How many things can you discover using Google Earth?

Sep 27, 2007 14:11 GMT  ·  By

Every once in a while, Google Earth shows some amazing things discoverable only from the satellites and hidden from our eyes. This is what was revealed today when The Daily Mail reported that the US Navy decided to allocate no less than 300,000 pounds to modify the construction of a Southern California barrack which is shaped like a... swastika. The building was discovered by numerous Internet consumers who accessed the photos provided by Google Earth and, due to the reports, the Anti-Defamation League lobbied to modify its structure. The same source sustains the talks took no less than 9 months but Morris Casuto, regional director of ADL, managed to obtain the vow of the Navy which is going to spend 300,000 pounds for the reconstruction of the building.

"The Navy came to realize that this is a symbol that thousands of people died to defeat and it was inappropriate to have that shape on a military base," said Morris Casuto for the Daily Mail. "We didn't enter this minor controversy presuming there was any evil intent on the part of anyone. We understood this was not the number one priority of a nation at war. The Navy decided on their own it was the right thing to do."

At this time, nobody knows for sure who built the barracks, as there are several rumors regarding the matter. For example, one sustains the barracks were built by the Germans in late 1960s as a symbol that their nation was not defeated in the war.

It's pretty obvious the Google downloadable mapping tool is extremely useful, especially when you intend to discover new things all over the world. But it was proved once again that it might cause trouble not only for the users but also for the authorities who demanded several times the censorship of certain areas which were supposed to be hidden from our eyes.