Lessons For US Economic Policy From The Fall Of The Berlin Wall

Newsweek:

The abrupt and miserable end of the socialist experiment--it all happened so fast, with East Germany getting absorbed into West Germany on Oct. 3, 1990, and the Soviet Union disappearing a year later, on Dec. 26, 1991--shifted the axis of the economic debate sharply rightward.

Read the whole story: Newsweek

Comments

[Independent1969]

01:00 PM on 11/10/2009

East Germany freed itself from communism after Poland, Hungary and possibly the Czech Republic which would make it about 3rd or 4th in line. East Germany is incorrectly given credit for ending the Cold War. That's definitely not what happened.

The Cold War was over when the Polish people, with the help of Pope John Paul and the Solidarity Party fought for more rights and free elections and got them both. Once they got their elections on June 4th 1989 they voted out the Communists from power. That was the beggining of the end for Communism in Europe. If you want to know how to make huge changes in government then study what happened in Poland during this time.

Poland's victory inspired other Communist countries to fight for their own freedom and to use Poland's strategy as a template. It worked. Within a few months of Poland's victory most of Europe was free from Communism and the Soviet Union was soon gone.

If it weren't for Poland's success it's very possible that the Soviet Union might still exist today and Central and Eastern Europe still Communist nations. Scary.

So for the sake of historical accuracy let's tell the real story and give credit where credit is due.

Solidarnosc!

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