This flippant comment completely ignores the known problems with getting rid of rent-seeking behavior. Those that benefit from it will try very hard to keep it

This flippant comment completely ignores the known problems with getting rid of rent-seeking behavior. Those that benefit from it will try very hard to keep it and the vast majority that are harmed, but only by a small amount, will not organize and campaign aggressively for its removal. So it's very possible that the system is not liked by most Germans, but the dynamics are such that it stays the way it is.