After assuring us for years that their blatant anti-Americanism was merely a reaction to the Bush Administration, the evil deeds of the Great Satan once again have the German media in full cry. Amusing examples abound at the websites of the usual suspects, such as the histrionic Der Spiegel (“Germany hands an Opel ultimatum to the US” “Nerves are on edge. Frustration reigns among the German negotiators, who don’t know where to turn after the failure of the Opel summit. They point to the Americans as the guilty party, claiming they blocked a solution. The US side now has until Friday to put new suggestions on the table – otherwise bankruptcy threatens the car manufacturer.”), the abject Focus (“Outrage grows over the behavior of the US government during the late night Opel negotiations. Now foreign minister Steinmeier is also leveling heavy accusations at the Americans”), and noted purveyor of female pulchritude Stern (“New demand for millions blocks a solution,” “General Motors torpedoes an agreement by demanding an additional 300 million euros. The US government is, obviously, similarly clueless.”)
Similar frothing at the mouth pervades the German MSM, to the point that eyebrows are being raised at the BBC and elsewhere in the European English language media. This has, apparently, had a tonic effect, as the tone of German “reporting” has become rather more sober since this morning.
If a German corporation owned by the German government would file for bancruptcy in the United States causing the firing of hundreds of thousands of workers, the American outrage would match the current German outcry. Germany’s politicians are under enormous pressure to deal with the current economic downturn because the campaigns for the national elections in November have already started.