Opinions.

Forget-me-Nazi

The risks of forgetting
the past

By Natalie Serafini,
Opinions Editor

emember about a
year ago, whena
publishing company

announced they would

be reproducing Mark
Twain’s classic novels

The Adventures of Tom
Sawyer and Adventures

of Huckleberry Finn with
a few...edits? NewSouth
Books announced, to
rousing, well-deserved
criticism, their plans to
replace two hurtful epithets
(one of which was “nigger”)
with less controversial
words (such as “slave”).
This move was an attempt
to ignore attitudes of the
past and wipe history off
the table. Closing our eyes
to the past doesn’t work,
particularly when we need
to remember and continue
to be outraged. When |
first heard of the Westley
Military Surplus on Front
Street, where Pauly Benton
sells Nazi memorabilia
amongst his other war-

centric merchandise, I was
shocked. Yet, when I got
past my immediate outrage,
I felt that Benton’s actions
are justifiable.

Pauly Benton says
that selling the Nazi
memorabilia is a way of
remembering the Holocaust
and “showing the world
that this was something
that actually happened.”
Although I remain
uncomfortable with the idea
of Nazi T-shirts, Benton is
absolutely right that it’s
important to remember the
past: tragedies, injustices,
blemishes, and all.

His argument is
vaguely doubtful because a
store is so unlike a museum:
museums promote history
and educate the public
without selling Nazi
memorabilia or gas masks
in adult and child sizes.
Still, Il have to take
Benton at his word when
he says that he is “trying to
promote history.” Schools
and museums are not the
only promoters of education
and thought.

The fact that Benton
sells this memorabilia in
a military supply store is

relevant. If a clothing store
sold handbags emblazoned
with swastikas, | might

be less forgiving. Benton
owns a military supply
store, lending context

to the store’s Nazi war
memorabilia. Also, and
whether this is relevant

is up to you, Benton is of
Jewish descent—meaning
he is likely not flippant
about the horrors of the
Holocaust.

I really hope there
aren’t people out there
collecting swastika-
emblazoned merchandise
from Benton’s store in
furtherance of some neo-
Nazi efforts. Nonetheless,

Not so innocuous inoculation

 

BC Nurses Union not
calling the shots

By Eric Wilkins,
Staff Writer

ast month, Provincial
Health Officer Perry
Kendall made the

announcement that all
health care workers are now
required to either get a flu
shot or wear a mask during

I'd be surprised if his
selling this memorabilia
encouraged a neo-Nazi
movement. If you’re a
Nazi, you're a Nazi, and
availability of symbols for
your hate isn’t going to
influence your beliefs. I
imagine it wouldn’t be too
hard for them to fashion
swastika insignias. So,
although my initial thought
was that New Westminster
was going to be overrun by
Nazis, I think the majority
of the population is still
anti-Nazism.

History repeats itself
when we forget to learn
from our mistakes, or

flu season. For obvious
reasons, the news had the
BC Nurses’ Union (BCNU)
up in arms. Among other
things, the nurses weren’t
happy about how they
weren't consulted before the
new regulation was put in
place.

Can you really blame
the nurses? Clear out of
the blue, rules are being
imposed on them that
ensure (or at least greatly

 

indeed forget our mistakes.

While it may not be
necessary to remember
those errors on a daily
basis, there’s room for us
to remember holocausts,
genocides, wars, prejudices
and hate outside of
Remembrance Day. As
uncomfortable as I am with
thinking about tragedies of
the past, that discomfort is
important, and the outrage
over Benton’s merchandise
is important as well. It
shows that society may
actually be learning from
mistakes of the past. The
worst thing we can do is
forget those mistakes.

improve their chances of)
they’re remaining healthy
and able throughout the
season. The nerve! Now, not
only are the nurses better
protected against the flu,
but the patients they work
with have a better chance
of not catching the seasonal
malady as well. What’s
next? Security cameras
enforcing mandatory
handwashing after using

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