Chris Pratt wears “Don’t Tread On Us” Tee that has ties to White Supremacists

Fatass.

Who are you, his publicist, OP?

Xtian boy...of course he is a white supremacist! Jesus said so!

I hate him

He's disgusting and boring on the screen.

Chris Pratt = hard pass.

I never understood the obsession women have with this guy. He is basic. He is for middle American, conservative, hypocrite frau’s to drool over. Fraus with taste like the other Chris’. Hemsworth, Evans, Pine. This guy will be fat again in no time.

He's such a douche.

He looks ripped.

Jfc that article. Wore a tshirt with a symbol adopted by tea party. Associated with white supremacists. EEOC says it can be racial harassment. "Our take: it's just a shirt".

TMZ is trash.

Chris Pratt was an amateur stripper at age 18, according to this article on E! News.

He's just another deplorable and a boring one at that. His days in the spotlight are numbered. I give this marriage about 3 years.

Sloppy, dog abusing, no talent pig.

One note asshole.

This pisses me off when the phrase means something else entirely within the context of the American Revolution. None of these tea party jits are getting tread on or not represented. Idiots.

Leave our fucking Tea Party, the real one that happened in Boston, out of it.

From that photo in OP it looks like Chris is with child.

This is ALL gay men see:

Gasden flag is not a white supremacist flag. In many parts of the country all kinds of people wear it. It's like a states right's type statement. I briefly lived in North Carolina and saw people wear it or hang it that I know for a fact were liberal and pro-diversity.

Any pro states right symbol ends up a bit controversial just because the biggest states right fight we ever had as a country was whether the South should have been allowed to continue slavery. But there are many people who use the Gasden flag just to connote libertarian leanings.

Racist/Racist Apologist at R17.

Check my posting history if you want, I spend most of my time here these days defending AOC and liberal ideas (though I don't like Bernie) I'm just talking based on my life experience. I know people who use that flag who are not racist at all

Whatever he is, he’s fat! That won’t fly in the career he seeks.

I am fucking tired of people trying to turn parts of our shared history into things they are not, and people are just allowing it. I am not going to surrender the Gadson Flag, the Betsy Ross Flag or any of the other ones to white supremacists.

R20 Do you know nothing about Pratt lol? He blows up like a whale every time he's between films/shows than loses it all quickly with a trainer. That can't be healthy long term but he's been doing it since Parks and Rec

He's trash. And a Trump voter. He needs to go away.

R21 I get what you are saying and how you feel. And I'm mostly on the same page as you, but I think it's fair to scrutinize these thing when white supremacists adopt them. Not drop them entirely, but talk about exactly what it means and why white supremacists like it. And to give that context when discussing it. That's why I tried to explain it at R17. I don't think it's irrational to question this stuff

Lots of hysterical 'liberals' on this thread...

The Gadsden Flag has been a favorite of tea party and militia types for ages. Might be unfair, but that's the way it is.

r19, if you respond to a troll as you did, you've already lost.

Oh this flag has always been blah blah blah blah. No. The swastika used to be all kinds of shit, it's not anymore.

If white supremacists and states' rights racist cunts (as they inevitably turn out to be) have adopted "don't tread on me" as their own, it's a problem. It's time for decent people to not wear it or fly it or allow others to wear and fly it without calling them out.

Zero tolerance for these cunts means zero fucking tolerance. That includes not tolerating or excusing their misuse and abuse of American history to promote their own twisted, racist, un-American bullshit.

R28 The swastika is still in mainstream use in the East, where it originated.

In the West, it's only ever been used by Nazis, so WE don't use it. In the East, it's has a meaning that has nothing to do with racial hatred and greatly predates the Nazis. So they use it even though some people appropriated it for terrible things. That makes sense to me.

For another example, Confederate flag has never had any meaning outside of the South being willing to kill fellow Americans so they would be allowed to enslave other Americans. That was it's original and only meaning, so the symbol itself is bad and shouldn't be used.

You can have a nuanced view on things. You don't need to come up with blanket, indiscriminate bans.

R29 You are wrong about the swastika it was used by many people in the West before the Nazis took it, also the oldest known swastika is found in Ukraine, so it is no more Eastern than Western. It is one of those symbols that was independently created and used throughout the world. In the Americas for instance it is the Navajo symbol for good luck. The world made a huge mistake in allowing Nazis to appropriate such a universally good symbol for their evil. That is why, we should not allow that to occur again.

[quote] That is why, we should not allow that to occur again.

Never again.

fugly

I disagree R30. Use in the East has been far more ubiquitous and constant throughout history. It's use in the West has always been sporadic. I agree that many cultures developed it independently. But I don't think the cultural significance of it in the West is remotely comparable to it in the East. In large portions of Southeast Asia it has not been possible to travel around without seeing it somewhere for millennia. IT's on temples and statues everywhere and always has been. While at the time Nazis first used it, I'd be willing to bet 80% or more of the population of Western Europe had never seen one. Maybe as part of a pattern somewhere but not as a distinct symbol

R33 Did you even bother to read the wikipedia article you linked? It lists many ways that the swastika was in use in the west before the Nazis. It might not have been as popular as in the East, but it was common and accepted as a sign of good luck.

