Similarities Between East Germany and Nazi Germany

Unfortunately for East German citizens, it seems as though their government did not change much from 1933-1989. Sure political ideologies changed drastically, but both the Nazi's with their Gestapo and the GDR with their Stasi ran a neat and clean police state. Thanks to the unique insight we have been given through watching the lives of others and reading books with a World War 2 in Germany setting, one can see the clear similarities in the fear that ruled day to day citizens lives and the constant state of panic the masses were kept in to allow the government to retain complete control. The sad irony of the situation is that even though millions suffered and died to end the Nazi regime, many of Germans citizens had to suffer through another 44 years.