German Locusts

Recent news stories illustrate why I maintain that we must battle for a return to capitalism here in the US - there simply is no hope for it elsewhere. The articles indicate that Germany's ruling party keeps a "secret locust list" of "companies considered guilty of anti-social business practices" (i.e. of making a profit) and accuses them of "undermining democracy" and arousing "helpless anger" among Germans.

It's sad enough that the majority of Germans apparently haven't figured out that life on earth requires work and production -- that goods don't just spring out of nothingness for the "socially-minded" to hand-out. But in terms of a cultural barometer, the real telling sign is that German politicians feel free to publically equate producers with locusts, while revering those who consume unearned goods. I'm hard-pressed to think of a metaphor which could be more inverted, yet German politicians are comfortable enough to use it as though it's self-evident.