re: #146 Charles Johnson

Oh, I know, believe me. But I never liked musicians dressing up as Nazis. It goes way beyond bad taste. I know they were trying to piss people off. It worked.

Weird, but people I have talked to or seen interviews with in the WWII re-enacting community say there is a serious overlap between Waffen SS units and police here in the US. (I knew people who were in a Russian unit and who had a working T-34 tank)

From one message board:

Dear vw,
I have been reenacting in the USA since 1990. I have noticed the SS reenactors tend to be police officers in real life and they also seem to have an affirmative action program for the physically challenged. It amazes me to this day that they engage in ceremonies that are illegal in Germany today. There are some who actually seem to believe the “party line”.

forum.axishistory.com

It actually got bad enough to start a meme in re-enacting: “Friends don’t let friends play Waffen SS”.