Jochen Bittner liefert einen plausiblen Erklärungsansatz, warum gerade Ostdeutsche eher antwestliche Einstellungen zeigen und sich auf die Seite Putins schlagen. As justified as the rejection of the totalitarian East German regime might have been politically, Westerners underestimated the psychological effects that went along with the rapid upheaval. One appears to become clear only now: If grand political systems are so easily swapped in and out, it’s easy to conclude that capital-T Truth is a myth. It is telling that the same strong sentiment cannot be found in Poland or the Baltic states, which underwent similarly jarring post-Communist transitions. One reason might be that they were able to see themselves as going through a process of national emancipation, while East Germany was simply absorbed into another state, whose beliefs and practices were not supposed to be questioned. What Eastern Germany got was more convenient — and lucrative, as it now shares in Europe’s strongest economy — but psychologically it was much more damaging. Poles can look at themselves as the captains of their own ship; Eastern Germans have had to live with the feeling, right or wrong, that Western elites, like the Soviets before them, are in charge of their fates. Until now, however, that sentiment has been muted, easily ignored when even Russia itself seemed to be moving, in fits and starts, toward accommodation with the West. Mr. Putin’s aggression, and his anti-Western propaganda, has given disgruntled Easterners an outlet. When he decries the West for trying to impose its values on the world, he is reflecting their own experiences within Germany. nytimes/2014/12/31/opinion/bittner-eastern-germans-soft-spot-for-russia.html?referrer&_r=0
Posted on: Sun, 04 Jan 2015 13:10:24 +0000
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