Winds of Change:  The Cold War’s Final Chapter 
“I believe that communism is another sad, bizarre chapter in human history whose last pages even now are being written.

I believe this because the source of our strength in the quest for human freedom is not material, but spiritual. 

 

The Politics of Presidential Recovery

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On June 12, 1987, President Reagan delivered a moving speech at the Brandenburg Gate of the Berlin Wall which culminated with an entreaty to the Soviet leader: “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall.” Two years later, on November 9, 1989, the wall came down.

 

 

 

When the wall fell November 9, 1989 President George H.W. Bush used prudence, restraint and empathy to facilitate the unraveling of the Soviet Union.. He claimed the destruction of the wall, which the Soviets decided to allow, was caused not by him or the leaders of the former Soviet Union or Germany but by "the people themselves."

 

It's a lesson on how much is possible if leaders use common sense, show strength when necessary, demonstrate goodwill toward each other, and make an effort not to exploit every event to gain an advantage

 

 

When the Scorpions talked to Mikhail Gorbachev, I think before the peace concert, Klaus Meine told him 
"Our parents came here with guns, but we are coming with guitars."

 

 

 

 

The Cold War through Music - Leningrad 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mikhail Gorbachev, “A President Who Listened,”

New York Times, June 7, 2004

 

 

This article was written by former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev following the death of former President Ronald Reagan on June 5, 2004.

 

 

 

 

… Ronald Reagan’s first term as president had been dedicated to restoring America’s self-confidence. He appealed to the traditions and optimism of the people, to the American dream, and he regarded as his main task strengthening the economy and the military might of the United States. This was accompanied by confrontational rhetoric toward the Soviet Union, and more than rhetoric—by a number of actions that caused concern both in our country and among many people throughout the world. It seemed that the most important thing about Reagan was his anti-Communism and his reputation as a hawk who saw the Soviet Union as an “evil empire.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yet his second term as president emphasized a different set of goals. I think he understood that it is the peacemakers, above all, who earn a place in history. This was consistent with his convictions based on experience, intuition and love of life. In this he was supported by Nancy— his wife and friend, whose role will, I am sure, be duly appreciated.…

 

Did Vladimir Putin meet Ronald Reagan as an undercover KGB man?

 

 

 

In the final outcome, our insistence on dialogue proved fully justified. At a White House ceremony in 1987, we signed the intermediate-range nuclear forces treaty, which launched the process of real arms reduction. And, even though we saw the road to a world free of nuclear weapons differently, the very fact of setting this goal in 1986 in Reykjavik [Iceland] helped to break the momentum of the arms race.…

 

 

 

 

Source: Mikhail Gorbachev, “A President Who Listened,” New York Times, June 7, 2004

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When the Scorpions talked to Mikhail Gorbachev, I think before the peace concert, Klaus Meine told him
"Our parents came here with guns, but we are coming with guitars."

 

 

 

 

 

 

The lyrics celebrate Glasnost in the USSR, the end of the Cold War, and talks about hope when tense conditions arose due to the fall of Communist-run governments among Eastern Bloc nations beginning in 1989.

 

In 1990, this became the unofficial anthem for the German Reunification, an event that politically lasted from the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 to the official reunification on October 3, 1990. (thanks, Martin - Rostock, Germany) 

 

 

The Scorpions were inspired to write the song on a visit to Moscow in 1989, and the opening lines refer to the city's landmarks:

I follow the Moskva

Down to Gorky Park

Listening to the wind of change

 

The Moskva is the name of the river that runs through Moscow (both the city and the river are named identically in Russian), and Gorky Park is an amusement park in Moscow named after Maxim Gorky, a famous communist writer.

 

The song also contains a reference to the Russian folk instrument the balalaika, which is a string instrument somewhat like a guitar. The balalaika is mentioned in the following verse:

For peace of mind

Let your balalaika sing

What my guitar wants to say

"Wind Of Change"

I follow the Moskva
Down to Gorky Park
Listening to the wind of change
An August summer night
Soldiers passing by
Listening to the wind of change

The world is closing in
Did you ever think
That we could be so close, like brothers
The future's in the air
I can feel it everywhere
Blowing with the wind of change

Take me to the magic of the moment
On a glory night
Where the children of tomorrow dream away
in the wind of change

Walking down the street
Distant memories
Are buried in the past forever
I follow the Moskva
Down to Gorky Park
Listening to the wind of change

Take me to the magic of the moment
On a glory night
Where the children of tomorrow share their dreams
With you and me
Take me to the magic of the moment
On a glory night
Where the children of tomorrow dream away
in the wind of change

The wind of change
Blows straight into the face of time
Like a stormwind that will ring the freedom bell
For peace of mind
Let your balalaika sing
What my guitar wants to say

Take me to the magic of the moment
On a glory night
Where the children of tomorrow share their dreams
With you and me
Take me to the magic of the moment
On a glory night
Where the children of tomorrow dream away
in the wind of change