>They were the only government to take a position of austerity, were widely criticized for it, but they're the only major Western economy that rebounded from th

>They were the only government to take a position of austerity, were widely criticized for it, but they're the only major Western economy that rebounded from the economic crisis. Two problems: 1. As others have noted, Germany's approach can hardly be categorized solely as a position of austerity. 2. Germany wasn't the only major economy to implement austerity measures. The UK implemented measures more dramatic than Germany, and was widely lauded as the model for the rest of the world by American conservatives -- that is, until their economy dramatically contracted, and the conservatives suddenly forgot about them...