And the whole point of having a trade surplus is to invest it. So that would make very little sense if the exchange rates eat it up.

This again is straight out of Hobson's Imperialism. For the British investor class in the second half of the 19th Century excess profits from British factories were invested in India, which Britain controlled directly. For Germany the Eurozone, as currently constituted, provided the same benefits and serves the same purpose. And, so far, the Troika has been a lot cheaper for Germany than all the colonial regiments Britain used to maintain in India.

I'll bet the Irish, Portuguese, Greeks, Italians and Spaniards never thought they were hiring an imperial master when they joined the Euro-zone, not to mention France. Maybe no one noticed because they did not have to learn German.

"It is not necessary to have hope in order to persevere."