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Behind the Iron Curtain: Was Sex Better Before the Wall's Fall?

TresSugar — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 10:13:52 -0800

Life may be better since the fall of the Berlin Wall, but is sex? It was at first. Prostitutes came in vans, porn was everywhere, and sex shops opened like wine bars in a gentrifying neighborhood. Yet interest waned throughout the '90s, and nostalgia set in for "love as it was before."

Before, men and women didn't need porn to get excited or toys to orgasm. What did they need? Imagination, says former relationship columnist Jutta Resch-Treuwerth, and they had it. Poll after poll shows there was lots of "imagination" behind the iron curtain. On average, East Germans lost their virginity earlier, had twice as much sex, and had more orgasms than their Western counterparts.

So what made sex so "gut"? Find out after the jump

Oh Snap! Berlin Lightens Up

TresSugar — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 10:00:00 -0700

Berlin's Festival of Lights, which runs October 14-25, features the illumination of about 50 landmarks across the city. Lighting artists set their sights and lights on Berlin's Cathedral Church, Schloss Charlottenburg Palace and trees along Unter Den Linden Avenue, just to name a few lucky spots.

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Oh Snap! Big Giants at the Big Wall

TresSugar — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 10:00:00 -0700

More than one million people gathered in Berlin last weekend to view giant puppets at the city's historical sites. The moving exhibit, put on by artists and technicians from the French troupe Royal de Luxe, celebrated the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.

The "big giant" was from West Berlin, while the "little giant" was imagined to be his niece from East Berlin. The street show ended on Sunday, when the puppets symbolically returned tens of thousands of letters intercepted decades ago by East Germany's secret police. The show cost more than $2 million, but it seems like the creative commemoration of a painful recent history was well worth the price.

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Oh Snap! Berlin Kisses Its Past Goodbye

TresSugar — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 10:05:00 -0700

Former soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev kisses former communist East German leader Erich Honecker on a surviving portion of the Berlin Wall. Artists have been asked to redo their works on the East Side Gallery as part of a restoration effort before the country marks the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall this November.

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Citizen of the World Barack Obama Speaks to Berliners

LibertySugar — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 12:15:44 -0700

Barack Obama spoke to tens of thousands of Berliners gathered at the foot of the Victory Column, chanting "Yes We Can" or "O-bam-a." Using the image of a wall in the city formerly home to the most infamous one, Barack Obama highlighted the common challenges facing America and its allies, especially Europe.

That is why the greatest danger of all is to allow new walls to divide us from one another. The walls between old allies on either side of the Atlantic cannot stand. The walls between the countries with the most and those with the least cannot stand. The walls between races and tribes; natives and immigrants; Christian and Muslim and Jew cannot stand. These now are the walls we must tear down.

While sharing pride for his country, Obama also discussed concerns shared with Europe, including: working for a successful NATO mission in Afghanistan, securing loose nuclear material, working with Russia, getting Iran to abandon its nuclear plan, securing a lasting peace between Israel and Palestine, bringing the Iraq war to a close, and addressing climate change (which got some of the loudest applause).

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For more from the speech, and to find out how the Bush Administration and John McCain handled the event, read more.

Obama asked the crowd to carry the burdens of global citizenship that bind us together:

Will we stand for the human rights of the dissident in Burma, the blogger in Iran, or the voter in Zimbabwe? Will we give meaning to the words "never again" in Darfur? Will we acknowledge that there is no more powerful example than the one each of our nations projects to the world? Will we reject torture and stand for the rule of law? Will we welcome immigrants from different lands, and shun discrimination against those who don't look like us or worship like we do, and keep the promise of equality and opportunity for all of our people?

So did the Republicans get in the spirit? Yes and No. While Germans got to hear what Obama had to say, the Bush Administration's State Department banned foreign service workers from attending the event. But John McCain appeared today at the Schmidts' Sausage Haus in Columbus, Ohio's German Village, apparently going for the German vote as well.

Will Americans be excited that foreign people embraced an American leader?

