Part 1-Quote Interpretation
QUOTE: Destiny of Christianity.--"Christianity came
into existence in order to lighten the heart; but now it has first to burden
the heart so as afterwards to be able to lighten it. Consequently it shall
perish."
from Nietzsche's Human, all too Human, s.119, R.J.
Hollingdale transl.
This quote dissects the thought of Christianity as a
religion that suppresses and condemns natural human nature. Like most
religions, faith is instilled into us to have a sense of peace, guidance,
value, and purpose in life. It is sought out for many because of the bigger
phenomena that is unknown, most prevalent is death. To lighten the heart is to
rid someone of all worries and achieve tranquility within you and in life yet,
Christianity, as well as other religions have become less popular because of their
views on many social and political issues. Abortion, gay marriage, and birth
control are all issues that have changed the minds of many and continue to
become a cultural norm. Many times religion can seem as if it disapproves of people’s
lifestyles and the "sins" that they make, so it could weigh on one's
heart as a burden rather than keep them on a lightened path. People don't want
to feel the guilt of having to uphold any rules or provisions that may
constrain them. Eventually, people will stop believing or following the
regulations of religions which will lead to its perish.
PART 2 - Summary of German Economics
Currently, The European Union is suffering from a strong
recession. Many countries like Greece, Italy, and Spain are struggling to pull
out of their financial crisis. The country that is still sustaining their
economy and upholding EU is Germany. The Confederacy of the EU is relying on
Germany to bail them out of deficit. It
is a decision that Germany, after months of consideration and resilience, has
agreed to finance.
Germany is able to do this because they have become the
strongest and one of the most developed economies is the world. They have the
fifth largest economy in the world with the fourth largest nominal Gross
Domestic Product (GDP). This is because
of decades of government regulations, privatization of state owned companies,
and a tremendous effort in education and vocational training.
Germany’s labor force has also lead to an increase in their
market supplies. They are one of the top 5 countries in the world to have one
of the highest export rates. They have and export driven economy, specializing
in auto parts and automobiles as well as machinery, metals, and chemical goods.
If not for China surpassing them in 2008 they would still be the nation’s
largest exporter. Currently, the government owns 35% of the operation ships
worldwide. They are the home to many headquarters for large retail and luxury
goods companies such as Adidas and Puma, DHL Logistics, T-Mobile, and of course,
Mercedes, BMW, Volkswagen, Audi, and Porsche.
Germany is also the world’s leader in mechanical engineering
systems analysis and design, holding about 20% of this global market. This precision engineering expertise gives
Germany a competitive advantage in producing machine tools (the tools that make
tools and equipment). They encourage many of these companies not to export out
of Germany by not taxing on exports but putting heavy tariffs in place on
exports to sustain the companies that are actual German companies.
Their unemployment rate was the lowest in years after the
2008 crisis they were at a low of six percent and stayed steady in the range
until 2011 were the rate increased due to the strains on the government from
outside pressures of the dwindling European economy. One problem that Germany
does have in their economy is the lack of solar energy is still a very
ambitious and independent resource because
many nations including the U.S. are still heavily dependent
on oil for power. The government is giving subsidies to national companies that
continue to buy German made solar products as another way to increase their
GDP.
Today, Germany is the number one outsourcing and exporting
country of solar panels and solar power energy. Countries like Japan, United
States, and even China trade with Germany for solar power products. They hope
to be completely reliant on solar power within the next 50 years.
Your take on German's economy is perfect. I understand German is the leader in Europe's economy. A country that has accepted bailing out its neighbors is great one. I am thrilled to know from your readings that it is the fifth largest economy in the world.
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ReplyDelete"One example is gay marriage and its controversy of redefining the word marriage."~ Christine Ovalle
ReplyDeleteHello there Christine. I loved the way that you defined the controversy surrounding "Gay Marriage" as almost a battle over the very definition of the word. In fact, two schools seem to be fighting for control of the word and its political implications. Are these two schools of thought not much else than a modern duel between Classicist and Dadaist? I think so. If we think of politics in terms of Dadaism, then it really is a battle between the old and the new. It is interesting that in thinking of such words as "Marriage", we have images in our mind that are predefined by our society. The Dadaist would have taken a step back and reexamined who is really the author of political thought; And what effect does political thought have on the individual. They would certainly have been more wary of mass produced definitions given to such words. I'm not here to argue in one direction or another. However, I do think it is VERY interesting and important to think about the definitions of words and where those images come from; And whether or not they are indeed true. There is a difference between truth and tradition. What images do you see when you think of the word "Knight"? Most people have in their minds Medieval Europe and knights of Caucasian background. However, (I'm very interested in History), there exists plenty of lore about Black Knights in Europe, such as Saint Maurice. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Maurice . This statue on Wikipedia is one of the oldest depictions of a Subsaharan knight in Europe (3rd Century). I use this example to show the power of societal definitions of words... And of the fact that there exists histories about those words that lie directly outside of the scope of what society thinks about them (Their definitions). This is the danger in believing everything you see and hear.