PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — His U.S. Senate campaign under fire, Maine Democrat Graham Platner said Wednesday that a tattoo on his chest has been covered to no longer reflect an image widely recognized as a Nazi symbol.
The first-time political candidate said he got the skull and crossbones tattoo in 2007, when he was in his 20s and in the Marine Corps. It happened during a night of drinking while he was on leave in Croatia, he said, adding he was unaware until recently that the image has been associated with Nazi police.
Disappointing that the linked article doesn’t include a photo of the tattoo. When a report lacks important relevant information, the reader has a choice to take it for its word or seek out supporting facts. So, when I searched for Planter Nazi Tattoo, there are plenty of articles taking the opposing tone - in that he knew what the tattoo was.
https://www.dailykos.com/story/2025/10/21/2349761/-Not-one-diary-or-mention-about-Graham-Platner-s-Nazi-tattoo-Really This sounds more like he has been aware of what the tattoo represented and he hasn’t really cared about it until now. Which I personally find much more believable. Good on him for getting it covered up but, ehhh. Maybe don’t believe every word a politician exhales.
I don’t know this person or anything about Maine. I don’t really care either. But journalism needs to be held accountable. I expect more from PBS / AP.
I’m tired, boss
Some people are very very angry that Graham Platner is a communist because they found deleted Reddit posts from years and years ago and that’s why they can’t support him and you shouldn’t either
Some people are very very angry that Graham Platner
is a secret Nazihas a death’s head tattoo even though he’s very very clearly not a secret Nazi. This whole endeavor is honestly a textbook example of Control the Conversation. We’re not talking about whether Graham is a Nazi (the “frame”), because he’s clearly not. We’re talking about the “next argument” – whether he covered it up and why, whether it might indicate that he’s another Simena, all that kind of stuff.Honestly, to me, the fact that Chuck Schumer, lemmy.ml, and the mainstream media are all falling over themselves to manufacture little scandals about this guy is the strongest indication so far that he is probably the real deal. Personally, I don’t give a shit whether Jewish Insider found it in their heart for some random reason to start reporting something from some anonymous source who swears he’s
actually a Naziactually we can’t make that argument, but we are going to say he knew this was a Totenkamf he got accidentally and we can kind of imply that other thing. Even though detailed analysis of his not-intended-for-public-viewing Reddit communications seems to show the exact opposite. And of course we can do other equally honest things like grabbing one Facebook photo from right before Graham told the 88 guy to fuck off and pretend it means something. And of course we’re performatively freaking out, to a different audience, about how he’s a secret communist instead, and that’s why we can’t vote for him.I’m so so tired boss. I hate that our social media is this way. I actually took some screenshots of the comments here before the army of “Graham is a problem” people showed up, and it was all normal. No one was saying something that was a little off the main point of what they were implying, no one was vigorously responding over and over to anyone who disagreed with them, none of that. It was just people, most of whom actually seemed like they took the take “well he’s clearly not a Nazi and he is talking about medicare for all and other things we really badly need so what they fuck even is this.”
I’m tired
Edit: Also no one was claiming firsthand experience in the military that proved that Graham was lying, while also not knowing shit about how the military works, and other equally honest comments, read on if you want to see some bullshit
I am so tired of the smear attempts and the bots and the purity test police trying to fuck up the best thing that’s happened in my state in a decade. If you don’t live here, and won’t be voting in our elections, please fuck off. I understand that he is being elected to a national office, but reflect on how you would feel if a bunch of people from away deliberately tried to prevent a progressive from being elected in your home district. I doubt anyone anonymously detracting from Graham has had a chance to meet him, hear him speak, or shake his hand and look him in the eye. I have, and I think my bullshit filters are pretty up to date. Platner is a genuine guy actually pushing for change and the establishment is being pretty transparent in their attempts to stymie him.
I’m a Mainer and I worry that this guy is going to be the new Sinema. Say all the right things and then swing hard right after the election. I grew up in Piscataquis county and knew plenty of guys like him who seem ok until you start digging and find out they believe in some awful stuff.
Someone having Nazi tattoos isn’t someone I want as a senator even if those tattoos were accidentally acquired.
Also people from away can have an opinion because the senate is country wide. Having a disingenuous person in the senate affects everyone (cough Fetterman cough).
So you would rather risk Janet Mills doing exactly nothing positive than risk Graham turning right? Have you listened to what he has to say vs what Sinnema had? It’s definitely different. It’s sad to me that people are so desperate to paint him with his past. How many of us haven’t made pretty awful choices? If we want an Everyman progressive we’re going to have to accept some skeletons imo. If Mills wins the primary LePage is going to sweep the general.
When your past involves Nazi symbolism it isn’t a little mistake. When the skeletons in your closet are a totenkopf i think we can safely discard that person as a serious candidate.
Fake progressives aren’t any better than corporate progressives. In fact they’re worse because you don’t actually know what they believe. At least with corporate shills you know that they’ll work to fill theirs and their benefactors pockets.
Does anything other than the style of the skull and crossbones of his ex-tattoo suggest that he is in any way a Nazi or fascist?
You mean other than the fact he was a guy interested in military symbology and kept a known nazi symbol on his body for 17 years?
Personally i learned about the totenkopf when i was in basic training (in 2001, he enlisted in ‘03 so same time frame) when they showed us tattoos that you can’t have in the military. He doesn’t really have any excuse.
You know if you were trying to convince us of how benign the symbol is maybe you shouldn’t be trying to whitewash the name of it? Why don’t you just say Totenkopf? That’s what it’s called. That’s what he’s called it.
