re: #602 Dante41

I don’t know, Charles. Before tonight, I just thought “Ireland” when I saw the Celtic Cross. Or maybe “Wiccan”. “Neo-Nazi Scum” never crossed my mind.

Symbols are notoriously easier to co-opt and ruin than to establish. The Nazis were particularly good with that. Not just the swastika. The Iron Cross has become another Nazi symbol, and yet it existed as a medal for courage in the German military before Hitler’s time (and, sadly, he was given one in WWI). It was first established in 1813, apparently.

Once a symbol or a name has been ruined, there’s usually no reclaiming it. Consider “skinheads”: the original groups were anti-fascist gangs, but nowadays most people will immediately associate “skinhead” with Neo-nazi morons.