A Swastika In The Window: My Surprising Chat With This Truck Driver Yesterday
There it was, staring me in the face as I arrived home to my driveway yesterday after work. It was not discreet. The large truck that carried earth moving equipment that was parked in our driveway was proudly displaying a full sized swastika in the rear of the cabin.
A contractor had been called to our house to quote on some repairs to the house pad that are required after the recent rains and I decided that I was going to take a picture of this truck in order to post about it. I'd already formulated some ideas about what I was going to write.
In particular, I found it interesting that in clear view on the front windscreen was a sign that indicated that this contractor was associated with and performed work for the major city council in the city where I live. I wondered if the council condoned the display.
The front mud guards of the truck also displayed the Balkenkreuz insignia of the Luftwaffe as pictured.
Anyway, I walked over to the house and met my wife who was dealing with the contractor. She said that he was a lovely chap and they'd been talking about all sorts of issues. After he got off the phone from his discussions regarding quoting for the job, I introduced myself and got chatting.
He looked every bit a character you'd expect to be in a motorcycle gang but he was a welcoming and friendly guy from the moment I shook his hand. He didn't swear like most contractors seem to and was happy to discuss the job and then our horses who he was fond of.
We enjoyed talking with him so much that my wife decided to ask him about the swastika in his truck and why he carries it. It turns out he's a military historian and collects nazi period memorabilia. I was able to discuss with him the Nazi campaign, the folly of Operation Barbarossa and the amazing military achievements in Western Europe at the time.
In particular, the man revered Hitler not for the holocaust (which he was very quick to condem) but for what he was able to achieve from a military perspective, especially after the crippling impact of the Treaty of Versailles and the currency hyperinflation that the nation endured.
He seemed to be very interested in the welfare of a nation's citizens and respected how Hitler did many good things for Germany and her people, especially in the early years. My grandmother grew up before, during and after the war in Germany and his assessment correlated with the first hand knowledge that she passed on to me.
The conversation moved on to the social policies such as immigration, infrastructure decline and other modern issues and I found him very much accepting of other cultures but desiring more of an effort for us all to "get along" and integrate. He found it a source of... hmmm what's the word... regret perhaps or disappointment that the Big Australia policy has resulted in pockets of sub cultures that don't speak the language and take over the native social fabric.
Everything that he said to me made sense and he didn't seem vitriolic or violent, he was largely dispassionate. He even spoke of the impact to his work. Cheap labour coming in to the country undercuts his quoting and he expressed a desire to not compromise on the quality of his work. He said that his quotes are the same regardless of whether there's a 90s commodore or a Rolls Royce parked in the driveway. He doesn't apply a "rich factor" and he quotes what he needs to in order to guarantee high quality work.
The cheap labour means that he is often so undercut that he doesn't get the job yet does not want to cut the corners required to participate in that market. I could feel his anguish as he was someone who wanted to take pride in associating his name with his work.
If ever there was an example of not judging a book by its cover, this gentleman was it. I asked him whether he'd received any problems due to the flag on display and he mentioned that no one touched the topic. He thinks they may be scared to raise it. I'm glad that we did as we otherwise wouldn't have met a wonderful, community minded citizen who takes pride in his work and enjoys working with animals.
Here's the front of the truck. How would you have reacted?
Interesting perspective. Still risky these days to don the ol' Swastika! Thanks for having the guts to ask, I bet he appreciates it rather than calling your municipal gov't ;)
Hi @dexterdumb. At the time it didn't feel like it required guts to ask, although I must admit I didn't really know how to feel about it. At first I think I didn't approve and considered it, at best, unprofessional but then talking with the guy and learning that he's a hard working chap who had largely sensible views about community issues, I found myself torn. Interesting perspective indeed!
Good write-up it takes guts to ask those questions in general
Fuck hitler
I am very surprised that he still has a job.
