Germany's Youth Held 'Skeptical' on Future

"The present generation of German students is skeptical to an almost pathological degree," Hermann Wein, research fellow in Philosophy, told a Leverett Forum audience last night. "The result is an end-of-the-world sense of humor which is fostered by Soviet propaganda."

Wein, who has taught philosophy at universities in Berlin and Goettingen, spoke on "The Modern German University." He is here on a Rockefeller Research Fellowship.

Germany's youth resents the 1945 Potsdam agreement for splitting the country in two, Wein said, and this feeling is played upon by the Russians whenever possible. The result is "a vacuum in self-confidence and confidence in others."

Nevertheless, Wein concluded, "the United States will probably win the cold war for the support of Germany's youth." He cited the student exchange program as one of the contributing factors to U.S. popularity among German students.