Germany on the Road to Normalcy - Policies and Politics of the Red-Green Federal Government (1998-2002) (Hardcover, 2004 ed.)

Many thought that the "German question," which had shaped European history so catastrophically in the last century, had been solved for good in 1990. Furthermore, the elections in 1998 seemed to confirm that Germany was on the road to "normalcy." For the first time in postwar German history a ruling party coalition was totally unseated by elections. Germany thus finally joined other western democracies as a state where a change of government following elections is commonplace. However, starting in the new millennium many have begun to see Germany as a problem case in Europe yet again. This raises questions about the future of Germany and the performance of the Red-Green government that this book seeks to answer. The contributors to this volume examine policies and politics of the Red-Green government in Germany, put recent changes and developments in this country in a long-term perspective, and provide conclusions about future developments.