Was East Germany worse than Nazi Germany?

[Camelza]

Nazi Germany was a one-party dictatorship that started a desctructive war of aggression and industrial genocide, Eastern Germany was a one-party dictatorship that didn't let its citizens emigrate. Quite different scales.

While every Eastern German refugee who died trying to escape over the wall was a victim of state sanctioned murder, it is worth noting than Eastern Germany killed less civilians during its 40 years of existence than Nazi Germany on a single day.

It was the same, only without the racism. So, no.

Eastern Germany had state sanctioned racism too, though it was different.

If you were a "model citizen" and a member of the party I don't believe you would get in any trouble regarding your ethnicity.
Not to mention East Germany didn't treat its female citizens like the nazis did.
But do elaborate on the matter.

[The Republic of Pantalleria]

Well it's quite simple, in the end yes The Soviet Union was worse and those Nazi supporting germs got what they deserved for starting a war that caused over 50 million deaths, period.

I don't see how this is a valid reasoning. If two people commit a murder, and one of them gets caught, that doesn't make the murder of the one who wasn't caught worse. And that's if your claim of "starting a war that caused over 50 million deaths" even rings true.

So you don't think the Germans started the Second World War?

[Papait]

Well for "priviliged races" like aryans it was, cause they were no longer on top.
For africans and other lesser races that survived prosecution it wasn't worse, it was better, as now there was racial equality

[New Korongo]

East Germany sucked, Nazi Germany sucked more.

[Landofromania]

No,i know german people who say "East Germany was a pretty socialist nation"

[Greater-London]

I don't think so but I'm not 100% sure on this one, so ill stand corrected

Living in Nazi Germany before the war if you kept your head down and weren't part of a persecuted group I don't think would have been terrible. Especially if you were comparing it to the 20 or so years previous to that. Peoples living standards certainly where rising and most Germans probably felt that they were going somewhere better.

East Germany on the other hand just seems a bit downtrodden and grim; you still get your political oppression your secret polices ETC but you probably haven't been duped into thinking that your life or Germany is going to be better n the future.

Saying this I don't think the crimes of Nazi German are comparable to those of the DDR.

[Murkwood]

No, but the Stasi was bigger and more well organized than the Gestapo.

[Proletariana (Ancient)]

Do you think East Germany was worse than Nazi Germany? I think East Germany was worse for Aryans, but better for Jews and others persecuted by the Nazi regime. I wonder how many East Germans longed for Hitler. They probably loved him considering he loved the German people. The people persecuted by Hitler probably felt relieved by the Soviet influence in East Germany. I think both countries were horrid.

Oh Jesus motherfucking Christ. This is utterly, unequivocably the dumbest thing I have read today. The name of the country was the Deutsche Demokratische Republik or DDR, not "East Germany" for one. For two, to even consider them as comparable, you have to suspend everything you know about history, if there's anything to suspend of course. Worse for "Aryans"? You do know that Aryans isn't a race, or ethnicity, it's a effing language group that includes Indian languages. And if you're arguing that it was worse than Nazi Germany, you had better start laying down hard facts why.

[Proletariana (Ancient)]

No, but the Stasi was bigger and more well organized than the Gestapo.

Walmart is bigger and more organized than the Gestapo, ergo Walmart is worse than Nazi Germany.

[Gang Garrisonia]

East Germany was way better than Nazi Germany. It was oppressive, but it was socialist. If I had to live in a totalitarian socialist state or a totalitarian fascist state, I'd definitely pick the former.

Auferstanden aus Ruinen, und der Zukunft zugewandt...

[Viritica]

No.

[Baltenstein]

But do elaborate on the matter.

Of particular interest is the situation of the "Vertragsarbeiter" (contract workers) who moved to the GDR from fellow socialist countries - particularly from Poland, Vietnam, Angola, Cuba and Nicaragua. The worker migration program was established as a counter-measure to the Eastern German economy's considerable labour force shortage (owed to the many able-bodied Eastern Germans who moved/fled to Western Germany).
These contract workers (The Western German equivalent was called "Gastarbeiter", or guest worker) were only allowed to live in special barracks/regions, separated from the common Eastern German population.
The worker's residence was explicitely designed to be non-permanent, so that the workers would return to their respective home countries after working in Eastern Germany for a particular time period. Bringing their families with them to the GDR was forbidden, fraternization with the local population was also forbidden. If one of the contract workers became pregnant during their stay (many Vietnamese in particular were women who worked in Eastern German textile factorys) they were immediately sent back to Vietnam without further discussion.

