These colors were often used in nineteenth-century Germany by movements protesting against the conservative European order established after Napoleon’s defeat.
While the national flag is a simple tricolor with horizontal stripes, the national emblem is placed on the national flag.
The most common heraldic symbol, the eagle, is used on the coat of arms of Germany. The eagle has wings open, but the plumage descends vertically down. The tongue, claws, paws and beak of the eagle are made in red.
The approval of the most important state symbol took place in two stages: at the first, in 1950, only a description of the coat of arms was adopted. Two years later, a graphic display was also approved, i.e. a drawing made in accordance with the previously accepted description. Since Germany is a federal republic, each of its entities has its own emblem, as well as cities have their own historical emblems and flags that have existed for many centuries.
Foreign policy
Germany in the modern world has a very special place in the world political arena. Given the population, level of economic development and military potential, not a single important event in the world can do without the attention of the German Foreign Ministry.
Germany is a member of a huge number of leading international organizations, institutes and institutions. International experts point out that in its strategy the country follows the principle of peace and humanism, remembering the greatest tragedy of the 20th century, which neither the people nor the government want to repeat.
However, this does not prevent the country from taking an active part in the work of NATO - a military-political association - and to provide its territory for housing the US military. In addition, Germany is a full member of the club of nuclear powers, which allows it to take part in the UN Security Council on an ongoing basis, which, in turn, provides significant advantages for lobbying the German interests in the organization.
Peace Initiatives
Although Germany has one of the most powerful armies in the world, it occupies its position thanks in part to global peace initiatives related to humanitarian assistance to the countries of the so-called Third World. Germany, whose geography makes it a crossroads of cultures, receives large numbers of refugees from the warring regions and supplies large volumes of humanitarian aid there for those who have decided not to leave their native country. Ecologically oriented parties have a great influence on intra-German political life, and this has a significant effect, including on the international agenda of the country. Thanks to this, Germany is an active supporter of environmental initiatives aimed at combating global climate change and the effects of industrial pollution.
A balanced environmental policy of the country allows you to maximally compensate for the negative effect of a huge number of industrial enterprises that are subject to strict control by state bodies and non-profit environmental organizations. Germany is one of the leaders in the field of high-tech renewable energy, in which significant private and budget money is invested. It is also important that the best scientific teams of the country, in cooperation with international organizations, are developing ever more modern technologies for energy production.
Briefly about the main thing
To summarize, it is worth saying that a powerful economy, advanced science, quality education and affordable healthcare would not have been possible without effectively functioning state institutions that have been built by German citizens for many decades.
The state and citizens in close cooperation are working to create the most comfortable living conditions on their territory, and human capital is the most important for the whole country.
The German government understands that without careful attention to the needs of people, the stable development of the economy is impossible, and culture is an integral part of human life. It is this attitude towards citizens that allows Germany to occupy the top lines in international ratings of living standards and economic development.
The harmonious development of society and the state was made possible due to the fact that Germany is a legal democratic state with an independent court and government that is not indifferent to the aspirations of its own citizens.