In the early 1980s (while there was still a Berlin Wall), I went through Checkpoint Charlie from West Berlin to East Berlin. On either side of the wall, there were the same people, with the same culture, same genes, etc. The only difference was a difference of political systems, and because of that difference, East Berlin was, of course, poorer. After about an hour of touring, though, I sensed that there was some other difference, and it took me a while to pinpoint it. In East Berlin, no one smiled. No one laughed. No one joked. People looked at us and at each other with hesitation and even apprehension. Were we really tourists? Or might we be posing as tourists to report on their behavior? If I could summarize everything in one word, it would be fear. The East Germans were afraid. You could see it in their eyes. And that was something you never saw in the West. So why am I telling you about a 30-year-old experience? Because I sense that same feeling again -- right here in the United States of America.
Posted on: Fri, 15 Nov 2013 20:01:59 +0000
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