Reunification

With the geological split of the east and the west came a social split in German culture and the way people organized their lives.  While west Berlin was controlled by the capitalist allies, the east was controlled by communist Soviet Union.  The west Germans experienced more options and choice in their lives.  The east Germans obviously did not have as many luxuries.  From our western perspective it seems the the capitalist way of life is much better, and many east Germans would agree, as many tried to flee into the west.  However, people are creatures of habit and after a while, the east Germans came to grow accustomed to their simple way of life even if they did not have as many things.  This caused some unforeseen problems after the wall came down.  Although it took the physical border only a couple minutes to come down, the social border has taken years to crumble.  The east Germans who were used to having everything decided for them had a hard time functioning amidst all the new found self-reliance and choice.  The westerners had a hard time understanding what the easterners were going through.  This created some animosity that is just now finally disappearing completely.