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Brokaw: Liberated East Germans ‘Still Adjusting to Harsh Economic Realities’ of Capitalism
Newsbusters ^ | November 8, 2009 - 12:55 | Rich Noyes

Posted on 11/08/2009 10:29:52 AM PST by chuck_the_tv_out

Noting tomorrow’s 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall on Sunday’s Today show, former NBC Nightly News anchor Tom Brokaw claimed East Germans were “still adjusting to the harsh economic realities” of life after communism. But a recent poll of former East bloc countries by the Pew Research Center actually discovered that the people of what was East Germany are actually the biggest enthusiasts of the shift to capitalism, with 82% approving, higher than any other ex-communist country.

Brokaw did note, however, that the current “center-right” Chancellor of Germany, Angela Merkel, was “born and raised in East Germany,” implicitly acknowledging that her youth spent under communism obviously did not make her a fan of leftist economic policies.

The suggestion that capitalism is somehow “harsh” compared to communism echoes what many liberal journalists argued after the fall of the Berlin Wall 20 years ago. “The transition from communism to capitalism is making more people more miserable every day,” CBS reporter Bert Quint argued in 1990.


TOPICS: News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: anniversary; berlinwall; chuckposts; coldwar; communism; communmsm; eastgermany; enemedia
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My problem is not that these people are hard leftists, but that they present it as if they are not. And that it covers every television network, most of the time.

A rational country, in a rational time, would stop this propaganda by force.

1 posted on 11/08/2009 10:29:53 AM PST by chuck_the_tv_out
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To: chuck_the_tv_out
I chucked my TV out. And the cable subscription that fed it.

I didn't even have to use much force to do it.

2 posted on 11/08/2009 10:34:49 AM PST by Steely Tom (Without the second, the rest are just politicians' BS.)
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To: chuck_the_tv_out

Tom Brokaw is my age...he was educated with textbooks written by liberals who re-write history every day so they can live by escaping reality. They.do.not.live.in.the.real.world. They.live.in.the.fantasy.of.a.world.of.words.that.does.not.exist!


3 posted on 11/08/2009 10:34:58 AM PST by RowdyFFC (The opinion of a wise Welshtino woman...)
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To: chuck_the_tv_out

Shut your pie-hole, Brokejaw - nobody cares what you think.


4 posted on 11/08/2009 10:39:41 AM PST by beethovenfan (If Islam is the solution, the "problem" must be freedom.)
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To: RowdyFFC

“he was educated with textbooks written by liberals who re-write history”

I know what you’re saying, but I don’t buy the personal angle. I think these people are just actors, who happen to play news presenters.

I have seen enough media in my life to see what they do. The faked emotions and attitudes that they display show that they are actors. Often they will pretend they’ve never heard a thing before to increase its shock value, because it’s not about how they feel, its about how they make the viewers feel.


5 posted on 11/08/2009 10:41:21 AM PST by chuck_the_tv_out ( <<< click my name: now featuring Freeper classifieds)
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To: chuck_the_tv_out

You have to excuse Tom. He’s helpless without a teleprompter. His agent should be fired for leaving him stranded without someone else’s text to read.


6 posted on 11/08/2009 10:44:10 AM PST by purplelobster
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To: chuck_the_tv_out

This putz turned out to be just as bad as Rather. If he’d gotten the faked memo he would have run with it too.


7 posted on 11/08/2009 10:45:00 AM PST by clintonh8r (My country. Not my government.)
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To: chuck_the_tv_out

My problem is that Lefties moan and complain and bash. WHY CAN’T THEY JUST MOVE TO WHEREVER IT IS THEY THINK IS UTOPIA...and leave US alone!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


8 posted on 11/08/2009 10:45:34 AM PST by NordP (COMMON SENSE CONSERVATIVES - Love of Country, Less Govt, Stop Spending, No Govt Run Healthcare!!!)
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To: NordP
My problem is that Lefties moan and complain and bash. WHY CAN’T THEY JUST MOVE TO WHEREVER IT IS THEY THINK IS UTOPIA...and leave US alone!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Because liberalism first of all is a mental disorder, secondly, liberals are all about being miserable and controlling everyone else's life to make us miserable like them, if they moved away they would not be able to control you and me! It would kinda take all the fun out of being a liberal if they had no one to control, misery loves company and that's what they are about.......blood pressure rising, blood shooting from eyes, head exploding!

