Back in the DDR: Looking for Marx in East Berlin 

Thanks for sharing that memory. I'll be uploading a video next week about those 1984 Sarajevo Olympics, so I would be interested in getting your opinion on it when it comes out. About the East German social system, statements like that from Witt are so commonplace in the old GDR. People definitely tend to miss the access to sports, culture, art, etc. that wasn't restricted to them based on the ability to pay significant sums as it often is today.

@@RevolutionaryRoads1984 I lived during the Cold War years from the 70s onward and I remember that while there was a lot of animosity towards the Soviet Union and Eastern European countries, there was also a lot of respect. East Germany was the most advanced of all Soviet Bloc countries and there was always this fear and respect for East Germany. When the East German Olympic team was introduced it was always with respect and talk about how great these athletes were. Katarina Witt became the stuff of legend back then. Every young female skater in the world wanted to be Katarina. And then on the dark side was the story of the Stasi and how feared it was. Once, the wall separating East and West Germany collapsed and by extension East German socialist republic, the respect was gone literally overnight. And I think more important than socialism or whatever, what the East Germans really lost was respect. Just my observation from abroad. I think in life it's always great to be liked, but if this is not possible at least be respected.

Thanks for watching and for commenting! I was born in Heidelberg, West Germany in 1984 and lived in West Berlin between 1986 and 1993 (of course, from 1990 it was no longer West Berlin) due to my father's job working for the U.S. armed forces. I have memories of crossing the wall as a young child and seeing much of East Berlin, which I will likely share in future videos. I think there are many important points to address about the wealth disparities - then and now - between east and west. It's important to recognise that the Soviets never wanted Germany's division, with Stalin adhering for months after the creation of the FRG in May 1945 to the idea that Germany must be a neutral buffer between the western countries and the USSR. Ulbricht and Pieck were pleading with him to set up a mini socialist Germany, but Stalin persisted for quite a while before giving in. The west was always much more industrialised even before the division, whereas the east had mostly rather poor farmland. In terms of resources it possessed brown coal, but that was about it. The GDR paid reparations to the USSR, while the FRG economy benefited tremendously from the Marshall Plan aid that it was receiving from the U.S. The economic miracle would not have been possible otherwise. There's also the small matter of the Hallstein Doctrine, which was effectively an embargo against the GDR that made trade or diplomatic relations with the little Germany very difficult. This definitely sabotaged East Germany's economic development. This isn't to ignore or downplay the very real shortcomings and serious problems in the GDR, many of which were homegrown, but I think some context is always needed - just as I think it's important to recognise that 34 years after Germany's reunification, the east still remains much poorer, and the notion of two Germanys really still persists.