Germany has forgotten the era that made it rich

The country's economic strength was built in the Kaiserreich. Today’s model preserves that success — but struggles to create new growth.

This year, the US celebrates its 250th birthday — and by all accounts, it’s going to be a big party. One Independence Day event in Philadelphia alone is expected to draw a million people and will cost around €120 million. The anniversary has been used to brand everything from NASA’s recent manned mission to the moon to the football World Cup. I imagine that, if you live in the US, it is impossible to miss the news that the country is turning a quarter of a millennium old.

Not so long ago, Germany also marked a major anniversary — although “marked” would be something of an exaggeration. When the country turned 150 five years ago, no one noticed. There were no street parties, no celebrations of the moment when the German nation state was born. Admittedly, the anniversary fell during the pandemic. But even without it, the occasion would have passed largely unnoticed. The only significant commemoration was a speech by President Frank-Walter Steinmeier — and it captured the national mood su…