None of which would matter much if the persons involved weren't actively interested in Germany coming to terms with it recent past. I don't pass judgment on the reasons why all this was undertaken, I merely mention that it has, and should not be simply brushed aside as 'cosmetic changes' (The Wiederhutmachungs policy didn't just to countries, by the way, but also to indivduals who had sufferen under Nazism.) Cosmetic changes is more something that might be applicable to what happened during those years in East Germany - and Japan. And I suggest that the difference is not just one of quantity, but of quality.