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What to do about '78 Stingray with Confederate Flag paintjob

What should i do with this bass?

  • Keep it as is

    Votes: 20 14.2%
  • Refinish it immediately!

    Votes: 115 81.6%
  • Burn it with fire

    Votes: 12 8.5%

  • Total voters
    141
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Playing it at home--- do as you wish.

Playing it in public--- it's in the best interest of the band to get it painted to avoid controversy. It might make the difference of getting hired again for that gig.
 
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Remember when Prince had this bass made? He didn’t play it on stage for very long. As cool as it looked , I’m sure he eventually realized as he matured that just because it looks cool, it could still be considered offensive to others . When you know better , you do better.

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There's no getting around the fact that most people will think you are making a statement.
Exactly!
I used to periodically get annoyed with my hair and shave my head; reset the game board, so to speak.

The last time I shaved it, I was in a band with a gay black woman.
We were joking around, and she remarked to me "If I didn't know you, I'd be scared of you".

And I haven't shaved it since - the message received outweighs the message intended.
 
Using this same logic, a swastika painted on a bass shouldn't be problematic because it's a historical moment that happened. Those values were real values of the people at the time and people nowadays can't contextualize things so they're offended by it.

Yes, firstly because the swastika is not originally a Nazi symbol, secondly: It can be used in an educational and critical context, to teach people what Nazism was all about. Hiding a symbol or a flag, burning a book or censoring history solves nothing. What cannot be done is apology for Nazism using its symbols. Roger Waters made a criticism using Nazi symbols, it was misunderstood by uncultured people.

Furthermore, Nazi values were very narrow, unlike the "universal", or broad, values of the two sides that fought the American Civil War. It's not as simple as you think, dealing with the past without hiding it is really difficult. I think that everyone should have access to the truth, to what happened. I also think that people should be prevented from being offended unnecessarily, as is the case here. Or the inadvertent and futile use of a Nazi symbol.

I didn't talk about the unnecessary use of a controversial symbol, that should be avoided, of course. There is no reason to offend people for no reason.
 
Remember when Prince had this bass made? He didn’t play it on stage for very long. As cool as it looked , I’m sure he eventually realized as he matured that just because it looks cool, it could still be considered offensive to others . When you know better , you do better.

View attachment 5121658

No kink shaming.
 
Yes, firstly because the swastika is not originally a Nazi symbol, secondly: It can be used in an educational and critical context, to teach people what Nazism was all about. Hiding a symbol or a flag, burning a book or censoring history solves nothing. What cannot be done is apology for Nazism using its symbols. Roger Waters made a criticism using Nazi symbols, it was misunderstood by uncultured people.

Furthermore, Nazi values were very narrow, unlike the "universal", or broad, values of the two sides that fought the American Civil War. It's not as simple as you think, dealing with the past without hiding it is really difficult. I think that everyone should have access to the truth, to what happened. I also think that people should be prevented from being offended unnecessarily, as is the case here. Or the inadvertent and futile use of a Nazi symbol.

I didn't talk about the unnecessary use of a controversial symbol, that should be avoided, of course. There is no reason to offend people for no reason.
Keep it up. Spoken like someone from somewhere else. Seriously, quit while you're behind.
 
To refer to this flag as a historical icon is one thing.
I agree there’s a place for it in museums, historical galleries, exhibits, etc.

I also agree that pictures of whites posing proudly with blacks hung by the neck from trees is also history,
and should also be displayed in museums, but I wouldn’t want it painted on my bass.

On the other hand, this flag is not waved in deference to the old south nowadays.
When the capital was attacked these flags were all over the place,
waved by US citizens trying to overthrow the government
and install their party by force, so the historical argument is crap.

Even if it was to never leave my home, I'd refin it for my own peace of mind.
Besides, I'm a mod-aholic so it would be a fun project...057912
 
Another vote for refinish. I'm sure there is some fantastically nuanced "well, actually" reasoning for the flag that some professional contrarian could come up with, but people won't give you the five minutes to explain it away if they see you with the bass.

Plus, it is a gaudy shiny finish on a '78 bass. A lightly roadworn black finish would look way cooler.
 
Leave it...Rock it and don't worry about others. Or you can just give it to me and use it as a donation to the poor mans bassist club. lol
Really though the bass looks good. If it bugs you then sell it to someone who doesn't care, and then use money to get another you like.
 
Leave it...Rock it and don't worry about others. Or you can just give it to me and use it as a donation to the poor mans bassist club. lol
Really though the bass looks good. If it bugs you then sell it to someone who doesn't care, and then use money to get another you like.

Well this certainly reveals more than a little bit about you.
 
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