Edward Norman Peterson Bücher

Governmental control was largely exercised by the secret police of the Communist German Democratic Republic, popularly called the «Stasi». This book is based on the Stasi’s internal documents at the district level in Magdeburg, which describe the popular reactions to government policy, a constant discontent that increased to an explosive level. These documents also reveal that the secret police reported internal problems and that by 1987 they were aware that national problems were not being solved by communism and that some radical change was necessary. By the fall of 1989 they saw a justification for the overthrow of the «Old Men» running the republic.

Most interesting are the reports from the thousands of spies at the local level, the analysis at the local and district levels, and the integration of nationwide reports in Berlin.

The book delves into the complexities of power within Hitler's regime from 1933 to 1945, challenging the notion of absolute authority. Through an in-depth analysis of Bavaria, it reveals the intricate bureaucratic dynamics and internal conflicts that characterized the Nazi state. The author argues that Hitler's control was not as straightforward as commonly believed, highlighting the limitations of his power and the complexities of governance in a totalitarian system.

The common assumption has been that Stalin established a totalitarian state in his zone and that the authoritarian Germans simply continued from one obedience to the other. Scholarly analysis, first possible with the coming down of the Wall, begins with the Soviet Command in Berlin. It then traces policy implementation in four German states and eight local communities. The surprising conclusion is that the purposes of Stalin were confused, that the Moscow policy was ambivalent, and the assigned personnel insufficiently prepared and controlled. The German response was a massive resistance, whether out of a desire for freedom, or for a higher standard of living, or the inertia of continuing in their individualistic/capitalist ways.