9 posted on 11/08/2009 10:49:59 AM PST by rockabyebaby (We are sooooooooooooooooooooo screwed!)
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To: chuck_the_tv_out

East Germans, after what amounts to almost two generations of living under the command economy, may have been at somewhat of a loss, because NOTHING prepared them for even the simplest principles of making sure of one’s own future.

Savings, investment, taking a profit out of your labors, and re-investing part of those proceeds in the expansion of the enterprise, all without a lot of supervision peering over your shoulder, is an experience that a lesser and lesser part of the population of the world has experience with.

Even here in the US.


10 posted on 11/08/2009 10:51:14 AM PST by alloysteel (....the Kennedys can be regarded as dysfunctional. Even in death.)
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To: chuck_the_tv_out

If one had visited East European countries while still in the yoke of the Kremlin, they would have concluded even people deemed to live in poverty in this country were better off than median East European of the Soviet era.


11 posted on 11/08/2009 10:52:48 AM PST by monocle
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To: chuck_the_tv_out

In the 60’s, we had neighbors who still had family in East Germany. ONE egg was 50 cents. No one could afford a dozen. They would go and visit and Mr Pfoertner would cry when they got back because of the harsh living conditions that his family suffered. Brokjaw is lying.


12 posted on 11/08/2009 10:53:54 AM PST by DJ MacWoW (Make yourselves sheep and the wolves will eat you. Ben Franklin)
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To: chuck_the_tv_out
If Brokaw is so anguished by the poor suffering from the harsh realities of capitalism why doesn't he share some of his stash with poor Americans? Wot? He won't share his money. He's an OPM addict?

Brokaw stash! Brokaw! mmm mmm mm

13 posted on 11/08/2009 11:01:18 AM PST by WilliamofCarmichael (If modern America's Man on Horseback is out there, Get on the damn horse already!)
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To: chuck_the_tv_out
“The transition from communism to capitalism is making more people more miserable every day,”

I hear that North Korea is very eager to accept any and all immigrants from the former East Germany, so nothing's stopping them from returning to their precious communism.

Regards,

14 posted on 11/08/2009 11:02:48 AM PST by alexander_busek
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To: chuck_the_tv_out

yes. communism was so good to them.


15 posted on 11/08/2009 11:03:17 AM PST by the invisib1e hand (the obama doctrine: "let's not rush to any conclusions...")
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To: chuck_the_tv_out

So in other words he lied. In other words he took the few moans of about 18% of East Germans who don’t approve of Capitalism and projected them to be the majority.

And in doing so, he lies about not only the truly tyrannical economic realities of communism but the actual realities of capitalism which are NOT harsh. Hell even if they were, communism still enslaved the people for G-ds sake!


16 posted on 11/08/2009 11:12:15 AM PST by Jeb21 (www.jewsagainstobama.com)
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To: chuck_the_tv_out
>"Harsh Economic Realities’ of Capitalism"

Oh the unbearable burden of having capital, and property, and food, and shelter, and a nation of laws.

It was quite a reality check to not be ruled by evil petty little men and women!

17 posted on 11/08/2009 12:00:28 PM PST by rawcatslyentist (Ifanationexpects tobe ignorantandfree,inastateofcivilization,itexpects whatneverwas andnever will be)
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To: chuck_the_tv_out
The leftists have no problem with a system where your cousin, child brother, neighbor, coworker, etc. are all looking for some reason to turn you in to the Stazi for their own benefit.

I suspect the fine print in the 2000 pages of Pelosi care includes some of this.

18 posted on 11/08/2009 12:36:46 PM PST by Western Phil
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To: chuck_the_tv_out
We definitely must blow the power to the east coast media when we sack DC.

After that, we move the seat of Government to middle America.

The Communist elite media will not follow, thank god.

We will start our own press that will be looking down the throat of government everyday, everyhour, every minute.

19 posted on 11/08/2009 12:43:36 PM PST by roses of sharon (Call the NFL and welcome their new Commissioner, Al Sharpton.)
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To: chuck_the_tv_out

Since you are chuck_the_tv_out, I don’t suppose you saw the History Channel’s two hour program on the Berlin wall which was on last night. I was watching it as I paid attention to the Health Care vote in the House on FreeRepublic. Juxtapose the two scenarios: The House voting away our freedoms, and the recounting of stories of brave individuals and families risking their lives to live freely while their country put up more and more barriers to freedom. It was an interesting and sad evening for me.


20 posted on 11/08/2009 12:54:02 PM PST by stayathomemom (Beware of cat attacks while typing!)
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