American West Purse

Is Germany Turning Into the Strong, Silent Type?

Germany is sitting on top of the world. But the rest of the world thinks it's getting too comfortable up there.

The country has come roaring out of the global financial crisis, boasting one of the strongest economies in the West and seemingly poised for years of rising exports ahead.

What's more, the better it does, the more the world expects it to do. Europe and the U.S. want Germany to take charge on cleaning up Europe's debt crisis and do more for big causes—like supporting the Arab revolutions and the sputtering global economic recovery.

Germany's answer? Business as usual suits us fine.

Unlike many other Western countries, Germany has spent years living within its means and building up a deep trade surplus. Now it's reluctant to bail out nations that weren't as prudent. And it doesn't want to get involved in foreign entanglements like Libya.

All of which leads to a question with big implications for the global economy and political order: What is Germany's place in the world?

German leaders argue that they don't want to tinker with a winning formula, and they're already making significant contributions to the EU and NATO. But critics see it differently. They attack the country for wanting to be a big Switzerland: a trading nation that profits from the business opportunities of a globalized economy but shirks the dirty work of globalization, including international involvement in armed conflicts.

Germany's traditional allies even fret that the country is losing interest in Europe and the West. After all, when you've carved out a lucrative niche selling precision machinery and luxury cars to fast-growing emerging economies such as China, who needs stodgy old Europe?

"Germany is rising in a Europe that's coming apart at the seams," says John Kornblum, former U.S. ambassador to Berlin. "How is this country—the only major economy in Europe that can keep up with globalization—going to fit into this Europe?"

Both NATO and the EU were built around Germany, by allies that wanted to bind Europe's strongest country into a multilateral structure. Germany, rueful of its history, also felt more comfortable inside their embrace.

Today's Germany, more confident of its own strength and virtue, exudes the sense that it no longer needs either alliance quite as much as it used to. Only 24% of Germans see more upsides than downsides to EU membership, while 31% see more downsides and 40% say it's a mixed bag, according to a survey published in German newspaper Die Zeit in March.

Our American West Handbag From ShopNBC Is Going Back, Handcrafted ...

It’s rather ironic that we just got a press release from ShopNBC saying that its debut of American West Leather Handbags was its most successful purse launch in the network’s history. That’s because we bought one of those purses, and it is sitting in our trunk right now, ready to be repackaged so we can take it to the PO later today and return it.

The Today’s Top Value was a Santa Fe Spirit Cow Hide and Leather Hobo last Thursday, April 28. Since we love the western look, we ordered it as a birthday gift to ourselves.

We received it this week, and it is beautiful. But the furnishings on the purse, a silver-toned ring and hook, don’t sit flat. That may not bother some people, but it would drive anal-retentive folks like us nuts.

So we will soon be calling ShopNBC to see if they will foot the bill for the shopping costs for us to send it back and exchange it. If they won’t pay that cost, we will just return it — not exchange it.

Nonetheless, the handcrafted American West line had 12 sellouts last week, including the Today’s Top Value. We wonder how many are going back to ShopNBC, like ours.

“Each American West handbag embodies the story and spirit of the artisan who created it, making each piece truly one-of-a-kind,” ShopNBC said in its press release Thursday. “The distinctive style and eye-catching details of the collection resonated strongly with ShopNBC viewers.”

Too bad those artisans couldn’t get the hardware on our purse right.

The American West Handbag shows racked up 12 sellouts including the Prairie Rose Cow Hide and Leather Tote, the Roses are Red Stud Detail Leather Tote, and the Peek-a-Boo Tooled Leather Shoulder Bag, to mention a few. Additional top sellers included the Santa Fe Spirit Cow Hide Wallet and the Boot Scoot Boogie Stud Detail Leather Tote.

“We are thrilled with the customer response to our debut on ShopNBC,” said Louise de Kok, Designer & Owner of American West Handbags, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year. “It has been very inspiring to work with such great talent at ShopNBC and the team of professionals who put on a great show, as we witnessed an overwhelming reception to our brand. We look forward to the next airing and showcasing more premium Western handbags and accessories.

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