Ms. Merkel's view of East German society today is marked by the ambivalence of somebody who adjusted to survive. Yes, it was oppressive, she says. But there were family, friends, nature. But not everything was evil. Even in a system like that, Christmas Eve can be nice.
Capitalism can also look less than nice.
Unemployment in Templin, as in many towns in the east, is now 24 percent. The old furniture and textile industries have collapsed. Employment in the agricultural sector has plummeted. I went to America in 1986 with my association of churches and saw blacks with crutches lying on the church steps. Then I came back here and saw doctors living in the same apartments as workers.