Interesting posts on Ernesto “Che” Guevara and Communism. I had always thought it was ironic that people walk around with CCCP (USSR) or hammer and sickle t-shirts and no one bats an eye, whereas Prince Harry wears a Swastika uniform and there is an outcry. It is funky to have photos of Che at home and read the Motorcycle Diaries but to have photos of the Führer and to read Mein Kampf is so not cool.

The flag and symbols of Nazism have been banned since 1945. But the same is not true for the other Axis power, Japan. The Naval ensign of the Imperial Japanese Navy is exactly the same as the Japan Maritime Self-Defence Force. Shouldn’t the same rules apply? Mass war crimes were also committed by Japanese forces (and Soviet) during the Second World War. Why is it OK for Che and Communism to be cool, while Nazism and Swastika is not? And why is it OK for a country, that still needs to come to terms with its past, to fly the flag that stirs up many emotions for many people in East Asia?

I see no difference between Fascism and Communism. Maybe those who wear a hammer and sickle t-shirt need a history lesson?

Speaking of lessons, the Swastika is an ancient symbol of auspiciousness and good fortune. The sun-sign denotes the “indirect way that Divinity is apprehended by intuition and not by intellect.” The lobby of Customs House in Sydney has this symbol on the floor, as does the ceiling of the Commonwealth Bank building on Martin Place.