Sachsenhausen 2050 (Mek)

There is no more barbed wire.  There are no more crumbling walls.  No more ARBEIT MACHT FREI.  No more excavated death chambers.

There is a new housing complex.  (Instead of barracks.)  There is a playground.  (Instead of guard-towers.)  And there is freshly-planted grass and flowerbeds. 

Of course: there is a very tasteful memorial plaque, designed and produced at tremendous expense by world-renowned artists.  A tasteful memorial plaque: prominently located and inspected daily for any signs of defacement or disrepair.

Sachsenhausen 2050.  The homes were sold at reduced prices.  Which had to be reduced again.  And yet again.  And most are still empty.

The grass is green—but still dead.  The birds chirp—but only mournfully.  And even when it is bright and sunny, the sky is stony gray.  The playground equipment is pristine.

So it is expected that in the coming days the chancellor will announce, with deepest apologies and sensitivities, that:

The homeowners will be relocated at government expense and the housing complex removed.  The barracks, the guard-towers, and ARBEIT MACHT FREI will be returned to their rightful places.  The death chambers will be re-constructed and the walls rebuilt.  And the barbed wire will be replaced.