Thank you, Wolfgang, for giving us a look into the past from your perspective.

In the 70s, for four years I went out with an emigrated German who had been captured at the age of 19 in France by the Americans and for the those four years I read everythng about pre-war Germany and the war years I could find in libraries, great stacks of books. At the end, there were still great gaps in my understanding. It was especially hard to find anything written by Jews, post-war, and it was difficult to find anything written by post-war Germans of any stripe. Your recounting of your experience helps fill in some gaps.

I don't understand what you are saying here: "West-Germany was the sucessor to Nazi Germany and the socialist Germany was by definition free from any guilt."

Since the division between the 'two' Germanies was made at the conclusion of the war, in what way could one say that either side was 'by definition free from any guilt'? Those in the East had certainly as enthusiastically supported Hitler and the Nazi government as those in the West.

Unless you are saying that tongue in cheek? I recognize the literalness of my brain. :)