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Cost of French versus German Politicians!


just john
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[quote user="idun"]How does that compare to the UK,  including the Queen???
[/quote]

I've no idea, I'd say the Queen was a separate issue; but the original post was sent to me by a French friend who was bemoaning the outrageous costs of politics in France compared to Germany, the differences are significant I feel. Furthermore . . .

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2266331/Nicolas-Sarkozy-Carla-Bruni-dodge-new-French-tax-hike-moving-London-setting-1billion-fund.html

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JJ, I dont think we should be surprised by this as it has been known about for many years. But it has not suited the French establishment to do anything about it, or perhaps they do not know how to fix it. Whichever, there is little real sign that the present government really cares about spending extravagance as they are more determined to make the so called rich pay for their success for doctrinaire reasons.
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JustJohn

Why don't you just calm down and do a bit of thinking?

You have fallen into a trap of misinformation. Hint: the formal name of Germany is the Federal Republic of Germany.

France is a centralised country - that means that it has just one government for the whole country. Germany has a relatively small central government doing a limited range of unifying functions, but in addition it has another 16 governments, each with a chief minister, cabinet, parliament, ministries etc who are doing all the day-to-day activities. That's what federal means.

I am willing to bet that the cost of government of the total German state greatly exceeds that of even a bloated France.

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CL, you forget the extent to which France has decentralized in the last years, leading to massive duplication of bureaucracy btwn the centre and the regions. And they re all over priviledged, lazy bastards, interested only in protecting their positions .

And the main reason for the death of Europe.
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[quote user="woolybanana"]CL, you forget the extent to which France has decentralized in the last years, leading to massive duplication of bureaucracy btwn the centre and the regions. And they re all over priviledged, lazy bastards, interested only in protecting their positions . And the main reason for the death of Europe.[/quote]

I have no argument with your sentiments. However, France is still a unitary state. There is only one, central, all-powerful government. The regional assemblies have no powers other than those which have been delegated to them. Their role is administration not government.

Germany, on the other hand is a federation of 16 American-style states, each with its own autonomous legislature in addition to its national government in Berlin. So the number of politicians in Germany, and hence their cost, is going to be much higher.

The comparison originally used by JustJohn is not a fair or a valid one - it is between the only government in France and the top-level government in Germany. That does not mean that the cost of government in France is acceptable.

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[quote user="Clarkkent"]

[quote user="woolybanana"]CL, you forget the extent to which France has decentralized in the last years, leading to massive duplication of bureaucracy btwn the centre and the regions. And they re all over priviledged, lazy bastards, interested only in protecting their positions . And the main reason for the death of Europe.[/quote]

I have no argument with your sentiments. However, France is still a unitary state. There is only one, central, all-powerful government. The regional assemblies have no powers other than those which have been delegated to them. Their role is administration not government.

Germany, on the other hand is a federation of 16 American-style states, each with its own autonomous legislature in addition to its national government in Berlin. So the number of politicians in Germany, and hence their cost, is going to be much higher.

The comparison originally used by JustJohn is not a fair or a valid one - it is between the only government in France and the top-level government in Germany. That does not mean that the cost of government in France is acceptable.

[/quote]

True in some respects but  remember France has 27 administrative regions. They do not have federal powers but they exist with all the pomp of regional government.. All with a regional president and countless civil servants committees etc. France also have some 36000 mairies but that is another story.

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[quote user="Clarkkent"]JustJohn:  Why don't you just calm down and do a bit of thinking?

You have fallen into a trap of misinformation. Hint: the formal name of Germany is the Federal Republic of Germany.

[/quote]

[quote user="just john "]

but the original post was sent to me by a French friend who was bemoaning the outrageous costs of politics in France compared to Germany, the differences are significant I feel. Furthermore . . .

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2266331/Nicolas-Sarkozy-Carla-Bruni-dodge-new-French-tax-hike-moving-London-setting-1billion-fund.html

[/quote]

Not at all Clark, if you'd read the whole posting you would have also seen the subsequent post, clarifying that my interest was the opinion of french friends expressing their dissatisfaction and quoting an article from a french site. http://www.facebook.com/J.AIME.ALORS.JE.PARTAGE?group_id=0

My point was that we (UK citizens) are not the only ones concerned about the cost of our politicians,
irrespective of whether any statistics are accurate or complete.[Www]

 

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I must confess that my knowledge is very second hand Wools, but I understand the following to be true,
usually most expensive in political centres, (Witness DSK) and cheapest in Industrial centres (witness China, (where of course it does not exist, allegedly . . .)

 

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[quote user="woolybanana"]Are whores more expensive in different countries?[/quote]

I was once informed by a very drunk truck driver in a bar in Arras that he loves driving in Portugal because "the women are cheaper"

http://services.completefrance.com/forums/completefrance/cs/images/emotions/blink.gif
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[quote user="woolybanana"]The intended irony seems to have slipped by; I was really comparing whores to politicians in terms of their costs![/quote]

I thought for a moment you were shifting a countries cost of living indicator away from the price of a Big Mac .... The one we normally go by !

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