I just don't understand the critique here...Is Rush saying Obama is a Nazi? And that he's kept it a secret his entire life, but has now decided to secretly reveal it to certain, fiendishly clever Americans capable of deciphering his elaborate symbology?

Is he comparing giving middle-class and poor Americans access to the same health care that Congresspersons have enjoyed for years to Nazism? What's the ACTUAL comparison?

To me, it just seems like a somewhat unfortunate coincidence that a common Nazi symbol and the logo on the president's Health Care website share a rough shape. Not sure it's really even worth mentioning...but that's just me. I'm, you know, sane.
Permalink | Report

Oooh...both designs have wings and a circle so Obama must be a Nazi!

I really don't get the point being made here. If Obama was a secret Nazi, wouldn't he be astutely aware of all Nazi symbols and thus avoid using anything remotely resembling them so people wouldn't catch on? Or, is this symbol supposed to subliminally prepare the American people for the Nazi uprising on the horizon?

Whatever the intended point, I view it as just another lame conspiracy theory perpetuated by people with such weak arguments they need to make ridiculous claims to draw attention away from the real issues at hand.
Permalink | Report

Oh those poor White House graphic designers.

It would ave been a tough day in that office today.

I don't think that this would have been done on purpose. It looks like an unfortunate combination of graphic elements.

"Love him or hate him, Rush always gets people talking."
Permalink | Report

So the 'take away' here seems to be that Obama's Health Care plan is like the Nazi Holocaust because they have (slightly) similar shaped symbols for their 'logo'?
Permalink | Report

I'm not sure why it's any more like the Nazi symbol than the US Dept of Defense logo is...

http://www.southcom.mil/PA/Images/logoDoD.jpg

They're all three eagles carrying something, that's about it.

Another one in the same vein is the CIA logo:

http://images.cafepress.com/image/28357743_400x400.jpg

I'm not sure what eagles have got to do with healthcare, but I guess if you want symbols of the US, they're high on the list...

http://govdocs.evergreen.edu/eagle.gif

I think the only Nazi-like thing in the whole affair is the kind of venom that is being spewed by the Limbaugh crowd. Dr Goebbels would certainly have been at home with throwing around that kind of hate.
Permalink | Report

If the caduceus plus the Obama logo equals the Reichsadler, then Rush Limbaugh is Sgt. Schultz.
Permalink | Report

It appears to be part of Rush Limbaugh's "Liberals are Nazi's" theme he's been going on about recently.

The Young Turks give about 5 other examples of Limbaugh doing that this week.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JzSNsMy98BY

It's pretty bad logic he's using, he is certainly not an elitist scholar.
Permalink | Report

Just because its not Mr. Linbaugh's creation,
Doesnt make the US a Nazi nation!

;-)
Permalink | Report

Wot? Siz iss no matter of joking. Siz iss serious biznis.

Ze world iss verry proud of having a preszident of mixed race. And all ze Nazi's wonted wasz n Uberrace. So ze argument of him being a Nazi does not fly wiz me.

On a more serious note ...

The problem is that designing unique logo's is very complicated and difficult. Designing logo's that can not be misunderstood or compared with other logo's or hidden symbols is close to impossible. Imagine what the reaction would have been if the designers included an eye or a spike in the logo. A simple syringe might have been identified as one of the secret symbols of the secret societies of the world.

When someone designs a logo they probably need to compare their logo to every logo in the public domain as well as traditional and cultural markings and totems.

I live in Namibia (Africa), when a local bank changed their logo to depict a acacia tree, some people saw an outline of a white rabbit in the branches. Apparenly a white rabbit is a logo for some secret society somewhere.

Another problem is bran a product naming. Choosing a name for your product is just as dicy. Volkswagen had a model called in Fox Trippa in South Africa, in german Tripper is an STD.

Microsoft went to great lenghts in finding a name for their re-branded search system (www.bing.com). They did a lot of research to make sure that bing has more or less the same meaning in most languages.

To conclude my ranting ...

Cut the designers some slack people. I am sure there is no Nazi that infiltrated the US healthcare system.
Permalink | Report

While it does look similar in appearance, I don't think it was on purpose. I think Rush is pushing things a bit here trying to compare them (but that's what he does and makes a lot of $$ doing it). There has never been any parallels drawn about the Obama Admin about being Nazi's, only Socialists or Fascists. I am not a fan of Rush or the health care plan. I agree with some parts of it, but not all, and I feel like its moving too fast and too much pork is being added. Rush is a double edged sword, he raises the issues and gives a dissenting opinion, which we need on both sides to keep things in check, but he also adds fuel to the fire that dissenters are crazy.
Permalink | Report

This comparison is rather silly when one considers that there are two more serious things to worry about. The design includes neither an eagle nor a swastika. The design does, however, have two serious flaws.

