Why the Swastika? What is the appeal

Why the Swastika? What is the appeal?

In quite a few court cases of notoriety, it appears that the Swastika is the symbol of choice for what are fundamentally 'Lone Wolves' with intent to cause harm to those they see as anathema, as the mortal enemy.

Whatever the country where cases are brought to public attention, the symbol of National Socialist Germany that is also part of Hindu Culture is at the forefront. So what are the qualities of the symbol that seem to be so irresistible?

First of all, the Swastika is a symbol of perpetuity, of energy and of renewal. There is an inherent vast amount of energy contained in the Swastika. During the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s there were other elements added to the Swastika. Although the Swastika is black there is a preponderance of red. Both the Soviet flag, the Chinese flag and the National Socialist flag are predominantly red and red is associated with blood, with enormous vitality and this is why the National Socialist flag was such a powerful representation of a nation. There is perpetuity, renewal, energy and vitality combined.

Coming to Britain, red has always been a predominant colour. Red of England, red is the uniform of the Welsh Guards, red in the national flag, the Red Arrows, Red Roses. We are so used to this reality that we simply assume this is the way things are and we don't even stop to think about a hidden message.

Red is the colour of Revolution and whether you are talking about the concepts of Left and Right from a political point of view, the importance of Red cannot be underestimated. National Socialism was a Revolution, it was a completely new way of doing things despite the fact that there were claims about trying to restore past greatness.

One example, but not the only one example, was the military campaign leading to the invasion of France in 1940. France went to war as if it was fighting the 1914 war again. Germany used a completely new approach in which the impossible was possible. The advice given by Heinz Guderian to the commanders was something like 'Strike swiftly but don't disperse your forces'. The key elements are unity of purpose, speed and fundamentally the sense of belonging.

When a disaffected, usually frustrated individual of today, looks at his/her surroundings, what does he/she see? He/She sees a divided society, a very fragmentary reality, a world in which he/she doesn't fit in. He/She was born in a country in which the political elites and the mass media are constantly downgrading the concept of National Identity and replacing National Identity with what they call Multiculturalism. Even more, National Identity and National Pride are identified as threats, as sins, as something deplorable.

It is self-evident that such an individual will therefore turn to the symbol that represents what he/she wants most. He/She wants a national identity. He/She wants the sense of belonging. He/She wants a sense of perpetuity, of renewal, of energy and of vitality combined and the National Socialist flag represents exactly what he/she dreams about and most importantly what he/she needs most.

With varying degrees, more and more the young feel that they are being abandoned, that they don't count, that they are invisible. If your personal circumstances are such that you feel literally excluded, uneducated, jobless, and living in precarious conditions without what you would call a future, what are your available choices? 

The reaction of the Establishment is brutal. Instead of looking at specific circumstances that put individuals in very precarious situations, the State wants to punish those who have been already punished by being excluded. The individuals targeted are called Neo-Nazi, Fascist, Terrorist. The Establishment rarely or never takes responsibility for the distressing circumstances ordinary people have to face on a daily basis.

When Germans protest against occupation and destruction of Germany, they called Neo-Nazi. When French people protest against occupation and destruction of France, they are called Neo-Nazi. Anybody and anyone who stands to protect his/her country is called Neo-Nazi.