Michael Arrington for all his Web2.0 goodness is no expert on world culture and history. TechCrunch is getting all paranoid when the swastika symbol appeared on Google Trends and is expecting a return of the Nazis [hat tip: Twilight Fairy].
Just because the KKK burned men on stakes – do you get all worked up about someone googling for the crucifix [from TechCrunch comments]
Neha reminds TechCrunch that probably a large proportion of the world population doesn’t find the symbol offensive just because a madman from Germany decided to usurp it. For all his fears of a ’successful spamming attempt’ TechCrunch probably doesn’t realize that if this story gets legs they probably will have played a large role in doing so. So by their logic, are they promoting Neo-Nazism? Their counterparts aren’t that paranoid and are aware of other usages of the symbol.
Comments
3 comments. Leave your comment »
Schmendrik
Jul 10th, 2008 at 10:44 pm | #
This was first reported widely on
http://www.drudgereport.com
This report makes politics in US.Anything shown on this report gets into mainstream media.
A review:
http://blog.washingtonpost.com/thefix/2008/07/how_matt_drudge_rules_the_poli.html
Steve
Jul 11th, 2008 at 2:17 pm | #
India should be upset about the swastika being usurped.
But as an American what really makes me mad are people who are trying to imply that this means a return of the Nazis.
Looking at Germany, I just don’t see it. And I am no fan of the Germans. In fact I do fear them but I don’t see the Nazis as rising there.
And if they mean to imply in America that is even more offensive. And it is politically motivated. There is for all practical purpose no Nazis in America. The Left wants to make a boggyman so that people can focus on that instead of the reality of the evil that the left is responsible for.
But wait, you might say, I have surfed the web and I have run into a few neo-nazi web sites. So how can you say they don’t exist.
Well, sure, you can pull up a few kook websites here and there but then again, what other kooky organizations can you pull up. Should we get concerned about every strange group that might have a web page. In that case then we must be very terrified indeed.
The truth remains that while sure there are a few people still out their who like to rebel against society and might take on symbols of Nazis and while there are still white racists out there, they are very very few in numbers and hardly represents and larger movement.
If someone would try to organize a Neo-Nazi meeting in any American community they would be lucky to get even 20 people to attend and half of those people would be of local and Federal law enforcement and leftists trying in infiltrate.
This is indeed very offensive and shame on the Drudge Report and the other media reporting this as big news in order to develop a straw man.
Steve
Jul 11th, 2008 at 2:21 pm | #
There are very strong racist organizations in America. They are just not neo-nazi in origin.
One calls itself the National Council on the Race.
Its slogan – For the race everything. For those outside the race, nothing.