Anti-euro party offers alternative to German voters frustrated by bailouts and Nazi jibes
A crowd of about 1,500 mostly older men cheered as the leader of the Alternative for Germany party (a new anti-euro party), economics professor Bernd Lucke, said the euro had done little to bring Europeans together ... “Because of the euro, people in southern Europe don’t hesitate to express their disgust toward Germany, using old Nazi comparisons,” Lucke said. “This is not what I imagine Europe to be like.”
Germany, where a sense of obligation to help fellow Europeans in distress is rooted in shame for the crimes of the Third Reich. But the new political party hopes to capitalize on simmering fears that the euro crisis could deepen and drag down Europe’s biggest economy. It aims to garner enough votes in the federal elections to reach the 5 percent minimum needed for seats in Parliament.
Underlining the potential appeal, a recent poll showed that even though 69 percent of Germans now back the euro — up from about 50 percent last year — a significant minority of 27 percent said they’d like to see a return to the mark.
While still a fledgling movement, the new party could hurt Merkel by sapping support from her main coalition partner — which she has relied on for a stable government. ... Merkel’s own party, too, could suffer if conservative voters see Alternative for Germany as a credible way to express their frustration about her leadership.
http://articles.washingtonpost.com/2013-04-14/business/38537888_1_euro-crisis-euro-forces-germany-party
Another right-wing anti-euro party emerges. This time in Germany. Those in attendance were "mostly older men" which makes it sound more like a tea party convention. The good news is that this new party may take enough votes from Merkel's conservative party to cause it big problems in this fall's election. The 27% of Germans who favor a return to their old currency will probably turn out in large numbers during the election.
