New states of Germany Germany thus consists of 16 states with equal legal statuses. Yet the process of the "inner reunification" between the former East and West Germany is still ongoing. Persisting differences in culture and mentality among the old East Germany and old West Germany are often referred to as the "wall in the head" ("Mauer im Kopf"). "Ossis" ("Easties") are stereotyped as racist, poor and largely influenced by Russian culture. "Wessis" ("Westies") are usually considered snobbish, dishonest, wealthy, and selfish. The terms can be considered disparaging. In 2009, twenty years after the fall of the wall, a poll found that 22% of
East Germany most recent scholarship: Many East Germans initially regarded the dissolution of the GDR positively. But this reaction soon turned sour. West Germans often acted as if they had "won" and East Germans had "lost" in unification, leading many East Germans ("Ossis") to resent West Germans ("Wessis"). In 2004, Ascher Barnstone wrote, "East Germans resent the wealth possessed by West Germans; West Germans see the East Germans as lazy opportunists who want something for nothing. East Germans find 'Wessis' arrogant and pushy, West Germans think the 'Ossis' are lazy good-for-nothings." On a more fundamental level, unification and subsequent federal policies led