He’s so fat.

No thank you, R29, we don't have time for that tolerant, nuanced shit right now. Try us in a couple of hundred years and see if it's cool then. At the moment we have active white supremacist fascism on the rise in America, encouraged by Putin and Agent Orange. It's time for zero tolerance of their shit and that includes white supremacist "meme" t-shirts, flags, tv shows, supporters and assorted other garbage.

Call. Them. Out. Every. Single. Time.

R34 It's just not remotely the same thing. It was the a symbol used in it's isolated form by multiple major Eastern religions throughout all history. One of the most important shared symbols, a deep and constant part of their heritage

It's like the Christian cross in the West. That is the scale it's used on in the East. And it was cross cultural. There's just no comparison to it's use in the West. And you can look at how quickly and seamlessly we discarded it after the Nazis used it. It meant nothing to us on any deep level. While it would not even be practical to remove it from all the buildings and other structures it's on all over Asia.

I didn't learn any of this from the Wikipedia page. I took three semesters of Eastern religion courses in college. I was fascinated by that stuff in my 20s. I still kind of am

Even if you feel that way R37 You should be able to acknowledge other people don't think we need a zero tolerance policy. And those people are not trying to advance racial hatred when they use the symbols. Even if you think they shouldn't use it regardless because other people use it to advance hatred

[quote] I took three semesters of Eastern religion courses in college.

Santa Fe or Annapolis?

[quote] For another example, Confederate flag has never had any meaning outside of the South being willing to kill fellow Americans so they would be allowed to enslave other Americans. That was it's original and only meaning, so the symbol itself is bad and shouldn't be used.

Or as the South would say, they were fighting against government overreach and Lincoln wanted the blacks shipped out of the US and to never hold higher office. The slavery bit is a nice story but is akin to a trans woman of color being responsible for Stonewall.

[quote] I am not going to surrender the Gadson Flag, the Betsy Ross Flag or any of the other ones to white supremacists.

Betsy Ross and the flag is another American myth.

R41 I know that the Betsy Ross story is apocryphal, but it is the common name for the flag.

r19 I hope in this thread you learned that a ride on the woke train never ends, and you can NEVER get off. You either accept and champion each and every new, increasingly bizarre stop the train takes you to, or you are a de facto bigot, racist, and probably actual nazi (see r18).

Obligatory: I don't know why I bother with this since "woke" readers will immediately brand me as a troll, boris, alt right, actually hitler, or w/e other such nonsense they're Emmanuel Goldstien-ing today, but I am myself a liberal (what the word meant before it became "your rights end where my feelings begin"), I never have voted republican., and I detest trump. None of that will matter to the repliers already salivating at the opportunity to "call out" another "nazi." This woke nonsense is POISON. It's poison to rationality, it's poison to good, critical thinking, and it's poison to most voters--and you need to WIN elections to get ANYTHING you want. Losers get NOTHING.

Chris digs anorexic chicks. Better enjoy it now because she will turn into the crypt keeper sooner than later

R43 is a “I’m a Liberal and I voted for Obama twice, but Hillary...” Trumper.

r45 Wrong again. I actually supported Hillary in 2008 before Obama got the nom, and was happy to vote for her in 2016. Not that you'll believe me, because you already know everything, right?

Pratt is a dumb redneck. This is news?

“I don’t see personal stories that necessarily resonate with me, because they’re not my stories,” the actor told Men’s Fitness.

“I think there’s room for me to tell mine, and probably an audience that would be hungry for them. The voice of the average, blue-collar American isn’t necessarily represented in Hollywood.”

Many publications reported on Pratt’s words, pointing out how blue-collar Americans are one of the most prominently represented groups in Hollywood movies.

I hated Pratt before I ever even knew about his politics.

He is the definition of white basic mediocrity.

And his wife sounds like one of those girls who was a super activist in college and then married the first conservative man who looked at her.

What did Anna Farris ever see in this creep?!

R49 he’s funny. She’s attracted to that. He made her laugh and treated her well.

Remember, he also got her when he was a fatty.

He's also handsome and masculine. And when he's in shape he's a 10/10 in my opinion. Even a little chubby he still looks pretty good

His face is not a 10.

I disagree

That’s not a 10

[quote]Chris Pratt was an amateur stripper at age 18, according to this article on E! News.

He also used to be a model, which is why he poses so professionally in pics like at above. At some point he started selling himself as a fat slob everyman and then after losing the fat for Zero Dark Thirty sold his return to being fit as a huge transformation into something new.

His look is very versitile. That's what has made his career. He actually does manage to still look quite attractive while chubby. And muscle suits him as well. He's been able to fit many different roles

[quote] The slavery bit is a nice story but is akin to a trans woman of color being responsible for Stonewall.

Good to know our resident anti-trans fanatic is also a Confederacy apologist.

[quote] He's been able to fit many different roles

Yes, I particularly enjoyed his Willy Loman in "Death of a Salesman."

R58 Watch, he will soon move on to holocaust denial.

