The times when Germany was the symbol of fiscal probity seem far away. The German Taxpayers’ Association (BdSt) publishes each year its “Black Book” providing an overview of government waste which makes Darth Vader look like a choirboy in comparison.
The annual publication celebrates its 40th anniversary in 2012 and offers an impressive array of veritable horror stories of government in action. As stated in the foreword by the BdSt President, “each Euro in tax revenues must be earned by us before we entrust it to government. Therefore, the sums wasted are irrelevant. When it comes to government waste of taxpayers’ money, there can be no talk of ‘what’s the point’ or ‘it doesn’t matter’.”
The book is available for free in PDF at the BdSt website.
