An anecdote from German reunification: In 1990, East German judges and lawyers wait at the courthouse in Berlin to learn if they still have careers. The West German justice minister walks in and announces that decisions will be made on a case-by-case basis. 1/2
“We can’t just take everyone,” one West German explains. “You must understand, you are coming from an Unrechtsstaat into a Rechtstaat.” According to Markovits, “At the word ‘Unrechtsstaat,’ a wave of indignation runs through the room." They don't think we had the rule of law? 2/2
Katja Hoyer has stirred up an international controversy by writing a book that depicts East Germany as an ordinary country. The outrage is undeserved. thetimes.co.uk
Like it or not, nostalgia for the Eastern bloc is a real thing, but every Western academic who points that out gets put through the same cycle of outrage. I reviewed a previous example here: theamericanconservative.com
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