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Gay Pride Celebration Defies Official Ban in Moscow

LibertySugar — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 15:45:28 -0700

Russian gay rights activists demonstrated on Sunday, marking the date homosexuality was decriminalized in Russia, way back in 1993. Their pride celebrations were not decriminalized, however, since there is an official ban on gay-pride events in Moscow.

Unlike the openly gay mayors of Berlin and Paris, Moscow's mayor Yury Luzhkov has labeled gay events "Satan's work." Apparently many of Moscow's residents agree with him. While gay rights demonstrators ignored the ban, it was hard to ignore their opponents who threw eggs at them and physically assaulted at least one gay man by punching him to the ground. Meanwhile, Russian Orthodox elderly women held an antigay vigil, some loudly condemning gay activists to hell.

Are you surprised that officials and residents of Moscow go to such extremes to repress the expression of gay pride? Do conservative Russians have the right to squash alternative lifestyles?

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Berlin Opens Memorial to Nazis' Gay Victims

LibertySugar — Wed, 28 May 2008 03:00:53 -0700

Germany's memorial to the homosexual victims of the Nazi era opened yesterday in Berlin. The simple yet powerful memorial is made up of a large stone with a small window. Inside, a video image of two men kissing plays.

The fate of Germany's homosexuals under the Nazis, who considered them a threat to German society, has long been ignored. The new display is meant to address the past and the present. Berlin's openly gay mayor, Klaus Wowereit, spoke at the ceremony.

This memorial is important from two points of view - to commemorate the victims, but also to make clear that even today, after we have achieved so much in terms of equal treatment, discrimination still exists daily.

Gay citizens living in Germany still faced hard times after the Nazis. According to the AP, the antihomosexual law used by the Nazis remained on the books in West Germany until 1969 and resulted in 50,000 postwar convictions.

The new memorial is located near the expansive memorial for the Nazis' Jewish victims. A third one is on its way, as the 220,000 to 500,000 Roma and Sinti (Gypsy) victims will be honored next. Check out the pictures of the inauguration ceremony. Will this memorial appropriately honor past victims and improve the lives of Germany's modern homosexual population? Are monuments to the past effective in reminding the present generation, as well as those that will come next, of the importance of tolerance and human rights?

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Germany Opens Walk-In Stalker Advice Center

LibertySugar — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 11:00:36 -0700

Berlin is opening a walk-in stalker advice center, not for victims, but for the stalkers themselves! Just one year ago Germany made stalking - conduct directed at a specific person that would cause reasonable fear - illegal, and attached a penalty of up to 10 years.

But now Germans are looking to help the perpetrators. The center will be stocked with psychotherapists and social workers ready to help stalkers deal with their "addiction."

I think Berlin is taking a responsible approach by coupling criminal penalties with preventative and creative resources. The professionals may learn more about what motivates stalkers, and what treatment is most successful.

Do you think the stalkers will take advantage of the center? Do you have any sympathy for stalkers seeking help?

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Quiz Nation - A History of Olympic Protests

LibertySugar — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 12:00:20 -0700

I'm out watching the Olympic torch run in San Francisco right now! While I get the real story for you, check out a little history of the games in question. China isn't the first country to host Olympics under a shadow of protests. The high-profile event, which commands the attention of the world, is an attractive forum for activists.

Today demonstrates that political controversy is as much of an Olympic tradition as athletic competition. Take this quiz to find out how well you know the story of Olympic protests and boycotts.
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Take the quiz

Front Page: World Marks 20 Years Since Fall of Berlin Wall

TresSugar — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 08:00:18 -0800

As Germany and the rest of the world mark 20 years since the fall of the Berlin Wall, those who experienced the momentous moment are sharing their memories. - BBC News
Iran has charged three US citizens with espionage after they crossed into the country from Iraq. - Voice of America
Jon Gosselin and Levi Johnston made a joint appearance in Times Square yesterday. - New York Daily News
Three big Wall Street firms are set to pay $30 billion in bonuses this year. - Bloomberg
Alice S. Rossi, a noted scholar and founder of the National Organization for Women (NOW), died last week at the age of 87. - New York Times
Disney's revamped version of A Christmas Carol took the top spot at the box office this weekend, bringing in $31 million. - BuzzSugar