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November 15, 2006
Unfortunate
Here's a good one. Apparently Wal-Mart is selling t-shirts with a nifty little skull and crossbones on them:
Cool design, eh? Except, oh, this happens to be the very same logo used by the 3d SS "Totenkopf" ("Death's Head") division in World War 2, a division notorious for its war crimes:
Of all the Germanic SS Divisions, Totenkopf has the blackest history with regard to war crimes. The division's original cadre was drawn from the SS-Totenkopfverbände (concentration camp guards), as opposed to the other Germanic SS Divisions which were formed from the SS-Verfügungstruppe.While the SS-VT had been trained by such brilliant military leaders as Paul Hausser, Felix Steiner and Georg Keppler; the SS-TV was trained and led by fanatical Nazis like Theodor Eicke, Max Simon and Helmut Becker. Eicke instilled ruthlessness in his men, and during the training at Dachau, the troops commonly spent time guarding inmates at the nearby concentration camp. The three SS-TV Standartes which were to form the Totenkopf division saw action in Poland, where they were involved in numerous war crimes.
By the time Totenkopf went into action, it was filled with highly-indoctrinated and ruthless men, some of whom were already war criminals. A spate of war crimes in France and in Russia in 1941-42 left Totenkopf with a reputation for criminal activities. Only several days into the Fall Gelb campaign, Totenkopf men were implicated in war crimes. 14./III.Bat/Totenkopf Infanterie Regiment-2 executed 97 British troops of the Norfolk Regiment at the town of Le Paradis. The commander, SS-Obersturmführer Fritz Knöchlein, had accused the Norfolk Regiment of using dum-dum ammunition and therefore being in violation of the Hague Convention of 1899. After the war, Knöchlein was found guilty of war crimes and hanged.
Nowadays, the symbol is a popular one among neo-nazis, because it is not as recognizable as the swastika. I'm not suggesting Wal-Mart did this on purpose, but you have to admit, this sure is a good lesson in checking where you get your inspiration from. Wal-Mart issued an apology to one of the fellows who busted them on this, and boy is their face red!
entry no. 651
Posted by oz115 at November 15, 2006 05:51 PM