The Green New Scam is Killing Germany

The tragic decline of a former industrial giant [The Daily Reckoning] December 04, 2024 [WEBSITE]( | [UNSUBSCRIBE]( The Green New Scam is Killing Germany Baltimore, Maryland [Adam Sharp] ADAM SHARP Dear Reader, Germany’s economy is in deep trouble, and Volkswagen is the poster boy. VW shares are down about 67% from their 2021 peak. Earnings are down 66% over the last year. And this week 70,000 German VW workers walked off the job. They’re furious over plant closures, layoffs, and salary cuts. So, what’s the root cause of VW’s woes? For the last few years, VW has been shifting production to electric vehicles (EVs). This is largely due to EU mandates requiring all cars to be electric by 2035. At first, the government heavily subsidized EVs. And sales jumped. But now the honeymoon is over. Let’s just say the transition to “net zero” in Europe is not going well. First of all, there’s not enough energy in the grid to charge all those batteries. And the little electricity available is very expensive. Electric autos are proving to be far more expensive from start to finish. I found a comment worth sharing from one angry German reader on the Daily Mail’s [coverage]( of the VW strike. I live in Berlin. I would estimate 90% of people here live in flats without designated parking places. Does the government seriously expect to provide fast chargers on the streets for these 90%? They just cannot admit they are wrong. EV is fine if you have a garage, but if you live in a flat forget it. The reader makes an excellent point. Most people have no place to charge an EV. Even if there was enough energy, they’d have to leave charging cables all over the roads. That copper would disappear quickly. This is one of a dozen major flaws with the mandates. The EU technocrats who pushed these policies did zero real planning. It’s just a pipe dream. They literally saw how well Tesla was doing and said to themselves “We should make everyone do that.” This was the extent of their analysis. [URGENT: Regarding Your 2024 Strategic Intelligence Membership Dues!]( Hi, I’m Matt Insley. I’m the Publisher at Paradigm Press. Just moments ago, I just got off the phone with Jim and we agreed: it’s time we start charging more money for access to his newsletter. That’s why we may implement a massive price hike for all subscribers in the coming days. But if you [click here now]( you can lock in your current subscription price at 80% off – and never have to pay the potential new price of $500. Don’t waste any time… [Click Here ASAP]( Nord Stream and Nuclear Germany’s move into electric vehicles is only their latest stumble when it comes to energy policy. They are also shuttering all their nuclear power plants. And they stood by passively while somebody blew up the Nord Stream gas pipeline from Russia. And even though one of the lines of Nord Stream is still operable, they aren’t utilizing it. There’s dirt cheap natural gas available and they’re choosing to buy imported liquified gas which costs 4x as much. As a result, energy prices have soared. Now Germany plans to rely on solar and wind in a country with little sun and inconsistent wind. Oh yeah, they’re also relying on “green hydrogen” to power their industrial economy (spoiler alert: this will also fail). These missteps have been devastating to Germany’s industrial base. [image 1] Source: Convera, Macrobond Germany is supposed to be the economic engine of Europe. And it was, until 2018. Then the climate mandates and “net zero” rules started rolling in, and it’s been straight downhill since. [How To Profit From Starlink’s $180 Billion IPO Jackpot?]( [Click here for more...]( Have you heard the big news? [Elon Musk’s company Starlink is preparing to announce their IPO in as little as a few weeks!]( And for the first time ever, you have the rare chance to see how to profit BEFORE the IPO takes place. [Click Here For The Time-Sensitive Details]( Lessons Learned German workers and citizens appear to be waking up to the scam. The vast majority of people don’t want EVs, and they’re becoming loud about it. A massive political shift is underway throughout Europe. The EU mandate to ban all gas-powered cars by 2035 is doomed. Regulators are already discussing allowing hybrid vehicles, and they will eventually cave on traditional combustion engines as well. The goals are utterly impossible. This type of government intervention never goes well. EVs were already growing, finding their own path to realistic adoption levels. Then EU technocrats got involved and spoiled the entire economy. You can’t force industries to do what you want. That should be the lesson here. Here in the U.S., we’re experiencing our own awakening. President Trump and his team are set to shake things up across the board. De-regulation, energy expansion, and bringing manufacturing home. In the States at least, the awakening extends far beyond economic issues. As Elon Musk recently posted on [X]( “Cancel culture has been canceled”. So free speech is making a comeback, too. And across the world, people are also pushing back against lax immigration policies. It’s an exciting time. We’ve been on the wrong path for so long, and it seems that’s finally changing. Who knows, maybe the EU will eventually become investable again. For now, I will continue to avoid the continent, but let’s see what happens over the next few years. Cheers, Adam Sharp for The Daily Reckoning [feedback@dailyreckoning.com.](mailto:feedback@dailyreckoning.com) Thank you for reading The Daily Reckoning! We greatly value your questions and comments. Please send all feedback to [feedback@dailyreckoning.com.](mailto:feedback@dailyreckoning.com) [Brian Maher] [Adam Sharp]( has been a financial writer and Fed watcher since 2008. He is a contrarian who specializes in non-traditional assets. Adam founded and sold Early Investing, a newsletter about alternative investments. Sharp lives in Maryland with his wife, two children, and two dogs.. [Paradigm]( ☰ ⊗ [UPDATE PREFERENCES]( [Contact Us]( © 2024 Paradigm Press, LLC. 1001 Cathedral Street, Baltimore, MD 21201. By submitting your email address, you consent to Paradigm Press, LLC. delivering daily email issues and advertisements. To end your The Daily Reckoning e-mail subscription and associated external offers sent from The Daily Reckoning, feel free to [click here,]( or manage your newsletter preferences [here.]( Please note: the mailbox associated with this email address is not monitored, so do not reply to this message. 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