Two Letters in the NYTimes

To the Editor:
Re "German Growth Bolsters Its Stance on Recession" (front page, Aug. 14), about Germany’s remarkable recovery in the midst of global recession:

German capitalism is an almost entirely different creature from the one that American workers have to contend with. Germany has about 60 percent unionization. And German workers have fully 50 percent representation on corporate boards. Then there are the works councils, in which German labor sets many of the basic rules of employment, not to mention cheap, superior and universal health care.

All in all, the German model of fully empowered labor cooperation with management has produced a far more robust, rational and moral economy than the one we have, in which labor has little say, firing employees is cause for celebration and lavish bonuses are given in the executive suites. The only worker satisfaction to be had here is to grab a couple of beers and pull the escape cord Steven Slater-style.

Gary Borg
Chicago, Aug. 14, 2010

To the Editor:
As I read the article describing Germany’s impressive economic growth this past quarter, the obvious question for us is: Why aren’t we following this path, too?

Loose credit and excessive spending got us into the mess we’re still in. So I don’t understand why the solution both the Fed and the Treasury are pushing is easy credit to stimulate more consumer spending. This is a sure recipe for another bubble and crash.

We should be growing our economy by increasing our productivity and exports and not stimulating more spending, which just runs up our debt.

James P. Tuthill
Lafayette, Calif., Aug. 15, 2010