[Estados Mineiros]

As a hole, Nazi German was worse, for me.

I don't know for sure, but i don't think the East German state had a complex system conceived for exterminate ethnic minorities, like the jew people.

[Nazis in Space]

But do elaborate on the matter.

Of particular interest is the situation of the "Vertragsarbeiter" (contract workers) who moved to the GDR from fellow socialist countries - particularly from Poland, Vietnam, Angola, Cuba and Nicaragua. The worker migration program was established as a counter-measure to the Eastern German economy's considerable labour force shortage (owed to the many able-bodied Eastern Germans who moved/fled to Western Germany).
These contract workers (The Western German equivalent was called "Gastarbeiter", or guest worker) were only allowed to live in special barracks/regions, separated from the common Eastern German population.
The worker's residence was explicitely designed to be non-permanent, so that the workers would return to their respective home countries after working in Eastern Germany for a particular time period. Bringing their families with them to the GDR was forbidden, fraternization with the local population was also forbidden. If one of the contract workers became pregnant during their stay (many Vietnamese in particular were women who worked in Eastern German textile factorys) they were immediately sent back to Vietnam without further discussion.

Worth noting that East Germany's denazification was... Lacking, compared to West Germany (And Lord knows, West Germany's was hardly thorough), and the state-controlled media basically resulted in xenophobic scandals in football stadia et al being brushed under the rug and forgotten rather than being dealt with. The consequences of these policies can happily be seen to this day.

[Pilotto]

Germany was a pretty good nation to live in when it got down to it, and honestly Hitler was less of an asshole than Stalin.
So yeah, it was probably worse until perestroika.

how exactly was hitler less of an asshole than stalin?

are you seriously trying to imply that hitler didn't murder his subordinates when he didn't like them all too much anymore? that he didn't have a habit of putting his political enemies in camps (not just to work, but to die)? maybe the ukranians would have an awesomesauce time with hitler-chan who would never ever ever do something like that?

seriously, do tell. what am i missing?

e: for the actual thread, i thought it'd be a bit shit to just post "no". but that's basically the answer.

And are you suggesting that Stalin didn't do any of these things?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Purge

[Kelinfort]

Do you think East Germany was worse than Nazi Germany? I think East Germany was worse for Aryans, but better for Jews and others persecuted by the Nazi regime. I wonder how many East Germans longed for Hitler. They probably loved him considering he loved the German people. The people persecuted by Hitler probably felt relieved by the Soviet influence in East Germany. I think both countries were horrid.

Nah, it was an average centrally planned state.

[Murkwood]

No, but the Stasi was bigger and more well organized than the Gestapo.

Walmart is bigger and more organized than the Gestapo, ergo Walmart is worse than Nazi Germany.

Walmart is not a government organization dedicated solely to suppressing dissent.

[Soldati Senza Confini]

East Germany worse than Nazi Germany?

Nope. I mean East Germany was pretty bad, but nothing as equally bad as Nazi Germany.

[Nervium]

As a hole, Nazi German was worse, for me.

Why as a hole?

[Estados Mineiros]

As a hole, Nazi German was worse, for me.

Why as a hole?

whole

[Soldati Senza Confini]

As a hole, Nazi German was worse, for me.

Why as a hole?

I'm guessing their foxholes were not as impressive

[Indira]

You really think that a puppet regime was worse than one that murdered millions of it's own people in a ridiculous drive to exterminate the unworthy?

[Estados Mineiros]

Why as a hole?

I'm guessing their foxholes were not as impressive

[Dejanic]

East Germany was one of the more tolerable State Capitalist nations, and it was certainly preferable to Nazi Germany.

[Lithuanian Empire]

It doesn't really matter, they are both quite horrible places to live in.
One has huge military industrialization, state capitalism and mass genocide.
The other was economically horrible, just less organized killing.