At issue in the Hiss Case was the question whether this sick society which we call Western civilization could in its extremity still cast up a man whose faith in it was so great that he would voluntarily abandon those things which men hold good including life to defend it.
Berlin is still going through a transition since the Cold War - both in what used to be East and West Berlin. I can still sense the confusion and the struggle for identity there in the streets. There's a pulse to it.