Maybe he has to wear it because it’s all that fits him right now.

The anti-trans fanatic confederate apologist was on another thread trying to discourage gay men from using PrEP. His lunacy is funny but he is actually dangerous.

Looking lumpy and seemingly has lost his charm. I’m surprised Maria and Arnold allowed the marriage to happen.

You're an A-list movie star making millions and you walk around in that fugly outfit?

I am so done with this scumbag. Pure trash.

TMZ is pro-Trump aka full-on fascist.

Harvey Levin is another piece of shit that needs to be brought down.

His ass is flat.

You people are nuts. How do you get through the day when you think everyone is Hitler?! Why are you so afraid of masculinity? Self-loathing, perhaps? You’re not in high school anymore. No one is going to beat you up. Masculinity is a good thing. If you find some you probably won’t be so lonely.

The woke train is more like a short bus.

R69, generally DLers appreciate masculinity over all other traits (hence the idolatry of straight men) and attempt to degrade anything feminine.

Chris is masculinity personified. The good and the bad. Gun loving idiot with a great bod and undeserved total confidence in himself.

R69 = Eric Trump

They sell a T-shirt with this symbol and phrase at the visitor's center all along the Freedom Trail - from the North Bridge to the North Church. I'm a great history buff and so I bought one. Do I wear it? No, because being someone who likes history, I understand how alive and ever-changing it is. Current history precludes wearing it unless I want to send the message that I'm some libertarian asshole willing to throw poor people away and support racism. I know the original meaning and treasure it as the passion that started the whole 'great experiment'.

I also know the current meaning and keep it in the drawer. Not because some 'woke' asshole needs to tell me to do it, but because I understand that some Americans are under attack right now by the fucks who've adopted it. I care about my fellow Americans just trying to live their good American lives. I do not care for the unAmerican fucks who are going against the very ideals those original founders of the symbol died for. They're the unpatriotic ones, the traitors, the fools. Who wants to belong to that club?

CNN's Brian Stelter: Yahoo on Wednesday ignited some controversy when its UK movies section published a story that said actor Chris Pratt had been "criticized for 'white supremacist' t-shirt." The t-shirt in question was one that featured the Gadsen Flag. While it has in recent years been adopted by individuals on the right as a symbol against big government, I have never heard of it described as a "white supremacist" symbol. Moreover, Yahoo's story only cited a handful of tweets from random users as evidence of the supposed criticism Pratt was facing.

The story was later updated to tone down the headline and remove references to white supremacism, but the damage had already been done. Outlets like Fox News and personalities like Sean Hannity had already used the incident to zing the media at large.

As Aaron Blake wrote in WaPo, "The whole thing is completely counterproductive when it comes to the debate we’re having right now. It makes the media look rabid for this controversy and for more symbols to associate with racism. It allows defenders of Trump’s racist tweets to point to the Yahoo story and say: 'See, look how out of touch these people are! They see racism everywhere.'"

Who gives a fuck what that insane demographic believes, R74? The FACT is that the symbol has been adopted by both libertarian asswipes and white supremecists. To wear it means you are one, you support their agenda, or you just don't have enough awareness or compassion to understand why it upsets people to see it now.

Simple. Only the deluded fail to see it.

If nothing else, it proves he's ignorant of current history. Dumb is as dumb does. I don't give a fuck if he apologizes or not, but I do question why his politically-bred and raised wife had nothing to say about the damn shirt.

In current times, most people who use the flag are not doing it to promote white supremacy. Its unreasonable to accuse someone of condoning white supremacy just because they wear it.

Confederate flag is one thing. Id agree with that. But this is a step too far. It would he letting a relatively small group co-opt it completely.

R69 is a Trumpet on a bender. Ignore.

And the millions of people who used the Swastika for thousands of years had their symbol co-opted by evil too, R77. It happens. To pretend it didn't right now, with this symbol, comes off as disingenuous, at best.

What [R79] said. I wish it weren't so, because I have always liked the original flag, but the white nationalists and tea party wackos have appropriated the symbol. Chris Pratt is sending a signal whether he admits it or not. Given that his bride is a Shriver/Kennedy and a Schwarzenegger makes this doubly vile. And my, how out of shape he looks. Maybe he belongs on the stars with eating disorders thread.

R79 As has been explained upthread, most of Asia still uses the Swastika commonly. Its on several prominent temples and other steuctures in a wide variety of nations. So they did not follow the rule you are setting.

We don't use it post Nazis because it means mothing to us outside of the Nazis. But people who used it pre-Nazi (India, China, Tibet, Japan and others) still use it like they did before.

The Gadsden flag had its original meaning before white supremacists co-opted it. So we should still use it.

Those prominent temples were built before the symbol was co-opted. It also makes a huge difference that the movement that co-opted their symbol did not originate in their country.

You can use the Gadsden all you want, R81, and be seen for the current meaning. That's your choice. I wouldn't come at you in public if I saw you wearing it because I'm not a jerk, but I wouldn't invite you to my house or have anything to do with you socially because you've shown that you're more interested in your stubborn adherence to ancient history than the current version where people who use that symbol are hurting and killing others for evil reason.

