Modern Germany is an example of a perfectly functioning neo-liberal state with a developed capitalist economy that occupies an important place in the global structure of production and consumption. The country's powerful economy is based on high-tech industry, a developed service sector and the most modern information technologies, which are equipped not only for commercial firms, but also for government agencies and socially important organizations.
Life in Germany: how things work
As one of the most developed countries in Europe, Germany attracts seekers of a better fate from all over the world. Almost anyone who is a professional in any field can find application for their talents in this country.
Practically all industries in Germany require extremely high levels of competencies from specialists, which can be acquired at traditional German universities. Many of these universities rank high in international rankings of educational institutions.
Following the principles of an open and hospitable society, the German authorities set very loyal requirements forforeign students wishing to study at German universities. However, the main requirement for receiving scholarships, grants and, of course, subsequent employment is still a high level of German language skills.
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 had not previously existed in the German language. But first of all, Angela Merkel will be remembered for her humane approach to resolving the humanitarian crisis that has been developing in Europe since 2014 and caused, apparently, by a surge in the number of refugees from the warring states of the Middle East and North Africa. Despite the growing discontent among citizens, Madam 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 received 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 facilities has increased many times over. However, the governments of the country and Berlin itself pay great attention to the development of urban infrastructure, which is so necessary in these difficult times. Thus, Germany is home to millions of victims in need ofhelp.
Geography and Economics
Germany, whose geography for centuries has been extremely conducive to the all-round 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 reached a fairly high level of economic and industrial development at the end of the XlX century, but Germany was still a highly militarized union of disparate principalities, duchies and kingdoms.
Thus, political instability, conflicts between various interest groups and influential ruling houses did not allow rapid development in a short time.
Everything changed with the coming to power of Chancellor Bismarck, who managed the incredible - he not only united the German people, but also achieved a fairly rapid industrialization and modernization. Gaining strength, Germany initiated a war that radically changed the course of human history. Germany emerged from the First World War completely devastated, plundered and actually torn to pieces. Life in Germany after that catastrophic defeat was restored for quite a long time, but it all ended with another war, which ultimately led to even more humiliating consequences for the entire people.
After the disaster
After the Second World War, Germany's policy was aimed at economic and social development, as well as peaceful coexistence with neighbors. Slowly but relentlessly Germanicthe government corrected the mistakes of its predecessors by paying compensation and publicly admitting guilt. Germany after the war was an extremely pitiful sight: destroyed cities, destroyed industry and 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 Germany's 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 undue tension due to the fact that the citizens of East Germany were actively trying to slip away from their all-seeing authoritarian government into the zone of responsibility of democratic states.
For a limited time, the issue of citizen flight was all but solved when the Berlin Wall was built, dividing the city until 1990. However, the already uncontrolled flight of people to the west across the long borders with neighboring states nullified the effect of this structure.
Germany: GDR and FRG
The two states symbolized models of economic and social development, each of which fundamentally excluded the other. At the same time, it is on the border between the two Germanysthere was a very intense cultural exchange, because the citizens remembered that until recently they lived in one country.
The subsequent economic development of the two neighboring states was also due to the fact that German industries were distributed evenly over the territory of all German lands.
When the Berlin Wall was built, the great country again found itself divided and significantly weakened for many decades. However, after the collapse of the Warsaw bloc, a slightly simpler period came in the life of this European nation, because to combine two such different models of life is not an easy task. There was also a significant difference in the standard of living: East Germans lived significantly poorer than their fellow citizens in the West of Germany and, moreover, were accustomed to other standards for the provision 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 one's past. The wall, of course, was not completely destroyed, saving some of its sections for posterity as a reminder of what excessive militancy can lead to. Found here and there in Berlin, pieces of the wall are very popular with tourists who do not forget to capture their meeting with history in the photo.
After twenty years, in May 2010, a memorial complex called "Window of Memory" was opened in Berlin. Such a romantic name is fraught with the history of many tragic incidents. Separation linemercilessly cut the living fabric of the city, ignoring the interests of the inhabitants, and in places where the border passed under the windows of residential buildings, many citizens of the GDR died, jumping from the windows in the hope of finding themselves in a capitalist paradise.
Modern Germany: demographics
Studying the composition of the population of the republic is carried out by a special statistical agency that studies the demography of the country. According to the statistical office, after the unification of the country, the population reached eighty million people. This 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 the German demographics and economy have been characterized by slow but steady growth. Even in times of crisis, the population has grown and the economy has never declined to the point of a significant recession.
