U.S. Navy building looks like a swastika

Google Earth is about to cost the U.S. Navy $600,000. Some intrepid Googlers discovered recently that a Navy base in southern California bears a striking resemblance to a swastika from the air. Apparently, no one noticed that the four-building complex, built in the late 1960s, looks like the offensive symbol from above until early last ...

599085_NavySwastika5.jpg
599085_NavySwastika5.jpg

Google Earth is about to cost the U.S. Navy $600,000. Some intrepid Googlers discovered recently that a Navy base in southern California bears a striking resemblance to a swastika from the air. Apparently, no one noticed that the four-building complex, built in the late 1960s, looks like the offensive symbol from above until early last year. Local residents have lobbied the Navy for action ever since, and therefore the Navy has decided to drop $600K on landscaping and architectural alterations in order to camouflage the shape. At which point, it will look like ... a swastika covered in expensive shrubbery.

Google Earth is about to cost the U.S. Navy $600,000. Some intrepid Googlers discovered recently that a Navy base in southern California bears a striking resemblance to a swastika from the air. Apparently, no one noticed that the four-building complex, built in the late 1960s, looks like the offensive symbol from above until early last year. Local residents have lobbied the Navy for action ever since, and therefore the Navy has decided to drop $600K on landscaping and architectural alterations in order to camouflage the shape. At which point, it will look like … a swastika covered in expensive shrubbery.

Carolyn O'Hara is a senior editor at Foreign Policy.

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