Today was the first time I went out for more than an hour since the holidays began. But I only went out for lunch then pay bills then went to buy stuff for my room. So it wasn't all selfish.
But, going out during the day always gives me a bit of a culture shock. One reason is that when I'm at work, I'm at work for 8 hours straight. I don't know what daytime traffic is like. So during the holidays, when I do go out, the urge to run down stupid people on the road is really stronger.
Today, however, my urge to scream and maim and kill was triggered by something else. It was pure stupidity in its highest form and just plain ignorance.
So I will say this once and only once. After this, I'm printing things out to be distributed to help the ignorant. What follows can be rather candid so if you're the faint-hearted type, stop now.
This, people, is a Nazi flag. For years after World War 2, it has become a symbol of hatred, prejudice and ignorance.
This is what the Nazi regime did for years during the World War 2. They did this to everyone who wasn't like them. They believed the world should be populated by the Master race - blond, blue-eyed and fair-skinned. They killed anyone who did not fill this criteria. They killed anyone who was Jewish, homosexual, ill, handicapped, Gypsies, Slavics and prisoners of war. Basically, anyone who was not within their idea of perfection. They practised genocide. They experimented on their prisoners. They played psychological games with the prisoners. They tore families apart. They had concentration camps and extermination camps.
Despite the fact that we can be thankful to Hitler for the Autobahn, Volkswagen and a radio in every house, it doesn't hide the fact that he was a cruel leader and one of the worst war criminals the world and history has seen.
So, why then do we see our youngsters walking around town proudly wearing the Nazi flag? Why do they wish to be a part of a culture which if it really came here, we will be the first victims? We aren't fair-skinned (despite some parties trying really hard to be), we don't have blue eyes (Most Nazis can see past the contact lenses) and we're not blonde (again, despite what many are trying to do).
Why such pride for a nation that would have absolutely no respect for us in any way shape or form? Why are some shops selling clothes that come with the Nazi symbol on them? Are we really that stupid? And I bet you that these people who wear the swastika in town will beat you up if you call them stupid. Yet, what else can call them if not stupid?
The only excuse I can see here is ignorance. Ignorance of history, ignorance of real events, ignorance of current issues.
The thing that triggered my anger today was a Sorento driven by a man and it had the swastika sticker placed just above his third brake light. The guy is lucky I didn't have a baseball bat in my car or I would have started smashing his vehicle while calling him a Nazi bastard.
And the other thing that makes me even more sad? If you go to town, most of the bloody ignorant, stupid kids who wear the swastikas are either Malay or Bumiputeras. What does it tell you about the future of our country when the young ones are too bloody daft to find out the history behind the bloody, damn things they put on their bodies?
I curse these people. They have never come close to a Neo-Nazi or a Ku Klux Klan rally. They have never watched those documentaries about the Holocaust. They have never looked into the eyes of Jewish relatives and seen the sadness and resignation borne from witnessing such an act. I curse them with everything in me. I can only hope that they realise how stupid they are before they leave our safe little country and meet the outside big,bad, real world.
Pictures courtesy of the Web