The hole in the middle

摘要

A century ago the art historian Karl Scheffler called Berlin "a city condemned forever to becoming and never to being". When the Wall was torn down 21 years ago this week, Berlin seemed condemned forever to being poor as well. It struggled with the legacy of division and the end of subsidies from both east and west. "The ten-year decline was a problem," comments Karl Brenke of the diw economics institute. This was the 1990s, when gdp steadily shrank, leaving Berlin nearly bankrupt. Yet he notes that this had advantages: sweeping away inefficient industries and driving down living costs.