Auschwitz death camp sign stolen

[PeZook]

my very bad brain thinks it's probably now adorning the servant's entrance to Mel Gibson's mansion.

No, actually it's being restored back at the Auschwitz museum

[Stuart]

my very bad brain thinks it's probably now adorning the servant's entrance to Mel Gibson's mansion.

Actually that reads "All Hope Abandon Ye Who Enter Here."

I must admit to a certain degree of relief that the people behind the theft of that sign got detected and busted. There's far too much desecration of historical sites going on. This one got all the publicity but ancient sites in Cambodia and Laos are being destroyed by looters while much the same thing is happening to sites belonging to the Nations here in the US. Putting these looters down is probably a good area for much more international cooperation. Now if we could take the money wasted on the war on drugs and put it into protecting antiquities. . . .

[Thanas]

Agreed. Also, there is a lot of looting going on in Iraq and Afghanistan right now, which does not get any airplay in the Western Press, but looting there (especially in Iraq) has skyrocketed with valuable and even high-profile sights like Babylon getting looted en masse. To their credit, at least some US commanders are trying to do something, but these are individual efforts without much effect. By and large, the USA and the regime in Iraq are either not caring much or some individuals apparently profit from it.

Which is even more damning, considering it is in that area that what we consider "civilization" started.