German Government Formed
The "grand coalition" between Germany's somewhat-conservative Christian Democrats, who hold a plurality in the Bundestag, and their left-wing Social Democrat rivals, has finally been negotiated. Christian Democrat Angela Merkel will be Chancellor, but at a heavy price: her party has agreed to a tax increase on "top wage earners," along with several other tax increases, as the price of the deal.
The BBC reports:
[T]here is not much optimism in Germany that this government will be able to address the country's key problem of mass unemployment.
No, if they keep raising taxes, it's a safe bet that the government won't be able to do anything about mass unemployment.