The assets of the statistical agency have 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 planning social expenditures. For example, it is known for certain that persons who profess no 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 refrain from having children at all.
However, it is worth clarifying that stable, albeit small, population growthcountries is based primarily on the fact that Germany, according to a UN report, is the second country in the world in terms of the number of accepted migrants. First, of course, is the United States. It is also noteworthy that the most significant diaspora in terms of size and influence is represented by immigrants from Turkey and their descendants. Most Turkish immigrants came to the country during the construction boom that followed the post-war reconstruction. However, not only workers come to Germany today, but also refugees who are guaranteed political asylum by the German constitution. However, it should be reviewed every year.
Federated: how it works
One of the most typical federations in the world is Germany. The history of the state shows that the traditions and customs of individual regions are very important for building a stable and democratic political system. Each of the lands influences national politics through elections to the country's parliament and presidential elections.
At the same time, citizens are equipping local life through elections to municipalities and state parliaments, which are engaged in the redistribution of funds collected in the form of taxes.
Administratively, Germany is divided into sixteen states, 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 proper and Bremerhaven.
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 the citizens themselves establish the rules that most accurately reflect the local way of life.
Thus, it becomes clear that Germany is a developed democratic country with rich traditions of self-government and federation.
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 North Rhine is part of the united Germany 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 becoming increasingly popular among traveling young people, Berlin still remains the leader in the ranking of the most dynamic and cultural cities in 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 due to the fact that Berlin has a very developed system of art education, both public and private, as well as informal. There are a large number of art residences, workshops and, of course, galleries at the service of artists, which willingly provide platforms for young and talentedartists. There are more than four hundred such galleries in the capital, but in reality there are 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 traveling parties.
State symbols
As mentioned above, Germany is a modern democratic federal state. However, we must also remember that, despite all the progressiveness and manufacturability, he has a rich and long-standing imperial history that 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 establishment of the Nazi regime in Germany, the flag was abolished, but re-adopted in 1949. The flag and coat of arms of Germany, whose importance cannot be overestimated, 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 the conservative European order that had been established since the defeat of Napoleon.
While the civil flag is a simple tricolor with horizontal stripes, the national flagthe coat of arms of the republic is placed.
The coat of arms of Germany uses the most common heraldic symbol - the eagle. The eagle's wings are open, but the plumage descends vertically downwards. The tongue, claws, paws and beak of the eagle are all red.
The approval of the most important state symbol took place in two stages: at the first, in 1950, only the description of the coat of arms was adopted. Two years later, a graphical representation was also approved, that is, a drawing made in accordance with the previously accepted description. Since Germany is a federal republic, each of its subjects 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 global political arena. Given the size of the population, the level of economic development and military potential, not a single important event in the world can pass without the attention of the German Foreign Office.
Germany is a member of a huge number of leading international organizations, institutions and institutions. International experts point out that in its strategy the country follows the principle of peacefulness and humanism, remembering the greatest tragedy of the 20th century, the repetition of which neither the people nor the government wants. However, this does not prevent the country from taking an active part in the work of NATO - military-political association - and provide their territory for the quartering of the US military. In addition to everything, Germany is a full member of the club of nuclearpowers, which allows it to take part in the UN Security Council on a permanent basis, which, in turn, gives significant advantages for lobbying German interests in the organization.
Peace initiatives
Although Germany has one of the most powerful armies in the world, it occupies its position, among other things, thanks to global peace initiatives relating to humanitarian assistance to the countries of the so-called Third World. Germany, whose geography makes it a crossroads of cultures, takes in large numbers of refugees from the warring regions and supplies there with large amounts of humanitarian aid for those who have decided not to leave their home country. Ecologically oriented parties have a great influence on internal German political life, and this significantly affects, among other things, the country's international agenda. Thanks to this, Germany is an active supporter of environmental initiatives aimed at combating global climate change and the effects of industrial pollution.
The country's balanced environmental policy makes it possible to maximally compensate for the negative effect of a huge number of industrial enterprises, which 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 public money is invested. It is also important that the best scientific teams of the country, in cooperation with international organizations, are developing allmore advanced technologies for energy production.
Briefly about the main things
Summing up, a strong economy, progressive science, quality education and affordable he althcare would not be possible without the well-functioning state institutions that German citizens have built over the decades.
The state and citizens are working closely 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, stable economic development 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 rankings of living standards and economic development.
The harmonious development of society and the state became possible due to the fact that Germany is a legal democratic state with an independent court and a government that is not indifferent to the aspirations of its own citizens.