Maybe because most people have never even heard of a Totenkopf until now and wouldn’t know what one looks like. The dailykos story about it called it the 2nd or 3rd most recognizable symbol of Nazis, but I’ve never seen the symbol before and had never heard that term before today. Is it really that well known?
Well, you can now read his full reddit comment history if you wanna know what he’s about.
What if it DOES matter if they did it deliberately or accidentally, and it DOES matter how they respond when confronted about it? What if they’re humans who make mistakes, and are able to own them like an adult?
Don’t let perfection be the enemy of the good, that’s the left wing cat herding part that earned us this fascist takeover in the first place. If you have someone better to vote for, by all means. But you can always convince yourself that the progressive candidate is secretly a right wing extremist. Always. That’s right there with QAnon rational.
I grew up in Piscataquis county and knew plenty of guys like him
You know lots of people from Piscataquis county who call themselves communists and are really vocal about medicare for all?
at least now you got a year to figure out of hes going to do the opposite he says. but the alternative it Chuck shcumers endorsed candidate.
Sinema told all of AZ she was a progressive too. Right until she got into office. Im sure her handshakes were also nice. Don’t see how that’s relevant.
Yeah you’ve got the right idea there. I too never vote for the candidate that markets themselves as progressive ever since Sinema. I’m playing the 4D chess route, always voting for the fascist just in case they’re secretly a closet progressive.
I don’t know if this is news to you or not, but you are allowed to be both skeptical and critical of a candidate without voting for the exact opposition party, especially when the primary is so far away you can’t even register as a candidate for it yet. Hope this helps.
You should always be skeptical and critical of all candidates. So for you to whip it out like a novel argument for why you don’t think anyone should vote for the most progressive option is absurd.
If there is a better candidate to vote for, absolutely do it. If this convinces YOU to run against him, that’s great! But every candidate is going to have flaws, and as we hold out for the perfect person, fascism will continue to roll us over. It’s a strategy that clearly doesn’t help.
Example of purity testing/non-analogous argument.
Are they the same person? Did you meet Sinnema? Have you met Graham? Do you live in Maine? I don’t live in Arizona and never had anything to say about her. So are you a Mainer, and if not, why are you involving yourself in our choice of representation?
I like how you talk about the strength of my arguement when the strength of yours is entirely based on your ‘bullshit detector’ as you call it. Really funny actually. Got anything to say why someone who researches military conflict for fun can’t recognize official SS symbols? Or how about him knowing and using the official name the SS gave it?
I’m actually exhausted from all these stupid arguments and going to detach from them now. I think you call it touching grass .
That’s what a winner-take-all, two party system does to you.
It gets you talking in circles, fighting fellow leftists at the behest of think tanks to come to the defense of fascists because you can’t quite come to the conclusion the rest of us have: that it’s all stage-managed, astroturfed bullshit (these days being churned out by LLM’s posing as authentic accounts on Reddit and Lemmy and PieFED) to get legions of citizens to tacitly approve of their personal Manchurian candidate that will flip a switch when they get into office to funnel more money toward their true masters.
Honestly that’s more than fair, I know we don’t agree on some stuff but have a solid one.
Whoa whoa whoa, wait a second. Both of you get back in here and have an internet fight. Don’t even think of rationally resolving this trite debate without nine or ten back and forth fallacy exchanges.
I’m just so tired of arguing with people about the past. Nothing can change it, they don’t have to trust him, but I wish they would just listen to what he has to say now, and allow themselves the understanding that people do actually change.
I’m going to his town hall Monday, I’m not going to engage with the Internet about it again until after that. I really hope some of the folks here make the effort to come ask him these hard questions to his face, in person. And I am happy to forward any {politely worded} questions to him then, if I get a chance beyond my own questions.
Formatting edit or two, dunno how to escape the italics and use a *
Nope, funny brackets it is.
I didn’t find out about this guy until yesterday, man.
It’s a damn shame if he really is the genuine guy you think he is. A damn shame.
Because there’s really no recovering from that big of a blunder and that’s just reality. I would be devastated if I were you, and try to think of next steps because the ship has sailed on this guy. I’m sorry for that.
Agreed, but folks up here are seriously rallying around him right now. It doesn’t seem as hopeless as it really should. Anybody that has met the man, and he is making a GIANT effort to meet anyone that cares, knows that his checkered past has no bearing on his desire for a better future. He is a shining example of human growth and what we should be defining Manliness by, ability to adapt, change and grow from a place of ignorance.
Are you just going around old posts about Graham trying to smear him? Have you seen his lead? Get over it already bro.
Smear? He smeared himself. I was I informed about this post from another thread. Had to go see for myself the way these shitlibs contort themselves to agree with a fascist, MIC contractor posing as a progressive.
I have a lot more respect for someone that does something wrong and then admits and fixes it than someone who does something wrong and then does nothing but deny and deflect.
His platform isn’t good…
Nazi war criminal who loved murdering brown people so much he did it privately after three military tours weren’t enough for his bloodlust is now running as a woke liberal on a platform of paying soldiers more for murdering brown people.
Pressing issues for liberals right there.
Division bot
Removed by mod
Scraping a post from 7 months ago to lob a shitcanned insult? Yea? Is that normal behavior for you or like, are you an actual bot searching the word “bot”?
I’m a bot?!?! 🤣🤣🤣🤣
so… you’re just casually scraping and replying to months old comments… okaybuddy, ez block. Actual crazy person behavior.