And even if you choose not to use the flag (which I understand and empathize with) its just not rational to believe everyone has your worldview.

People from other parts of the country don't wake up, think they flag is a symbol of white supremacy, and choose to wear it anyway because they condone white supremacy. Many of them don't think about it that way at all and wear it just as a sign of state pride. That is what they are thinking as they wear it.

R48? Are they? Maybe it's just the shows/movies I watch, but I haven't watched anything about blue collar people in years. The last show with blue collar characters I watched regularly is Shameless, which is still on, but I lost interest in it. Even something like Breaking Bad, which was about a character with money problems, the main character still had a white collar profession and education.

[quote] Those prominent temples were built before the symbol was co-opted. It also makes a huge difference that the movement that co-opted their symbol did not originate in their country.

I think the point about the Nazis not originating in their countries is fair but also worth pointing out many large religious groups still put it on pamphlets and newly constructed buildings. They haven't tempered their use at all based on what the Nazis did.

There is just an unspoken practice od never putting it on merchandise that may be shipped to a foreign country. But internally they see no problem with it

One more thing, R81. You used the word 'should' and this is revealing. People who care about other people don't run around telling them what they should and shouldn't do. Most can figure it out themselves and don't need your 'lessons' in history.

I don't expect that others share my world view or exhibit basic human kindness or acknowledgment of the suffering of their fellow Americans.

If I indulged my baser instincts, I'd assume that Pratt is intentionally trying to appeal to the one demographic he has a following in. He lost a lot of fans with his gun shit, then his ego trip and divorce, his holy rolling bullshit.....but I'll just go with he's a dumb and insensitive hick.

Last night I heard him shouting "SEND HER BACK. SEND HER BACK.".

If you did, R87, it's because you were there and shouting it too. Racist trump supporter at R87.

R86 My wording was clumsy. What I was trying to communicate was that we should be ABLE to use it without others accusimlng us of white supremacy which is a very serious charge.

FWIW I personally don't use it. I've never owned something with that symbol on it and I have no intention of ever doing so. I suspect my world view is very similar to yours. But I don't think others wearing it automatically marks them as white suprmacist sympathizers. I know people that do wear it that aren't at all like that.

I know loads of people in NH, R89, who also USED it until they realized what it is currently being used to promote.

We should be able to do a lot of things, but if what we do shows a callous disregard for the rights and feelings of others, it's a sure tell what kind of person you are.

Good example: Someone told me not to use the word 'jimmies' when asking for sprinkles on an ice cream cone. I had no idea, in my over 50 years on this planet and in this country, that the word had racist connotations. I stopped using it.

TMZ is openly right wing, R9, so this is propaganda for them. A big star wearing a shirt with symbols that have been associated with the far-right Tea Party movement for 15-odd years is something they very much want to normalize.

The "well, maybe it was innocent, and it's dangerous to say something so SERIOUS as 'this is associated with white supremacy' so you better be careful" attitude of R89 is exactly what they want. They want it normalized, something you see every day, something regular people ignore so the ideas can become slowly accepted as mainstream and even typical.

R84, a high school teacher is not a white collar profession.

R90 difference to me there is that "jimmies" was created with racism in mind. It's never had another meaning. Its not like it was an innoculous term that racists just started using one day.

Gadsden flag was not created to represent white supremacy and was not used that way for a long time.

I evaluate each of these on their merits.

R81 is lying to you.

Japan doesn't use the swastika as a matter of course. They're still debating over its usage, for obvious reasons.

[quote] They want it normalized, something you see every day, something regular people ignore so the ideas can become slowly accepted as mainstream and even typical.

But that's exactly the problem. Its already normalized and has been for almost 250 years. You are trying to marginalize it based on recent events and thats what I don't agree with.

Confederate flag was created as a symbol of white supremacy so I think its fair to say anyone who uses it condones white supremacy. This is not the case with the Gadsden flag

There's no evidence that the word "jimmies" was based on the phrase "Jim Crow."

Does anyone here even know what a Google is? Jesus.

Meanings, definitions, context and situations change, R95. I'm sorry that's too difficult of a concept for you to grasp.

Maybe take up your complaints with the racist pieces of shit who co-opted the flag for their own ends, deliberately choosing a neutral American symbol to use as cover for what they were really doing.

I wasn't aware of that debate r94 but don't take my word for it. Wikipedia has a detailed section on contempory use of the swatika.

And I repeat again itd be 100% wrong for US to use it because it hasnt had another meaning besides as a NAZI

[quote]Good example: Someone told me not to use the word 'jimmies' when asking for sprinkles on an ice cream cone. I had no idea, in my over 50 years on this planet and in this country, that the word had racist connotations. I stopped using it.

Imagine being this cowed by a common term for chocolate sprinkles

R97 you don't get to unilaterally impose that change over the entire rest of the population. Any more than the white supremacists do.

Exactly, R93, because you have no consideration for others or any wish to acknowledge current events that go against your world view. R91 has your number and nothing you say will convince me to come over to the side of 'it's ok to use racist symbols and languaging because it's historically inaccurate in the original meaning' bullshit.

