American SS: celebrities?

I never thought I'd see the day when uniformed SS officers would go strutting through America and be received as celebrities.

Yet, I've witnessed it myself.

I took my daughter to the fair Wednesday evening. She had a friend along so I stayed out of their way. I wandered a bit, then found a seat and sat to people-watch.

Suddenly I saw what I took to be a group of SS officers marching in my general direction. I felt disoriented by the sight. I wish I'd thought quickly enough to take a photo (I also wish my phone settings hadn't randomly and secretly changed to a lower resolution camera.)

I did manage to snap a couple of pictures (the top two above) when they stopped and milled with the crowd for a bit. I think one of the Brownshirts who came up to chat with them noticed me taking pictures. They were posing for pictures with people (their fans?), and I even think I saw one signing an autograph. And I just sat there thunderstruck at seeing SS officers being treated like celebrities.

I was so struck by the similarity that I did an image search for an SS uniform. Yeah, that's what they were wearing.

Seriously, apart from the red armband and the silly hip flaps, and the fact that some of the uniforms were short-sleeved, the uniforms were standard SS-- with U.S. touches and details, of course. This is the American SS-- what the German SS evolved into.

I know there's a mental trap here. Appearances don't always mean what you think. A coral snake and a scarlet kingsnake look similar, but they aren't the same thing. But the similar looks aren't exactly coincidental. If you don't know the difference you might run away from-- or kill-- the kingsnake because you believe it is venomous. The similar appearance means the kingsnake will be treated like a coral snake because it looks like a coral snake. To know these officers proudly wear something that looks nearly indistinguishable from a German SS uniform also means something.

Police are scum.

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