Bad Ideas

Person Who Organized Nazi-Themed Dinner Says It’s Not That Big a Deal, Okay?

You really didn't think this would leak out?
You really didn’t think this would leak out?

Early this week, photos leaked out from an apparent World War II dinner at Minneapolis’s Gasthof restaurant, which just so happened to feature men in SS uniforms and Third Reich flags. It looked … bad. But now Scott Steben, who helped organize the dinner, has stepped forward to explain it: It’s all part of a historical reenactment society’s party, you see. “By no means do we glorify the edicts of the Third Reich,” Steben, a self-described German history buff, says. “I understand the sensitivity … but it did occur and it is history.” He likened the whole situation to fans who dress as Star Trek characters. Meanwhile, the restaurant’s owner defended the party, calling attendees “very peaceful people” who aren’t “against politics or against the parties here.” Even still, he says, this will be the last time Gasthof’s hosts something like this. [Star-Tribune]

Person Who Organized Nazi-Themed Dinner Says It’s Not That Big a Deal,