The Protestant work ethic, brought to America by early Puritans and other settlers, reinforced the idea that hard work and economic success are signs of divine favor. This theological perspective aligns closely with capitalist ideals, suggesting that market success is a reflection of personal virtue and effort. Consequently, prices determined by the market are perceived as just rewards for one’s labor and entrepreneurial skill, rather than as fixed, objective values.
history
right to negotiate
American law, particularly contract law, emphasizes the freedom to negotiate and bargain without state interference. The principle of caveat emptor, or let the buyer beware, underscores the expectation that both parties in a transaction are responsible for establishing a fair price. Unlike German law, which may emphasize fairness and transparency, American law prioritizes individual autonomy and the right to negotiate based on perceived value.
laissez-faire capitalism
The American faith in market forces was solidified during the Gilded Age, a period characterized by rapid industrialization, economic expansion, and laissez-faire capitalism. Entrepreneurs like John D. Rockefeller and Andrew Carnegie amassed vast fortunes through aggressive pricing strategies, demonstrating that the market, not moral or ethical considerations, was the ultimate arbiter of value.
Federalism in Germany: Small states are annoying! Glad we have them!
December 2018. 16 school systems, 16 police forces, 16 constitutional courts: German federalism often seems inefficient and outdated, most recently with the digital pact. A look at history shows what makes small states so valuable – at least when they don’t degenerate.
It seems bizarre: the federal government wants to give the states five billion euros to digitize schools – and only then should the Basic Law be changed. The mediation committee is called, a coalition is in dispute – and all because Germany is a federal state.
The constitutionally enshrined division of Germany into federal states was born out of historical experience, has grown over a long time and also shows some signs of use, almost 70 years after the Basic Law came into force.
Bavarians
Bavarians (Bavarian: Boarn, Standard German: Baiern) are an ethnographic group of Germans of the Bavaria region, a state within Germany. The group’s dialect or speech is known as the Bavarian language, native to Altbayern (“Old Bavaria”), roughly the territory of the Electorate of Bavaria in the 17th century.
Like the neighboring Austrians, Bavarians are traditionally Catholic. In much of Altbayern, membership in the Catholic Church remains above 70%, and the center-right Christian Social Union in Bavaria (successor of the Bavarian People’s Party of 1919–1933) has traditionally been the strongest party in the Landtag, and also the party of all Ministers-President of Bavaria since 1946, with the single exception of Wilhelm Hoegner, 1954–1957.
Bavaria: tradition in danger
Günther Hochhäuser is a passionate marksman who fights to maintain the traditions of his homeland, Upper Bavaria. The Christian Social Union, who has been in power here for decades, could get a drubbing in upcoming elections — to Hochhäuser’s dismay.
Marksmen’s clubs stand for everything Bavaria is famous for: folk costumes, cultural lore and tradition. Their chairmen include illustrious public figures, such as former Pope Benedict and Prince Max, Duke in Bavaria.
Marksman Günther Hochhäuser says “We are a pillar of strength.” But that pillar looks to be on increasingly shaky ground. Bavaria and even the seemingly timeless Inn-Chiemgau shooting club are being overtaken by the tides of change. Until recently, voting for the conservative CSU party was a given.
But recent polls say that the CSU will suffer big losses in the upcoming state elections. Many Bavarians are angry that German interior minister Horst Seehofer, a member of the CSU, recently came close to bringing down the country’s governing coalition. Axel Rowohlt reports.
How the Thirty Years war affected Germany
The Thirty Years War (1618-1648) was a brutal conflict that saw most major European powers use Germany as a battleground to sort out their assorted dynastic, religious, economic and territorial issues. The toll this took on the country was massive, and reverberated for long after; let’s take a look at some of the damage it did.
The Thirty Years War has earned a reputation for being a particularly nasty conflict: unlike most wars of the day, and arguably no wars until the 20th century, it saw massive civilian casualties, with parts of Germany losing more than half of their population. It’s estimated that of a German population of about 20 million in 1600, by 1650 only about 13 million were alive.
Thirty Years War
This episode of Ten Minute History (like a documentary, only shorter) covers the outbreak of the Bohemian Revolt which was what would eventually spiral out of control into the Thirty Years’ War.
The revolt was crushed fairly quickly but sparked intervention by Denmark, who didn’t do too well, and later Sweden who did very well. Both of these were aided by France who decided to get directly involved in 1635.
By 1648 the Holy Roman Empire lay in ruins, with Austria and Spain struggling to pay for the war and rebuild the Habsburg Empire. This war saw the rise of Sweden and France but most importantly saw the foundations of modern diplomacy built.
Kleinstaaterei
Klein means small. Staaterei means states or statehood.
Kleinstaaterei is a generally pejorative German-language catchphrase for what is perceived as a particularly pronounced federal structure, particularly in relation to territorialization and federalism in Germany. As early as the beginning of the 18th century, early Enlightenment literature criticized German small-stateism and publicly expressed the wish for a nation state.
Event organizers despair of the German small state
The jungle of corona measures meant that tours had to be canceled. Here federalism shows its deterrent face.
There was great hope that everything would change with the vaccinations against the corona virus, that cultural life could start again, that normality would return and that everyday corona life would become a case for the history books. But Germany is still a long way from that.
The theaters are playing again, the local cultural actors can also be seen again and get their performances, but the nationwide event business is not really getting off the ground. Just recently, Die Ärzte, Peter Maffay and Nena canceled their planned tours almost simultaneously: One of the reasons for this was the different corona rules in the federal states.