Poland is Europe's biggest producer and exporter of Nazi memorabilia, a newspaper reported Friday. Most of the items are sold to neo-Nazis in Germany or Scandinavia, the Polska daily said.
Buying Nazi symbols is illegal in those countries, but allowed in Poland.
SS emblems and swastika armbands can be easily bought at markets in Poland's larger cities.
The business is also booming on the internet, with one Polish auction website offering some 600 items.
A complete SS officer's uniform goes for 3,000 zloty (1,400 dollars), while iron crosses cost 15 zloty and are often sold in bulk, Polska said.
Polish law forbids promoting Nazi ideology, but not selling historic mementos or reproductions.
Bootie Wrote:Polish law forbids promoting Nazi ideology, but not selling historic mementos or reproductions.
Isn't that stupid? :hissy: Maybe our lawmakers will finally do something about it... before no one took care as the demand for such things in Poland was insignificant but now, without boundaries... :chin:
Valor Wrote:Bootie Wrote:Polish law forbids promoting Nazi ideology, but not selling historic mementos or reproductions.
Isn't that stupid? :hissy:
I think that it's not stupid . In Spain we have the same laws about the Nazi ideology . I can't understand why I can't buy a nazy simbol or memorabilia if I'm just a history lover , the problem it is not just sell reproductions .
The problem is sell reproductions to people with certain ideas , it's clearly that you can't control who buys what without broke his civil rights , you can't just forbide a thing just because maybe somebody will use it to do something bad or ilegal .
THe only that you can do it's to prevent irrational ideologies , educate people in correct rights based on freedom and equality , not in just forbide all things that somebody thinks are not correct.
People needs to understand why something its not correct to accept it , if you just forbide a thing you will never end with it because most people will not understand the reasons , and i think that this is specially correct when we talk about plitic ideas.
While education is important many think of it only in terms of learning the "facts." People who do inhuman things are assumed to lack education - if they just knew more then they wouldn't act that way. It’s easy to forget that Germany in 1930 had one of most literate and educated populations on earth. And the NAZI ideology was couched in the science of the day; it was not any more irrational than it was irrational sailing “ideology” not to sail too far out to sea when the science (such as it was), of the day said the world was flat. Ancient China, the Roman Empire, heck, Iraq under Hussein were all run by educated people, yet hardly poster children for human rights. Timely proof that education doesn’t translate into respect for other people – Radovan Karadžić. He’s got a PhD, and if the charges against him are accurate saw nothing wrong with urging the killing of 8,000 or so people just because they lived in the wrong place.
For good or ill the education that’s needed to prevent inhumane actions is moral education. Understanding why something isn’t “right” can’t be left only to rationality, if history is any guide.
Not meaning to argue here. More expanding on the ideas. And no, this isn't a sly way of saying "religion is the answer." Don't know what the answer is beside "moral education" - knowing something's right because it's right, rather than relying on rationality for all judgements.
Sgt Barker Wrote:For good or ill the education that’s needed to prevent inhumane actions is moral education. Understanding why something isn’t “right” can’t be left only to rationality, if history is any guide.
Not meaning to argue here. More expanding on the ideas. And no, this isn't a sly way of saying "religion is the answer." Don't know what the answer is beside "moral education" - knowing something's right because it's right, rather than relying on rationality for all judgments.
I could not agree with you more Eric. Nothing annoys me more than the effects of relativism that have over taken almost everything in society. What ever happened to Natural Law, and Absolute Truths?
Sgt Barker Wrote:For good or ill the education that’s needed to prevent inhumane actions is moral education. Understanding why something isn’t “right” can’t be left only to rationality, if history is any guide.
Not meaning to argue here. More expanding on the ideas. And no, this isn't a sly way of saying "religion is the answer." Don't know what the answer is beside "moral education" - knowing something's right because it's right, rather than relying on rationality for all judgements.
I agree , with you . I was talking more about moral and ethic education than about academic facts . Maths , chemistry , geography doesnt's explains or teachs something about respect or freedom .
P.D: I don't understand your comentary about religion . Moral , at least as we understand it in spain , it is not only a religious thing , there is moral too on the atheism ideas .Maybe just different points of view ?
Justin MacDuro Wrote:P.D: I don't understand your comentary about religion.
How to put it into words?
Mi significado es exactamente lo que usted dice - la religión no es la única fuente de moralidad.
:) From Babelfish... I speak no spanish!
Steel God Wrote:I could not agree with you more Eric. Nothing annoys me more than the effects of relativism that have over taken almost everything in society. What ever happened to Natural Law, and Absolute Truths?
Relativism comes with liberty. Natural Law and Absolute Truth are both alive and well in most people, even here in the decadent West. Moreso in places in the world where you and I probably wouldn't choose to live.
Not trying to be a smartass, because I really don't have a prescription. Just like to point out that "education" is not the be all that many of my liberal friends make it out to be, and that spilled over into this conversation.
Justin,
In the US "education" in the public sense does mean just the facts. Opinions are too varied here to allow explicit "values" teaching in state schools. Though many argue that some try to sneak their values into lessons or otherwise teach an explicit set of values. It's a big argument here.
There are private religious schools in the US, as well as the option to teach children in the home. In both of those cases values are taught on purpose. But only about 1 in 10 students do this - 90% attend state schools. Where the "values" taught are...
shall we say debatable at best.
Sgt Barker Wrote:Justin MacDuro Wrote:P.D: I don't understand your comentary about religion.
How to put it into words?
Mi significado es exactamente lo que usted dice - la religión no es la única fuente de moralidad.
:) From Babelfish... I speak no spanish!
Thanks ,sometimes it's hard to understand certain expresion and prahses .
Sgt Barker Wrote:Justin,
In the US "education" in the public sense does mean just the facts. Opinions are too varied here to allow explicit "values" teaching in state schools. Though many argue that some try to sneak their values into lessons or otherwise teach an explicit set of values. It's a big argument here.
There are private religious schools in the US, as well as the option to teach children in the home. In both of those cases values are taught on purpose. But only about 1 in 10 students do this - 90% attend state schools. Where the "values" taught are... shall we say debatable at best.
I know a little about U.S education , it's very similar here in spain except that we try to separate religion from education . If you want a religious education you will have to go to private religious schools or teach children at home .
This educational politic has been in spain since we achieved the democracy , before it was very different . During the Franco's dictatorship religion was imposed in all life facets , school , university , army , worker unions , popular holidays ... it was very opressive for the people .