ZEIT: But surely we can’t draw the conclusion that we can do no better today?
Piketty: When I hear the Germans say that they maintain a very moral stance about debt and strongly believe that debts must be repaid, then I think: what a huge joke! Germany is the country that has never repaid its debts. It has no standing to lecture other nations.
Am I wrong in remembering that part of the reason Germany went out of control and Hitler came to power was due largely in part to the overwhelming burden of post WWI Wartime Reparations? The international community decided to work with both Germany (West Germany?) and Japan after WWII to prevent this kind of thing from happening again. So technically, weren't they forgiven and given a free pass?