Sorry, bitch, but I'll honor the living in their struggles before I start wearing the Gadsen flag in its current status.

And I wasn't cowed, R99. It was just as easy to use the words 'chocolate sprinkles' like you just did, hypocrite.

I have multiple family photos of my great grandparents as babies which were mounted on cardboard frames with swastikas, which in the 1920s meant "good luck." Clara Bow was famously photographed in fashion with swastikas because it was a well-known symbol of good luck.

It has absolutely meant something besides "Nazi" in the US, R98.

If you would defend a flag before you would defend black or brown people, you might -- no -- you definitely are a big fucking racist.

[quote]Many publications reported on Pratt’s words, pointing out how blue-collar Americans are one of the most prominently represented groups in Hollywood movies.

They're usually Hollywood versions of blue-collar people, which bear no relation to reality. Most Hollywood screenwriters come from privileged backgrounds and have never had any contact with a blue-collar demographic.

[quote]you don't get to unilaterally impose that change over the entire rest of the population

I'm not imposing anything, you lunatic, I'm telling you what exists in the culture right now. It wasn't my doing and I'm not responsible for it, and I'm not making the rules. It's happened whether either of us like it or not.

I, who have been arguing wearing the flag doesn't automatically make you racist, am black. So you shouldn't make those kinds of assumptions.

The Gadsen flag was wholly co-opted by the right wing 20 years ago. If you're defending it while sticking fingers in your ears and going "LALALALA" every time someone tries to explain that white supremacists are known to use this flag now too, you are, at best, a right-wing loon.

Wearing it as fashion, R102, shows that the original meaning of the symbol was ignored and debased even then. Clara Bow? Bwhahahaha.....and R106, just because you say you're black doesn't mean you are. I could say I was Asian and who could disprove it?

Lots of black, libertarian assholes running around, too, so no, you are not off the hook for defending a co-opted symbol of freedom.

No it hasn't happened r106. Many people wear that without trying to advance white supremacy. The entire point if this argument is you are saying those people don't exist and anyone who wears it is deliberately trying to support racism. And that is sinply not true. In huge swaths of the country its just a popular design many people wear.

Many many more people wear it that way than people trying to use it to advance white supremacy.

No, they don't, R109. You are full of shit. I was in the service in this country and before the advent of the Tea Party the ONLY place I'd see this shirt would be in Freedom Trail gift shops or on the state flag of New Hampshire.

If people are wearing this anywhere else, like in hicksville Pratt-land, it's because they want to make a statement that is anything but accepting to the needs and feelings of others.

Believe Im black or don't makes no difference to me. The difference between me and many of you is that I have lived in many different states. What you get from viewing a symbol is just different from what other millions of people get from it. You should be able to acknowledge that rather than just say your view is right, everyone else's is wrong. And you know the intentions of any one who wears it. Thats just not sound. Ask democrats who live in NC or FL or GA (And there are MANY of them even though there are more republicans) what they think the flag means and many will tell you exactly what Im saying.

Does the flag defender not read?

More concerning to me is what the hell happened to his muscles? He looks like a shrimp.

I'm in my 30s and the Gadsden flag has always been a libertarian symbol in my lifetime. Now it's being pulled further. But FFS, is there any other country on the planet that obsesses over flags like we do?

MUH SYMBOLS!!!!

[quote]Wearing it as fashion, [R102], shows that the original meaning of the symbol was ignored and debased even then.

I didn't say otherwise. My point is that it was popular as a symbol of good luck in the Western world prior to the Nazi usage, and that the Nazis adopted it specifically because of its Westernized meaning. It's mostly the same reason behind why the Tea Partiers adopted the Gadsden flag.

R115 I wasn't trying to argue the West had never seen the swatska before the Nazis though I can see how my post reads that way.

I was trying to say if the West revered the Swatiska in the way the East does, and used it as ubiquitously, I don't think we would have abandoned. They did not abandon it in the East, even though I acknowledge the other post that says Japan specifically is currently debating this.

FWIW last Japanese anime I binged watched, which is less than 10 years old I think, had a prominent swastika in one of the main character designs so even now its far from forbidden the way it is here

Actually that brings to mind another example. The Christian Cross. The KKK used a burning cross as a symbol of hatred and commited many horrific atrocities and acts of terrorism with the cross on their uniform or being carried by their members. They viewed that symbol as a fundamental part of their indentity.

But of course the Christian cross is 2000 years old. And no point would it have seemed reasonable or even practical to remove it from society. The way we just kind of steamroll past the KKK using it is similar to the East laegely ignoring the Nazis using the swastika in my opinion.

Obviously the Gadsden flag is not nearly as clear cut an situation as the swastika or cross, which are both much older and more widely used.

But I do think these are the kinds of things you tjink about when making these judgement calls and I believe reasonable, non racist people can easily disagree here.

[quote] The swastika used to be all kinds of shit, it's not anymore. ... It's time for decent people to not wear it or fly it or allow others to wear and fly it without calling them out ... Zero tolerance for these cunts means zero fucking tolerance.

[quote] In the West, it's only ever been used by Nazis, so WE don't use it.

