I first saw the wall in 1976. On the western side, it had some of the most inventive graffiti that I ever saw. That year I also first saw "der Zaun" (the "fence"), the 750 mile obscenity that was the border that divided East and West Germany. No graffiti there; just double fences, guard dog runs, minefields and guard towers. Both were abominations and two of the biggest wastes of money I ever saw. East Germany put a whole small country in jail, and the Stasi, their secret police, established a network of "unofficial colleagues" who spied on their neighbors to assure ideological compliance. It was not a pleasant place.
Yet for all of that, there are a significant number of former East Germans who remember the old DDR fondly, and ironically, several of the old East German states have become the political home of Neonazi movements and the AfD, a right wing populist, anti-immigrant political party. That may serve to show that there is not much day-to-day difference between Leninist Communism and Fascism.
We Moderate Comments, Yours might not appear right after you hit return. Be patient; I'm usually pretty quick on getting comments up there. Try not to hit return again and again.... If you disagree with something I've written please do so civilly. Be nice or see your comments fly into the void. Anonymous posters are not given special privileges or dispensation. If technology alone requires you to be anonymous your comments will likely pass through moderation if you "sign" them. A new note: Don't tell me how to write or how to blog! I can't make you comment but I don't want to wade through spam!
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I first saw the wall in 1976. On the western side, it had some of the most inventive graffiti that I ever saw. That year I also first saw "der Zaun" (the "fence"), the 750 mile obscenity that was the border that divided East and West Germany. No graffiti there; just double fences, guard dog runs, minefields and guard towers. Both were abominations and two of the biggest wastes of money I ever saw. East Germany put a whole small country in jail, and the Stasi, their secret police, established a network of "unofficial colleagues" who spied on their neighbors to assure ideological compliance. It was not a pleasant place.
Yet for all of that, there are a significant number of former East Germans who remember the old DDR fondly, and ironically, several of the old East German states have become the political home of Neonazi movements and the AfD, a right wing populist, anti-immigrant political party. That may serve to show that there is not much day-to-day difference between Leninist Communism and Fascism.
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We Moderate Comments, Yours might not appear right after you hit return. Be patient; I'm usually pretty quick on getting comments up there. Try not to hit return again and again.... If you disagree with something I've written please do so civilly. Be nice or see your comments fly into the void. Anonymous posters are not given special privileges or dispensation. If technology alone requires you to be anonymous your comments will likely pass through moderation if you "sign" them. A new note: Don't tell me how to write or how to blog! I can't make you comment but I don't want to wade through spam!
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.