First, notice that the new symbol uses the caduceus, or staff of Hermes. Hermes was the God of Thieves, not medicine. The somewhat similar staff of Asclepius has a single snake and no wings, and is the correct symbol of medicine.This implies that the new system will steal peoples money rather than provide medical care.

http://drblayney.com/images/esculap2.jpg

Second, notice that the logo is blue, white, and red. Those are the colors of the French flag! It is taught in French schools that "the colours of the French flag represent the three main estates of the Ancien Régime (the clergy: white, the nobility: red and the bourgeoisie: blue)" What is an American institution doing celebrating the nobility and the clergy? Not only that, but the French are notorious for drinking fancy wines and eating smelly cheeses in an effete manner. And, they nearly went to war with the USA in 1798!

http://blog.foreignpolicy.com/files/images/france-flag.jpg
Source(s):
http://drblayney.com/Asclepius.html
http://www.theoi.com/Olympios/HermesGod.html#Thievery
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flag_of_France
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quasi-War
http://www.terroir-france.com/
http://www.fromages.com/

Permalink | Report

I usually try to avoid politally charced discussion here on Mahalo Answers but I just had to express my disdain for Rush Limbaugh. Take a pill Rush.
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_cT70PqeGzrA/Sd4yIJ2yeTI/AAAAAAAABgs/cGy-tIz54O4/s400/RushNaz--2.jpg
Source(s):
http://bootnewt.tripod.com/imanazi.htm

Permalink | Report

You could look at it from this point of view, my family down south owns a HMO that is mainly used for elderly services, & the snake and staff symbol ( Wand of Hermes or Cadeceus ) that depicts Hippocratic care has been around quite a while.

Ofcoars someone could argue they used the same type of logo to market snakes on a plane.
Permalink | Report

Rush figured it out! My God! Obama's trying to turn us into a Communist-Nazi nation! Holy crap! Thank God people like Rush are here to let us know to panic, panic, PANIC. I have some Jewish friends who I'm going to smuggle into the back of my cupboard immediately, lest Herr Obama comes for them.

Okay, now that I'm on Team Rush, I think it's my duty as a Jr. Rush Officer to alert all of you to some other alarming similarities I've discovered. Please alert your loved ones immediately:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/2/20/Josef-mengele.jpg
http://www.wkhm.com/images/limbaugh_large.jpg
According to close photo examination, Rush may be related to Nazi Dr. Mengele
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
http://www.firstworldwar.com/bio/graphics/mussolini.jpg
http://images.radcity.net/5157/423478.jpg
And Rush may secretly be Mussolini as well!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

http://www.evolvefish.com/fish/media/Q-HammerSickle.gif
http://content.clearchannel.com/Photos/biz_photos/communications/clear_channel_logo.jpg
And Rush's parent company, Clear Channel may secretly have communist ties of their own. Hammer to be added once they've taken the Presidential office.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

http://eurofascism.info/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/eurofas.jpg
http://www.shjolg.com/images/jesus%20crucifix%20scsh.gif
and Jesus is a Euro-fascist!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Does any of this seem outrageous or offensive? Yeah, I think so too, just like Rush's assertion that America's health care policy is in any way linked to the Nazi party or genocide.

Listen, I'm not going to guarantee that Obama will be the greatest president ever, but should we at least TRY to root for our country's success? If he has concerns with basis in reality, I listen and question - that's my patriotic duty. But this type of hysterical garbage is a scare tactic that feeds on stupidity, ignorance, and paranoia. Rush, because of the freedoms upheld by the President, you can keep saying what you're saying and I won't ever want to shut you down. But I wish your listeners would take you for the shock jock and joke you actually are. You make money feeding people lies.

You know what else the Nazis were good at, Rush? Propaganda. You know anything about that, Rush?
Permalink | Report

I agree that the designer likely had no idea that the logo may be perceived as similar to one used by Hitler. I think Rush was (over)reacting to the portrayals of the right as Nazi by some on the left. For instance, Nancy Pelosi falsely claimed that people who are against health care reform were displaying swastikas (video below).