[quote] There's just no comparison to it's use in the West. And you can look at how quickly and seamlessly we discarded it after the Nazis used it.

R28 and R29/R34 - Finland’s military Air Force still uses the Swastika (which they had before the Germans, so they’re fully entitled to it). Are you calling Finns “not decent” people? Or not part of the Occident (West)?

[quote] While the Finnish Air Force's practice of putting swastikas on its aircraft ended decades ago, it is easy enough to find swastikas on objects related to the Finnish Air Force ... [bold]Finnish swastikas can be seen on Shoulder Badges and at the Finnish Air Force Academy.[/bold]

Lol, can you imagine a group of armed, military men with Swastikas emblazoned on them (and who resemble blonde, blue-eyed German Aryans)? A bit awkward, yes. BUT no one seems to care that much in Europe or Asia. Not even - gasp! - Israel.

[quote] “The Finnish Air Force adopted the swastika as its logo long before Hitler and the Nazis did." ... For Mr. Mecklin, like MANY Finns, that is as it should be. "To us the swastika is a symbol of Freedom and Independence," he says.

Some Americans are just over-sensitive pearl-clutchers.

R118 I wasn't aware of the Finnish Air Force but surely you can see that is an exception and not the rule. The swastika was far more commonly seen in Europe before the Nazis even if it wasn't as common as in the East. Many people and groups in Europe did indeed abandon it. And most countries in Asia do not ship products with swastikas on them to Europe or North America even though it's fine in their countries. So this is not just my opinion.

I don't think you finding one random group that still uses it in Europe disproves anything.

Man those Kennedy genes are strong - I don't see hardly any 'Ahnold' in his wife's appearance. That mouth for sure.

[quote]Finland’s military Air Force still uses the Swastika (which they had before the Germans, so they’re fully entitled to it).

This is a lie. Finland's Air Force stopped using the swastika in 1945, and no, that date is no coincidence.

[quote]Are you calling Finns “not decent” people? Or not part of the Occident (West)?

Are you lying intentionally, or because you're just fucking stupid? Why ARE you posting incorrect information about Finland's use of the swastika until the end of WW2?

[quote]Man those Kennedy genes are strong - I don't see hardly any 'Ahnold' in his wife's appearance. That mouth for sure.

Unfortunately, you can definitely see his rethug beliefs and politics in her.

I guess she's still looking for daddy's approval and love.

Thats ridiculous. Arnold was a republican but is a fairly liberal one. Only way a republican can win in California. He has denounced Trump and the current GOP many times. Specifically because of the white supremacy. But also because Trump is unfit to be president. He even ran a national campaign against gerrymandering, the only thing keeping the current GOP afloat.

[quote] This is a lie. Finland's Air Force stopped using the swastika in 1945, and no, that date is no coincidence. Are you lying intentionally, or because you're just fucking stupid? Why ARE you posting incorrect information about Finland's use of the swastika until the end of WW2?

The Swastika is STILL used in the Finnish Air Force (FAF’s) insignia, its Academies and Veteran Charity awards, R121. I’m NOT blaming you. But no need to pretend like it isn’t. So quit being so butthurt and calling me a “liar” - I’ll prove with multiple sources below that I’m not “lying”. Because many reputable international publications and observers have already made note of the FAF’s use of the Swastika today:

[quote] The Business Insider, Sep. 18, 2018: “Finnish swastikas can be seen on shoulder badges and at the Finnish Air Force [FAF] Academy … The swastika can STILL be found in the Emblem of the FAF and at least one Finnish army unit today.”

[quote] “In the meantime, [bold]as far as Finnish authorities are concerned, the question is a closed one. "At present time the Ministry of Defense has no plans to restrict or review the use of the swastika," says Kristian Vakkuri, the Ministry spokesperson.”[/bold]

[quote] The Telegraph, Dec. 19, 2007: “Finland's Swastika Ring honours war dead. In Britain war veterans are honoured with a red paper poppy. In Finland, the public is supporting its war heroes with a silver Swastika ring … When the Finnish War Veterans Association sought a new way of raising funds for the nation's 80,000 Second World War veterans, the obvious choice was a replica of its 1940 Air Defence ring, complete with Swastika, rosette and stylised wings.”

[quote] [bold]“Shoppers can now BUY one of the 60,000 silver [Swastika charity] rings IN SUPERMARKETS or online for about £40. “We thought they would make great Christmas presents for men, or for young people if their grandparents fought in the war," said Pia Mikkonen, the Head of the Finnish Veterans' Association.”[/bold]

[quote] [bold]“Finnish actors and sports stars, including Marko Kemppainen, the Olympic shooting silver medalist, have lined up to make television advertisements PROMOTING the replica [Swastika] ring.”[/bold]

[quote] Ms Mikkonen insisted that it remained untarnished by history. "There hasn't been confusion here in Finland," she said. "For us Finns, it's not a negative symbol." “

[quote] Finland’s state radio broadcaster “Yleisradio Oy” (YLE), Oct. 5, 2017: “Finland has officially used the ancient symbol of the swastika on monuments, awards and decorations … [bold]Today, it is STILL prominently displayed on MILITARY FLAGS and INSIGNIA[/bold], but one professor is now asking what its use actually means for the defence capabilities of the armed forces. Does holding onto this tradition have benefits that outweigh risks to the nation’s image?”

