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Friday, March 7, 2014

Somehow, This Is Cartman's Fault

If you happen to be here from Germany, you're already well aware of this, but after the whole World War 2 unpleasantness, the one thing that above all else they do not want to see over there is anything Nazi-related. Nor do they want to see anything that might lead to anything Nazi-related. The Nazis themselves are banned. It's illegal to deny the Holocaust happened in not only Germany but a number of other nations around Europe. There is a whole section of German law dealing with just how illegal it is to have any Nazi stuff laying around whatsoever, and they enforce it to the point where in 2007, it had to be clarified by their supreme court that it is in fact okay to display a crossed-out Nazi swastika as an anti-Nazi measure even though it has a swastika in it. There is an exception where you can have one if you're using it in the media for an artistic, scientific or educational purpose, places where not having one would simply be ridiculous, though the value of 'artistic' is subject to review. (Also, devotees of Jainism are permitted the reverse swastika as in their case it's a symbol of peace, and German authorities trust them pretty well not to go smashing anything up.)

So we're clear. We're clear? Everyone good and read up on TV Tropes?

Well, not entirely. The game South Park: The Stick Of Truth, just launched in North America without incident, happens to have some Nazi symbols in it, due to the appearance of Nazi zombies in the game. Because it's South Park and of course it does. Three days after the North American launch, it was supposed to launch in Germany and Austria, and in order to-- you're already cringing, aren't you? Or laughing. One of the two.

Yep, they forgot to take the swastikas out. Well, not so much 'forgot' as 'they missed one when they thought they'd got them all'. A new release date has yet to be announced.

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