Twenty Lousy Years

On 9 November...twenty years ago...the wall came down.

This is a big topic right now...the twenty years have passed and there are various parties, celebrations and concerts (U2 in Berlin) scheduled as part of this moment.

The wall has become a curious and forgotten topic. East and West Germany united today....for better or worse.

The vast majority of folks in West Germany today...would say this was not the glory that they anticipated...and the money spent so far...appears to be going into a bottomless pit.

The Easties? Well...they will quietly tell you over a beer...that life was better in the East...than it is today.

I kinda sit there and laugh. Neither group really is happy over the mess. The taxes went up. A vast war over ownership of property in Eastern Germany erupted...with old owners from previous to the war, and those who escaped in the 1950s, 1960s or 1970s...fighting to recover what they felt they owned.

Then the Stassi secret police files continue to amaze folks. Every month or so...so noted person is found to be part of the Stassi effort. Various journalists, sports folks, and even TV stars....are all finding this Stassi label to be negative in some fashion.

I spent a weekend over past the "line" about four years ago. It was an odd feeling...crossing what was a divided country, and then noting a tremendous difference in economic standing. Structures aren't painted...brand new houses exist at one end of town...while the town itself is dark and without much life.

This twenty year period has passed and a entire generation has forgotten the division. My son knows little to nothing over the period. He has simply accepted the country as whole. Teachers don't go into this topic much...spending more time on Rome or German history before 1914.

I'm guessing in another twenty years...this entire event will be forgotten. The money tossed toward East Germany over the past two decades...will simply continue on...and maybe in four or five decades...it might actually start to make a difference. Meanwhile, everyone will grumble about the past twenty lousy years...and sip a beer long and slow while uttering this.