I found the following Web site, PzG, as I was comparison shopping on the Web for a 1:6 action figure that I wanted for customization [to strip of the Nazi associations and use for other, fictional purposes!]. PzG bills itself as “Your Third Reich Nazi Adolf Hitler HQ!” According to its index page, it sells
Distinctive Panzer, Kriegsmarine, Luftwaffe, Waffen SS, and German WWII Nazi resources for hobbyists, teachers,museums and all students of Third Reich history in one convenient location.
As I clicked through the various pages of the site, I quickly realized that it was an Aryan supremacist/Nazi apologist storefront. Interestingly enough, though, PzG knows that its views are objectionable to many and even addresses this on the page selling mousepads.
The mousepad page says:
No place to hang your favorite war art or recruitment poster? Wife or roomate [sic] dosn’t [sic] approve of your artwork selections? NOT A PROBLEM ANYMORE! Get your perfect piece of historical nazi artwork in an everyday usable format. Get all your favorite designs and change your mousepads often to keep your workspace an inspiring and motivational headquaters [sic].
Note how the page acknowledges that spouses and housemates probably won’t like pro-Nazi displays in their houses. Nevertheless, the page accentuates the “positive” attributes of Nazi culture and iconography [creating an “inspiring and motivational” work place], but never forgets its militaristic origins [mousepads are used in “headquaters”]. This site especially sparks discussions about the use of language to construct a societally acceptable image for a group that most people would find viscerally objectionable.
Incidentally, on the same site, you can also find the site owners’ discussion of the Mothers’ Cross [medals given to women under the Third Reich who birthed many children]. The historical discussion of these medals shifts almost seamlessly into a glorification of the site owner’s large, expanding family, with photos of wife and children as they grow. Is this family practicing the principles elaborated in our earlier discussion about the Mothers’ Cross medal?
Comments 12
Ty — March 26, 2009
Are the Nazis something we want to make a memorabilia out of? It is true most of the basic men were good German soldiers who were following their orders, but their dictator who brought the Nazi ways to being, was a tyrant. Although Hitler was a great leader and had powerful soothing words on the radio, the masses of people he murdered was completely out of pure evil. I believe a website honoring that is not necessary.
The natzi flag and symbol are used by supremacists and this nazi website is something the supremacists are going to visit and buy different posters symbolizing hate. It is good to remember the good german soldiers who believed they were fighting for their country and dying for it, but the Nazis were something else. Hitler also brainwashed man of the men to the point where they thought what they were doing was right. We should not remember the Nazis and the nazi symbol as a group. It is almost as if we are finding glory in their hate.
Dara G — March 26, 2009
I'm highly amused by the irony and stupidity displayed by their use of the word "chutzpah" on their front page. Really, do they not even realize that "chutzpah" is a Hebrew-derived, Yiddish word? Do they think it's German or something? L.O.L.
http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=chutzpah
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/chutzpah
Elena — March 26, 2009
do they not even realize that “chutzpah” is a Hebrew-derived, Yiddish word? Do they think it’s German or something?
Incidentally, Yiddish is a dialect of German with a lot of Hebrew words in it. ^_^;;
The interesting thing is, both Josef Stalin and Mao Zedong also killed millions of people during their respective mandates, but Soviet and communist Chinese poster art is incredibly trendy nowadays...
abutler — March 27, 2009
This is a terrible website. It makes me sick that someone would want to spend there personal time looking for mousepads with a monsters face on it. Hitler should not be shown in a positive light. The world needs to focus on making peace, not remembering the Holocaust in an insensitive manor.
Olivia — March 27, 2009
Can I just say, isn't it interesting that the website provides for those that might be worried their WIVES specifically would be upset by this "memorabilia". The sellers assume that their customers are male and that, if they do live with somebody else, they're married to them or that other person is just a roommate, not a partner.
Village Idiot — March 27, 2009
The fascination with Hitler and 3rd Reich 'memorabilia' is probably some kind of anti-social fetish that attracts some people precisely because the vast majority are so repelled.
After a few hundred years of fetishizing Hitler he'll probably go the same way as Vlad the Impaler, the first real character ultimately fictionalized into new monster of the horror genre. Kids will wear Hitler costumes at Halloween and wikipedia will have to send you to a disambiguation page when you search on his name. When that happens Elvis will probably also be the new Jesus.
People are weird.
Elena — March 28, 2009
After a few hundred years of fetishizing Hitler he’ll probably go the same way as Vlad the Impaler, the first real character ultimately fictionalized into new monster of the horror genre.
*Looks sideways at her Vlad the Impaler wooden plate from her holidays in Transylvania*
Um, actually, Vlad Ţepeş *is* considered a national hero in Romania for defending the country from the Ottoman invaders. It's entirely Bram Stoker's fault that when he skimmed a few history books for local flavour he thought that "Dracula" was such a spiffy name.
Liberated — May 10, 2009
Such politically correct people,so good,kind,and humanatarian.So-liberal,so patriotic,and of course more intelligent than anyone else..Anyone who studies REAL HISTORY,would not be offended by any of images of Adolf Hitler,We have politicians daily lauding Winston Churchill.A noted manic depressive,and cruel war monger who rejected all negoitiations along with FDR to end WW2.(See HUMAN SMOKE BY NICHOLOSON BRADY)(THE UNECESARRY WAR BY BUCHANAN)There allie was Stalin,who imprisioned more people and killed many more than Hitler ever did before and after WW2.Harry Truman vaporized 250.000 innocent people at Hiroshima continueing FDRs mad,and criticized policy of UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDR.(See THE NEW DEALERS WAR BY THOMAS FLEMING)FDR lied about Pearl Harbour(See INFAMY BY JOHN TOLAND)Korea,Vietnam,Iraq,all wars pushed by the same groups in the USA who brought you the others....AND AS YOU SIT HEE POTIFICATING ISRAL OCCUPIES PERSECUTES THE PALISTINIANS....What Chutzpa!(Yes its Yiddish) Adolf Hitler only became a monster in Allied propaganda.Before the war he was respected,.During the war he was idolized in the AXIS countries(SEE HITLERS WAR BY IRVING/WEBSITE ADOLF THE GREAT)George Orwell said the misreading of history has done more harm to mankind than any other thing.The shallow,and predudiced comments against examining,and enjoying deep historical scholarship,and collecting iconography of any politically incorrect nature proves this.
Bob — May 12, 2009
Those of us who lived during WWII, and many who came after, were greatly affected by it. It was a big part of our lives, whether we were actually in the war or at home during a very memorable time in history. We find it very hard to forget, even after all this time. Wanting some memorabilia of it and wanting to keep the memory alive is no more evil than remembering the Titanic, steam locomotives or Elvis Presley (each to his own taste). Of course, WWII created some exceptionally terrible memories for some people, and we should respect their sensitivities in the way we recall it.
There are always those idiots who will idolize bad people, and certainly Hitler and the Nazis are prime fodder for them, and there's not much the rest of us can do about people like that. But please don't lump everyone who is interested in WWII with the likes of them.
Jenny winne — September 21, 2009
it was so good to see it now I am off
gerd — March 22, 2019
The exeptionality of Zionist Israel will create the next (may last) WW with its 10 High tech German submarines it will create the the beginning of the end of the world-finaly the Germans can be blamed for this all again '
Buckminster Fulton — May 24, 2022
It's funny how the Left wing commie progressives need a villain, at the end of ww11 and my father had a chance encounter with the Russians, my father stated "we fought for the wrong side" Just like Joe Kennedy, Charles Lindberg, and several other prominent Americans said, "why are we supporting Red Communism" we should be crushing it along with Germany.