FRANCE AND GERMANY: ECONOMIC BASKETCASES ON THE VERGE OF RECESSION

France: According to the BBC, yesterday - "French unemployment has risen to its highest level in five years, increasing concerns about the strength of France's economic growth. The jobless rate in March, as measured according to the International Labour Organisation (ILO) method, rose by 0.1% from February to 10.2%. "

Germany: According to the BBC, today - "Germany's six top economic institutes have cut their economic growth forecasts for this year in half. They are now predicting the German economy will grow by just 0.7%, compared with their earlier predictions of 1.5%. Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder has said the new forecasts are 'not good'."

According to the most recent analysis of last years stats, German may ALREADY be in RECESSION - according to RTE, yesterday: "The German economy, the biggest in the 12-country euro zone, slipped into another shallow recession at the end of last year, new data published by the federal statistics office, Destatis, showed today. According to the revised data, German gross domestic product contracted slightly in both the third and fourth quarters of 2004. Since recession is technically defined as two consecutive quarters of negative growth, the numbers meant that Germany effectively entered into its second very shallow recession in two years."

Meanwhile, across the Channel, in Great Britain - with their SYCOPHANTIC PRO-AMERICAN LAPDOG BLAIR AND THEIR RIGHT-WING, ANGLO-AMERICAN THATCHERITE POLICIES - are doing a LITTLE better - according to BLOOMBERG, today:

Unemployment remains the second lowest in the Group of Seven industrial nations after Japan and interest rates, according to latest figures released by the U.K. government. Unemployment in the three months through February was 4.8 percent, according to the International Labor Organization. That compares with France's 9.8 percent, Germany's 9.7 percent and 5.4 percent in the U.S. in February. [...]

The number of home loans approved by U.K. mortgage lenders in March increased at the fastest pace in seven months, adding to evidence that the 3 trillion-pound housing market may be recovering from a slowdown that began in the second half of 2004. Approvals gained to 91,000 in March from a revised 86,000 in February, the Bank of England said in London today. That's above the six-month average of 84,000. Net mortgage lending grew 7 billion pounds ($13.4 billion) after increasing 7.1 billion pounds in the previous month. ``There's life out there,'' said Geoffrey Dicks, an economist at Royal Bank of Scotland Plc in London. ``The figures are surprising on the upside. This may not have immediate policy implications but it does take away some of the downside risk.''

Socialism - which is what they got in France and Germany, and what Thatcher GOT RID OF in Great Britian - is an UTTER FAILURE; socialism fails to accomplish what it sets out to. People who maintian allegiance to socialism - in spite of the fact that it has failed EVERYWHERE AND EVERYTIME IT'S BEEN TRIED - are insane.

Free markets and Hayekian/Reaganesque/Thatcherian government and tax policies are better for EVERYONE - including "the workers." THE UNEMPLOYMENT RATE IN THE USA AND IN GB IS HALF OF WHAT IT IS IN FRANCE AND GERMANY!

WHY SHOULD WE CARE ABOUT THE PERFIDIOUS FRENCH AND GERMAN ECONOMIES? Because, it's better for Americans if Continental Europe is GROWING rather than shrinking - we need them as CUSTOMERS.

Continental Europe needs a Thatcher and they need her NOW!

More at AMERCIAN THINKER on the POLITICAL CRISIS in the EU - and it's fascinating essay which is LINK-FILLED, so be sure to check it out. When you consider how eff'ed-up Continental Europe is - (they're economically and politically tottering... and remember: they NEARLY ALL have state-sponsored religions, too) - you gotta wonder - as Thomas Lifson, editor of The American Thinker does: "Now why exactly is it that some American elites regard Europe as any kind of model for us? It must be the cuisine."