[quote] “Teivo Teivainen, Professor of World Politics at the University of Helsinki: “"My question about the Swastika is whether it makes sense for the military of Finland TODAY and tomorrow to use it for the tasks that the military has.” ... Teivainen says he can see different kinds of scenarios where [bold]the fact that the Air Force Command and different branches of the Finnish Air Force have a swastika as an official symbol[/bold], could maybe not be of great harm, but a problem nevertheless for Finland in complicated security situations.”

[quote] ”So I've been trying to ask if those in charge of the Military can find benefits for the use of the swastika. Because if they are professional in defending Finland, there should be some benefit for the symbols, as there is for the arms that they use. And to this day, I haven't found convincing arguments why using the swastika would be beneficial for Finland, today and tomorrow, in conflict situations."

[quote] Finland’s state radio broadcaster “Yleisradio Oy” (YLE), Oct. 5, 2017: [bold]”When I first arrived in Finland I saw a Military Parade with these particular insignia being flown. I was scared for my life,” relates Keegan Elmer, an American Labour Researcher resident in Helsinki.[/bold] ”I was running through the square and calling my friend and saying, do you realize there's some sort of Fascist Parade going on? I had just arrived. I had no idea. I was very alarmed and my friends told me to calm down. Since I've arrived in Finland, I've had this predicament. Is this a good thing? And, I've had many arguments with my Finnish friends about it."

R121, as for your claim that “Finland's Air Force stopped using the swastika in 1945” - on top of all the declarations & reports to the contrary above, here’s this too: Then tell me what the heck is this below? The Georgian Cross? The Stars and Stripes? No, it’s a Swastika flag proudly flown (in the 21st C) by Finland’s MILITARY. Again, I’m not blaming anyone (they can use the Swastika, I don’t give a heck, it's their choice), but stop denying the obvious:

R124 You are still using one small example to try and argue Europe didn't stop using the swastika after WWII. Which is absurd and utterly wrong. The fact that you were able to find one group on the entire continent who didn't doesn't negate the fact.

[quote] BUT no one seems to care that much in Europe

That is an assertion you made that is just plain wrong. Even in your one example, they used to have swastikas on the planes themselves and had to give that up in 1945. So you really don't look as clever as you think here.

I love that this argument reached 125 posts with the final one a shot of the Finnish army carrying their symbol as an obtuse defense of a fat, balding, social climbing actor with limited talent.

He wore the shirt to state his boundaries. He's deplorable shit. Is a racist? Probably. Pet abusing assholes tend to be fucks across the board.

[quote] You are still using one small example to try and argue Europe didn't stop using the swastika after WWII.

No, that’s not what I’m doing. Inserting your own words into my mouth won’t work. I never argued that “EUROPE” either stopped or didn’t stop using the Swastika. I said there are people IN Europe who still use it - and who will NOT give it up. And it appears no politicians (domestic or foreign) insist or order that they ‘must’ give it up. If they want to fly and promote the Swastika as a military symbol - they CAN, and there’s nothing anyone can do about it.

But if they can - so can many others. Because otherwise, what, if one has Nordic blood - one can merrily parade around with a Swastika, but if one doesn’t have Nordic blood - one can’t? That would be a hard-to-enforce, ineffective distinction. Because then how much Nordic blood / DNA qualifies you for that right? If, say, I have a great-grandfather from that region - who’s going to stop me from buying a Charity Swastika ring or flag (available even online now from official Vet organisations) to support the Nordic troops?

[quote] Even in your one example, they used to have swastikas on the planes themselves and had to give that up in 1945.

They only stopped painting the Swastika on their military jets because the USSR illegally invaded them and forced them to give it up. They were forced into giving it up for 2 reasons: (1) By the end of the Soviet-Finnish war (1939-1940), the Soviets wanted to eliminate any symbol or reminder of Finland’s Air Force; (2) By 1941 through 1945, the Soviets were at war with the invading Nazi Germans and wanted to eliminate all reminders & symbols of the Nazi Germans (including any picture of a Swastika, which the Soviets associated with Germany and its brief alliance with Finland).

A soft prohibition on the display of Finnish Swastikas was an implied stipulation in the Truce treaty signed after the Soviet invasion of Finland and the ensuing Soviet-Finnish war. It wasn’t even a stipulation or request by the other Allies - it was a mandatory demand by (and only by) the USSR. Because they were the ones most triggered by that symbol for various reasons mentioned above:

[quote] Business Insider: “The Swastika became the official symbol of the Finnish Air Force, and remained so until Finland and the Soviet Union - which had just fought a successful war with the United States to eradicate Nazidom - signed a postwar Armistice. As part of the new [Soviet-Finnish armistice] relationship it was understood that Finnish military aircraft would no longer carry the swastika.”