Whatever they were, German Nazis had very little (if any) common ground with American conservatives. Nazis were for nationalized healthcare; abortion, forced sterilization, and euthanasia for undesirables; animal rights; organic foods; protection of the environment; the state's responsibility in providing jobs; old-age welfare; public education; and centralized government control of every part of its citizens' lives. Nazism, like Italian Fascism and Russian Communism, elevated the government to be the answer to all social ills. Communists and Nazis were enemies because they were fighting over the same demographic. Many Nazi supporters were former communist supporters.

The history of the world is tyranny. America stood out for being for freedom but is slowly tending toward government control of our lives. Why is it the government's business if I wear a seatbelt, order food with transfats, or buy a gas-guzzling car? Government is here to protect us and our property from each other, not from what we wish to do to ourselves. Rush's point is that the policies of President Obama move us toward government control, as people from his party accuse the right of being the Nazis.
Source(s):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Socialist_Program#The_full_text_of_th...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberal_Fascism

Permalink | Report

Methinks Rush needs to have his eyes checked. While both icons are winged, the Obama Health Care logo is obviously a Caduceus, not an Iron Eagle.

I found it interesting that Rush thought it easier to tie the item to the Nazi emblem than addressing this fact about the Caduceus:

"In later Antiquity the caduceus might have provided the basis for the astrological symbol representing the planet Mercury and in Roman iconography was often depicted being carried in the left hand of the Greek god Hermes (Roman god, Mercury), the messenger of the gods, guide of the dead and protector of merchants, shepherds, gamblers, liars and thieves."

Considering all the conspiracy ideas about socialized medicine leading to organized euthanasia for the old and infirm, or at the very least showing how the icon reflects Obama's supposed attempts to "mislead" America into the "New World Order", I suppose it's easier to play on simple fears rather than get in-depth about a "supposed" conspiracy that might make his listeners think rather than blindly agree.
Source(s):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caduceus

Permalink | Report

This answer has been voted unhelpful by users. Please click to view

Obama is the ultimate Nazi.. I wish he ran with this logo
Hide

Permalink | Report

Well, isn't this just typical! Getting all caught up in the incidental and missing the real point. It's like if I said: "Hey listen to this guys" and then said something really worthwhile (but controversial, say), and there was a loud public outcry by those that disagreed with the controversial part of what I said, the entire substance of which (the public outcry) was to condemn me for the sexism inherent in using the third person collective pronoun "guys"!

The whole symbol comparison is what we call a segue. You know when you're doing a solo, like a talk show, sometimes you have to be your own straight-man. The seque isn't the point. It's just how you get to the point. Here's the point (quoting a news story quoting Rush (I didn't happen to hear the show)):

"Now, what are the similarities between the Democrat Party of today and the Nazi Party in Germany? Well, the Nazis were against big business — they hated big business . . . They were insanely, irrationally against pollution . . . They had a whole bunch of make-work projects to keep people working . . . They were for abortion and euthanasia of the undesirables, as we all know, and they were for cradle-to-grave nationalized healthcare."

The point is that the Nazis were a really scary ideology. So when the ideology espoused by those in power here starts to look too much like it, that's kind of scary ... well, isn't it? It's not really a stupid point to make. It's not really vicious, either ... it's natural to try to dramatize it a bit, to kind of bring it home.

There's a lot of "newspeak" going on in government to make the new healthcare plan seem harmless (there, I just did it too, used a word that implied I'm reminded of Big Brother in Orwell's 1984; well I am ... I'm also reminded of what went on in Ayn Rand's novel Atlas Shrugged .... both of these works were early warnings about the consequences of a seemingly benevolent government taking control of everything (because once they have control over everything else, then they want control over you). You should read these books (before they're banned)).

Everything I've seen here so far is kind of "fluff" ... let's talk about the real issue(s). The banking system, GM, and now the government's sights are set on healthcare. When all the major institutions in a country are owned by the government ... that's the way it is in socialism. Now we're not there quite yet, but I'd say there's enough going on here to make it a reasonable "mind-exercise" to think of this as a trend ... well what if it was a trend? And what if it just kept on going, one institution after another, the governement taking control of everything ... well? What's to stop it?

If you wait until it's all done, then it's too late.
Source(s):
Here are the two books I mentioned above:
Nineteen Eighty-Four

Atlas Shrugged

Permalink | Report