Why is so much effort being spent defending a Nazi symbol?

[sarisataka]

I am not talking about a drunk person getting a tattoo that had a meaning they were unaware of. You can believe that or not, it is not germane to my point.

The skull and crossbones has a long history and is used in many contexts even today, e.g. the poison symbol. However the Nazis, particularly the SS, adopted a version of as their symbol; a specific identifiable version.



Now eighty years later not everyone recognizes it anymore; history is a weakness especially in the US. However many people do still recognize it and its history with Nazism. During WW2 it was the symbol millions saw on their guards as they were led to the "showers". Yet many are defending the symbol, even making jokes about it, because it is not universally recognized.

It is fine to admit if you do not recognize the symbol as it was used by the Nazis.
It is fine to say you believe a person made an honest mistake out of ignorance.

However it IS a Nazi symbol.
If you are trying to rehabilitate it you may want to ask yourself why you are doing that.