Germany finally drops Nazi law

[Chris Burford <cburford@xxxxxxxxxx>]

An illuminating detail is that almost 70 years after it was introduced by
the Nazi's Germany has finally dropped a law restricting discounts in small
businesses. The current press does not call it a Nazi law, but it admits it
was designed very clearly to bolster the class base of national socialism.

Chris Burford

London


Copyright © 2001 The International Herald Tribune | www.iht.com

Germany Scraps Law on Discounts The Associated Press The Associated Press
Saturday, June 30, 2001


BERLIN A 1933 law that severely limited store discounts in Germany was
abolished by Parliament on Friday, a victim of traditional and Internet
retailers who increasingly ignored the antiquated restrictions.

....

The 1933 law, passed eight months after Hitler came to power, was meant to
protect small shopkeepers against a "degeneration" of competition.

The law was part of the Nazis' campaign to drive Jews out of business
because major department stores at the time were owned by Jews.

Decades later, Internet retailers have been especially keen on dumping the
restrictions, which set a cap of 3 percent on discounts outside certain
limited sale periods during the summer and the winter.

Germany's center-left government drafted the moves last year, saying
consumers deserved more freedom to bargain and could be trusted to
recognize misleading advertisements.