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Economic malaise is contagious

Germany?s economy is already in the dumps compared to many others in the European Union, why else is the country often referred to as ?the sick man of Europe?? Even so, there were hopes that recent elections in the Federal Republic would lead to a reformed government led by the first female Chancellor of Germany, Angela Merkel, which itself would work to improve the German economy by reducing unemployment and implementing policies conducive to national economic health. But the troubles of the Social Democrats this week put the incoming cabinet and coalition led by Merkel into jeopardy, and the results should talks fail to get finalized could result in the perpetuation or even the worsening of the German economy, something which other EU members should want to see avoided. After all, though Germany is currently the ?sick man?, it has been one of the strongest economies of post-war Europe thanks to heavy investment resulting from the Marshall Plan. Still, the reunification of West Germany and East Germany following the collapse of the Cold War has hobbled the German economy to no small degree. Add to this the troubles with reaching agreement on a European budget (thanks in part to France), and the financial future of Europe in the next few months is called into question. There is no telling what adverse effects a terrorist attack in a major European country could do to an already shaky economy, and the week of riots in the suburbs of the French capital of Paris aren?t heartening to investors either. It would be better for the world that America and Europe have economies on par with one another, but even the American economy has been hurt by a number of hurricanes and high oil prices. The snap assessment, then, is that it is probably going to get worse before it gets better ? but we should all be hoping that things get better soon.