Quote:
Originally Posted by Damien
I think this is probably Merkel's last term. She can't go on forever.
The AfD is a worrying result but given the material they've had to work with in the migration crisis and Eurozone ballouts it's hard to imagine a better election cycle for them than this one.
I am placing this from the perspective of how we thought this could play out at the start of the year. Macron willing in France, Merkel winning in Germany, Italy not bringing down the EU and even the far right falling short in Holland and Austria are a far cry of the worst fears people had of 2017.
Not to say there aren't serious issues to be addressed but everything is looking more stable than 9 months ago. The election probably serves as a warning the issues aren't gone but the commentators acting as if this is earth-shattering should look at their articles at the tail-end of last year.
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That'll depend on what happens about the migration crisis. It hasn't gone away and even though the numbers are down the legacy of dealing with it all is going to be felt for years in many EU countries. It was an astonishingly arrogant and dangerous thing to do.