But that Armistice didn't specify that Finland couldn't use the Swastika symbology in other ways (fly the Swastika flag, wear Swastika rings, wear it on shoulder badges, etc) - the Soviet Armistice only implied a bar on fighter jet painting. So the Finns got creative and used it in other military displays (flags, etc) instead.

[quote] an obtuse defense of a fat, balding, social climbing actor with limited talent.

It wasn't a defense of Pratt, R127. Learn to follow threads. It was originally a reply to the poster above who specifically wrote: "It's time for ZERO TOLERANCE ... Call. Them. Out. Every. Single. Time."

Well, there's an example to illustrate the point that a policy of "zero tolerance" and calling out potentially 'triggering' symbols "every. single. time" is going to be much messier than people think. And perhaps even futile & confusing in terms of some symbols. It's better to concentrate on calling out actual criminal actions than potentially triggering symbology (Xtian crosses, Muslim crescent moon, etc).

R117, you do know that there is a difference between the Christian cross and burning cross, yes?

R73 You say you understand how that 'history is alive and ever-changing'.

I agree with you so that's why I pay attention to the facts and ignore the hysterical millennials here who want to change it to suit their current fads.

George Orwell prophesied 'Thought-Crime' and 'Word-Crime'.

The people in this thread are getting all anxious over 'T-Shirt-Crime'.

R130 KKK used the cross in a variety of ways and sometimes carried crosses to KKK events just to stand them up in the background. Burning crosses is the most iconic, but its not like that's all they did. This was the KKK march on Washington. They also portrayed themselves as Christian holy warriors.

R130, true - but the Xtian Cross was used as a symbol to genocide even [italic]more[/italic] people than the Burning Cross of the KK*. Spanish Inquisition, persecution of the Jews by the Cross-bearers, burning 'heretics and witches' for not kissing the Cross, invading nations under the (Military) symbol of the Xtian Cross (Crusades). Number for number - the Xtian cross was a far more lethal symbol.

I don't like the idea of snakes being used as a symbol of American independence from British tyranny.

Snakes are ugly.

Isn't there a filthy pron star who looks like Pratt?

Some dopes on Twitter criticizing a t-shirt is definitely the same thing as Big Brother.

Honestly on twitter most people I saw were criticizing the criticism of Pratt. And 80% of the people I follow are liberal. He got a much most hostile reception here. Which suggests DL isn't really as shallow as people say. Cuz he hot as fuck

The flag has mixed use today, including among white supremacists

He's supposed to be a really nice guy. My friend met him a bunch of times. It's a free country and he can believe what he wants.

I've never found him attractive nor have I paid to see his movies. I've watched the Jurassic Park movie he was in on cable but that's it. He was OK, nothing special.

I guess he has that boring vanilla, clean cut look that appeals to middle america who has no taste.

Chris (fat of slimmer) is very fuckable.

I knew he wasn't a good guy when the rumors started that the cast of Parks and Rec didn't like him.

Shocking!

Evil!

MUH SYMBULLS! If I never hear the words flag or patriot again...

Being a nice guy/girl means almost nothing. A parent can be nice while being horribly narcissistic. A boyfriend can be nice while a monster to you specifically. A politician can be nice while internally believing and acting in accordance to religious/racial/gender/etc supremacy.

R145 but you're only "evidence" he believes in white supremacy is that shirt. Which is pretty flimsy. It's not like you can point to racist comments he has made ever

I like him

Your*

The very aptly named Prat is showing us exactly who he is and we believe him.

Racist, hate monger, fake jesus boy, bad actor.

Also, what's with the born again bullshit, isn't the Kennedy girl a Catholic?

R149 But why would a racist marry an Irish Catholic?

Irish Catholics are black.

Chris isn't racist. Wearing the Gadsden flag doesn't make you a racist. Maria Shriver would not have encouraged her daughter to marry a racist.

Some of you just don't like him which is fine. But rather than just saying yoh don't like him you have to jump through hoops to find reason to label him something ridiculous.

R151 The Antifa Squad like jumping through hoops to justify their negativity.

Wear a swastika, get called a Nazi.

Wear a Gadsden Flag during the past 20 years, get called a racist.

Non-actor Prat appears to know what he's doing, it's clearly deliberate. He is free to make that choice and wear whatever racist garb he likes. The rest of us are free to see it for what it is and evaluate him accordingly.

It's not complicated.

What about the 'rocks stars' and 'porn stars' who wear the Swastika and 'Hammer-and-Sickle?

[quote] The Antifa Squad

Really? The only people getting their undies in a twist over Antifa are alt-righters. Bye, bitch, and off with you to 8chan/Breitbart.

[quote] Wear a Gadsden Flag during the past 20 years, get called a racist.

Maybe in the NYC metro. The rest of the country would think you're fucking crazy as the Gadsden flag is very common in many parts of country. Regular people wear it every day without even thinking about it because it has been in use 200+ years.

By the way, if you see an asian person with a swastika and call him a Nazi you will again look crazy.

Yes, you're right, R156. Your comment on 'an asian person with a swastika' reminds me of how many Americans wear clothes and skin-paint with Asian symbols of which they are COMPLETELY ignorant.