In Germany, some reject role as financial rescuer

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/in-germany-some-reject-role-as-financial-rescuer/2012/04/02/gIQAAbBhsS_story.html

1. For the last 20 years, since the reunification of East and West Germany, western Germany has funneled $2 trillion dollars worth of aid to the former communist state. East Germany had been a communist state that was left in poverty when the Soviets collapsed. Despite the aid, the east has still trailed far behind the west with an unemployment rate twice that of the west. The lack of success is causing many west Germans to call for an end to the aid that is scheduled to carry on through 2019.  Now the rest of Europe is facing a similar problem with the financial collapse of Greece. Many pundits are calling for German aid due to their strong economy, but with their own problems they seem to be unwilling to lend their aid to the struggling parts of the continent.
2. A few classes ago we talked about the subsidies that the US government has been giving to its cotton farmers. This is similar to the aid that west Germany has been giving to eastern Germany. Except that the US subsidies have been more successful than the German aid.
3. I think that he aid would be better spent on worker training than improving the infrastructure. Infrastructure improvements have not been working for the past 20 years. So the change should be more toward labor improvement over roads and buildings..