http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/europe/01/13...eact/index.html

Wow, how stupid was that move?

The whole Royal Family thing is weird.

The whole Royal Family thing is weird.

 

 

Inbreeding

I read the article... that was possibly the worst decision I've heard someone making in a long time. I have been in shows where I've had to wear Nazi uniforms, and I hate that pictures exist of them.

Inbreeding

 

I guess being from Kentucky, you are familiar with that sort of thing

I read the article... that was possibly the worst decision I've heard someone making in a long time.  I have been in shows where I've had to wear Nazi uniforms, and I hate that pictures exist of them.

 

I guess being from Kentucky, you are familiar with that sort of thing

 

Dude, I know you meant as a joke, but I don't find funny at all. My cousin/girlfriend wouldn't appreciate it at all.

 

 

I wish I was that handsome!!

The only thing the royal family is, is just a status symbol.

What an idiot.

I'm not sure, but wouldn't a Nazi uniform be kinda hard to find? I know people buy and own and collect that kind of stuff, but it doesn't seem like the kind of thing you could pick up at the spur of the moment. That took some planning. Hmmmm.

Hail Harry!

Here's what a resident of London had to say about it on this soul-jazz vinyl message board that I've been a member of since the late-nineties:

 

People, particularly Americans, often ask why so many of us Brits are as hung up on the class system as we seem to be. This is a great example of why. The second son of the heir to the throne is so disconnected from the need to display any sort of tact or common courtesy that isn't in line with royal protocol, that he doesn't even think twice about wearing a Nazi uniform at a fancy dress party. It can't have been that he didn't have any other costume options, surely. Even if he didn't, it's funny how no-one at any point thought to take him to one side and said to him, "Actually, that mightn't be a good idea, your Highness." Not because it might offend Jewish folk (although it has done), or WWII veterans (done that, too), but because it's incredibly crass and stupid. If some vacuous pop star did that, they'd get taken to the cleaners, and nobody would be the least bit surprised.

 

A few people have defended him on the grounds that something like "The Producers", a production of which is running in the West End right now, uses Nazi iconography, yet doesn't cause the same kind of a stir. Disregarding the fact that the movie caused a s***storm on its release, it ought to be clear to anyone with a shred of sense that it's an obvious parody. Like I said earlier, had the costume hire shop been cleared out? In the grander scheme of things, it isn't that big a deal - I doubt anyone seriously thinks the kid's a Nazi - but it's a revealing window into how the privileged and moneyed few in Britain like to behave when they think no-one's looking. Because the theme of that party (and to my knowledge, this hasn't made the press reports) was "colonials and natives". Marinate on that for a second. Further proof of my unswerving belief that it's possible to have the best education money can buy, and still be thicker than pigs***.

Further proof of my unswerving belief that it's possible to have the best education money can buy, and still be thicker than pigs***.

 

I know NOSSING!

 

Yes, Nazis bad. Holocaust bad. Harry bad. Harry sorry. Move on.

What a dumbass...he should get taken to the cleaner.

So the guy's a twat.

 

Tell me something I didn't already know?

Auschwitz. What does that word mean to you? The older folks in here will know exactly what Auschwitz was and what happened there. You guys in high school, how about it? Have you studied it yet? Did you pay attention or were you making eyes at the blonde sitting next to you? Will you know anything about Auschwitz when you graduate? Do classes in American and World History matter or is it case of "Who cares what happened in 1944? It doesn't affect my life." Did Prince Harry think the same thing during his education? Is this Prince Harry's stupidity that's to blame, or his callousness? What about Prince Charles? Does he have any excuse for not making sure his sons (both were involved in selecting the costume) had some clue what that arm band was and what it represented to the English people, to say nothing of the Jews? I think not. Charles is old enough to know what that swastika stands for and considering the fact that he is raising the probable future King of England, how could he fail to teach his sons something about England's history?

 

I'm rambling here. Just some thoughts.

Auschwitz. What does that word mean to you?  The older folks in here will know exactly what Auschwitz was and what happened there. You guys in high school, how about it?  Have you studied it yet?  Did you pay attention or were you making eyes at the blonde sitting next to you?  Will you know anything about  Auschwitz when you graduate?  Do classes in American and World History matter or is it case of "Who cares what happened in 1944?  It doesn't affect my life."  Did Prince Harry think the same thing during his education?  Is this Prince Harry's stupidity that's to blame, or his callousness?  What about Prince Charles?  Does he have any excuse for not making sure his sons (both were involved in selecting the costume) had some clue what that arm band was and what it represented to the English people, to say nothing of the Jews? I think not.  Charles is old enough to know what that swastika stands for and considering the fact that he is raising the probable future King of England, how could he fail to teach his sons something about England's history? 

 

I'm rambling here.  Just some thoughts.

Nicely said, YAS. This is a touchy situation, for a few reasons.

Personally, I think that we are around so much catastrophe as a people, so much war and death and inhumanity all over the world these days, that sometimes the atrocities of the past tend to hold less weight to some. That's a shame, but I also think it's kind of understandable.

And I'm also leaning a bit toward the "sometimes 20-year-olds do stupid things" side of things - I don't think Harry was trying to offend a people as a whole, I think he was trying to shock the people at the party he was attending. However, it's also fair for people to hold him to a higher standard, given his potential standing as King of England.

I think the best course of action is to forgive the youthful indiscretion, but also to make damn sure he understands what the symbol on that armband represents and why so many people were offended by it. I think Charles is doing that by ordering the kid to visit Auschwitz.

Charles is doing the right thing, I guess the Royal Family is counting its blessing that Williams is second in line to the throne and not Harry. And if he wasn't watched Schindler's List yet, he should park his ass in front of a TV and watch it.

 

And on another thought, I wonder what his Zimbabwian girlfriend thought of the whole stunt.

Charles is doing the right thing, I guess the Royal Family is counting its blessing that Williams is second in line to the throne and not Harry. And if he wasn't watched Schindler's List yet, he should park his ass in front of a TV and watch it. 

 

And on another thought, I wonder what his Zimbabwian girlfriend thought of the whole stunt.

 

 

Charles shouldn't have waited till the kid was 20 years old to make sure he had a clue about Nazi Germany. As for William, as I said, he was with Harry when he selected the costume. Charles doesn't need to send William and Harry to Auschwitz, he needs to take them. He needs to know his s*** about it too. Tell them what they need to know. Tell them about the backbone the English people showed during WWII. Tell them about the systematic murder on 6 million Jews. Talk to them about it. Get a conversation going about it. That's the only way to make sure they understand it.

Actually, if you wanna get technical, the Brits knew about Auschwitz and what it did, well over a year before it was liberated. Most of this time, the allies had air superiority over that region and could have easily broken that camp apart - and saved hundreds of thousands of lives. Problem is that they really didn't care about the Jews that much.

 

The callous reality was that the German Nazi anti-semitism was really just the active counterpart to latent European tendencies throughout the 20th century. Most historians were surprised that it happened in Germany rather than France, to be honest... but Anti-Semitism was a fairly popular semitism throughout Europe and the UK in the 19th and 20th centuries.