I am too actually @apsistrading. I didn't report him to the council but I would have thought that someone out there would have been offended enough to make a complaint. Perhaps people tend to keep these feelings contained when it involves confronting someone in real life rather than at the keyboard. I found displaying the council logo particularly brazen. Interesting!
I am fine with collecting WW2 artifacts but flying the Swastika is bullshit. It's the same with the confederate flag. Maybe you go to to Civil War reenactments every weekend, I'm fine with that. But publicly displaying the flag is kind of offensive.
Be offended .. no one cares... the confederate flag is part of American history
Where did I say I was offended? I said its offensive. Learn to read moron
I can certainly see where you're coming from @uglyboy. It seems that being offended is almost a hobby for some people now and unfortunately that tends to dilute issues that need real discussion. I'm not referring to anyone here, just a comment about society as a whole. I'm actually really pleased with the response here. There are different points of view with different strengths but it's mostly a mature discussion which is great. History is messy and our future likely will be too, that's just a fact of life.
Hi @viraldrome. Thanks for the reply. Yeah it's interesting isn't it. I think this is a particularly hot issue and always will be. People seem to "draw the line" regarding what's acceptable in different places. I must admit to being torn. I had the same response as you initially, but talking with the chap and learning how lovely he was as a person (flag aside) made me stop and think a little. The public display seems to be something that nobody has approached him about, through fear or something else. I guess if he was constantly abused for it, it may modify his behaviour.
I still think it's offensive and ultimately incredibly ignorant. Hitler, despite the good he may have attempted to do on the German people's behalf (let's not forget the condition he left the German people in as a result of his efforts), was a terrible, unstable man who built a heinously discriminatory empire based on fear, violence, and mistrust.
Cherry picking the things you like about him and displaying his battle flag in your rear window seems more like blind and misguided idolization (at best) than the work of an upstanding man looking to better the world.
And I cant argue with any of that. Actually your reply made me think of the recently passed Stephen Hawking. If ever there was someone to admire, you'd think he'd be a candidate. Maybe because he doesn't have a flag and a militaristic place in history he's less "cool" to idolise. Thanks for the detailed response. 👍
a person can not be judged by his appearance, but look at it from his heart
That neatly summarises my experience I think @zein94. Perhaps I would have felt more strongly opposed to it if the guy had turned out to be an anti-Semite or dysfunctional in some other way. It was a complex reaction that I had and it really got me thinking. Thanks!
The only reason he did something that might be perceived as "good" was that he wanted to build an empire and the germans were the ones who were going to do it for him, pay for it, work on it, and die for it, etc. He used them just like every other megalomaniac dictator or politician.
He did not care for the Germans or anyone else in any way.
It's a sad thing that what may start out one way, can turn out quite the other. Perhaps this is just the nature of power. I have a strong respect for the philosophical mind and I think Plato was right in that quote... possibly describing every empire that's ever existed and ever will. I believe that the American founding fathers identified this inevitability as the fate of their new republic. It's a hot topic and I'm happy there's passion about it. To become indifferent to this kind of stuff is to lose something I think so I'm very glad for your reply. Thanks!
in which area is this? i am a resident of australia, I rarely see it
Very rare for me too! This is in Queensland.
isn't also against the law to display svastika in Germany?
I think that's the case @incognitoct. I have friends in Germany. I should ask them so that I'm less ignorant on the topic. Not the kind of thing that generally comes up in conversation however!
This is an excellent example of why not to judge a book by its cover. But so many times in our society first impressions are the ones that colour how we perceive people.
Thanks @cecicastor! Yeah I'm somewhat happy with my reaction. I had a strong negative view when I first saw it but obviously I'm open enough as a person to still engage the guy on the topic and just hear a little of the motivations. Regardless of whether it's "right or wrong" the ability to talk about something controversial is not a skill I want to lose.
It is a skill we all should foster. The world would be a much better place if everyone could talk about controversial topics without going ballistic. I can think of a few political leaders that could use lessons.
Absolutely!