Lawrence H. White's op-ed in the Wall Street Journal discusses Germany's current commitment to reduce government spending, which has recently led to greater economic growth. He also explores historical instances where market-friendly policies led Germany out of an economic crisis. This op-ed draws on White's forthcoming book "The Clash of Economic Ideas."

The following is an excerpt from White's op-ed in the Wall Street Journal:

"Earlier this summer George Soros and some leading Keynesian economists criticized what they regarded as Germany's overly strict fiscal discipline. Yet Germany's real output expanded at a robust 9% annual rate in the second quarter, while the U.S. economy grew at an anemic 1.6% rate. So is Germany now a role model for how to recover?

In a June op-ed, German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble justified his government's decision to cut spending, citing "aversion to deficits and inflationary fears, which have their roots in German history in the past century." He was presumably making a reference to the destructive hyperinflation of the 1920s."