Fascism

[amaverick]

Bush Busta, a Weaselish sort, was engaged in a favorite activity of the Usenet’s mustelids: he was dismantling a right winger in debate. The right winger, a lofty sort who likes to refer to himself as a "capitalist pig" had loftily proclaimed that Saddam was a fascist.

Busta wanted to know what made Saddam a fascist, and asked if El Cochino could describe fascism, and how Saddam fit into it.

"Read the newspapers", El Cochino loftily proclaimed.

"Newspapers define fascism?" Busta wanted to know.

American papers don’t like to talk about fascism much.

I started thinking about that. What is fascism?

Mussolini said that fascism should more properly be called "corporatism" since it was, under Mussolini, a blending of state and corporate power. Mussolini ought to know; he was the first fascist leader. As an economic system, fascism was widely admired in the west (Churchill considered Mussolini "a great man" and liked the economic aspects of fascism). In America fascism was, unsurprisingly, extremely popular among the upper class. The leading advocates of a fascist economic system to fight the depression – Germany in the late thirties had beaten the depression – were the Bush family and other elite clans. There was even a weird kind of half-assed coup attempt staged against FDR by those same interests in the mid thirties. Fascism isn’t a puppet of the ruling class. It is an extension.

Definition one: it is an economic system in which corporations (or the wealthy elite) are essentially the government and vice versa.

But there are other elements.

For example, it takes a republican form of government. A monarchy can often be similar to a fascist state, with an aristocracy instead of CEOs as the financial support for the throne. Fascist states often have some of the attributes of a republic familiar to Americans: a popular vote (albeit it often a sham), So definition two: it’s a republic, not a monarchy.

Fascism places the state foremost. The country does not serve the citizen; the citizen serves the country. The notion of plebeian sovereignty is utterly foreign to a fascist regime. This, of course, means that fascism is noted for its extreme nationalism, often taking patriotic displays and political art to absurd levels. The best-known example is Hitler’s Germany, which featured incredible national architecture, mass rallies, and the flag and national symbols every where. The leader (fascism usually has a single individual at the top who may or may not exercise absolute authority, and may even be a puppet) is equated to the nation. Mussolini WAS Italy. Hitler WAS Germany. Franco WAS Spain. Definition three: fascism has extreme nationalism.

Everyone thinks of Hitler when you say the word "fascism", but in fact, he was an atypical example. Hitler’s self-aggrandizing and increasingly lawless regime didn’t really fit on any of the political charts. While fascist regimes are, because of the lack of accountability, usually thuggish and corrupt, they don’t necessarily become the genocidal nightmares of mass death that Germany inflicted on the world in the 1930s and 1940s. Definition four: Nazism was fascism, but fascism isn’t necessarily Nazism.

Fascist regimes are hostile to liberalism, intellectuals, trade unions, and dissent. Such regimes usually erect these groups as "inner enemies of the state." Sometimes racial or ethnic groups, those that are a visible minority within the country, are singled out as "the rot from within." This usually leads to institutional persecution and abuse. And foreign nations are often pointed out as an imminent danger to the Fatherland, and if the regime has the military power, they will often attack other nations "out of self-defense." Definition five: Fascist regimes erect enemies, inside and out.

While considering themselves traditional and conservative, fascist regimes usually are neither, often invoking a golden past that is either romanticized beyond any rational historian’s view, and painting an idyllic past, often one eventually corrupted by the target groups. They proceed to blame these groups bitterly for this wonderful past that never was, and vow to restore the Fatherland to its greatness.

Nor are they by any stretch of the definition conservative, even though they embrace the term avidly. While conservatives believe in orderly and deliberate procedures and resist change, fascists seek to upset the existing order and institute wild and far-ranging change, often inverting the entire structure of society. Conservatives are often attracted to rule of law, whereas fascists disdain it, seeking to rid the courts of independent "liberal" judges, and eliminating as much of the public’s right to redress as they possibly can. Definition six: fascism is not conservative, but is rather radical and reactionary.

Fascism depends on propaganda, rather than information. This stems, in part, from the discontinuity of its self-described features (conservative, traditionalist) and in part because its aims are often at variance with the public weal, and, quite simply, it has to lie in order to get any public support. Thus, it will corrupt the media if the media was free to begin with, and set about redefining public institutions and government apparatus and actions to suit itself, an activity made famous by the George Orwell term, "Newspeak". Definition seven: fascism depends on propaganda and lies for public support.

So, let’s recap. Fascism:



Is an economic system geared to the needs, not of the people, but of the wealthy elite.

It is a republican form of government

It features extreme forms of nationalism.

While Nazism is a form of fascism, fascism is not Nazism.

Fascism creates "enemies of the fatherland" in order to gain public support. These "enemies" usually include liberals, socialists, trade unionists, and conspicuous minority groups.

Fascism is not conservative, although it often claims to be traditional.

Fascism will replace a free press with propaganda.



So what does this tell us about Saddam Hussein’s regime?

Not much, really, because we don’t really know that much about the inner workings of his government.

But examination of fascism does tell us something important.

It fits the current regime in Washington to a "T".

[Captain Ray]

well that was stupid.. thanks for sharing though...

Raymond

[NewXD40fun]

The Left WingNuts are coming out of the woodwork....somebody turn on the lights!!!!!





Tom

[einheit 13]

The Left WingNuts are coming out of the woodwork....somebody turn on the lights!!!!!

yea, facism is the extreme right wing.........the next step after a theocracy....

[mgeoffriau]

No, anarchism is the extreme right-wing. You can keep your oppressive government control over on the left side of the spectrum, thank you very much.

[einheit 13]

but fascism isn’t necessarily Nazism

Thats correct, Italy was facism in its finest.

[Captain Ray]

Originally Posted by einheit 13

yea, facism is the extreme right wing.........the next step after a theocracy....

Hitler was a fascist.. his party were socialists you idiot. They had very little to do with right wingers.. dumb ass!!

Raymond

[einheit 13]

Originally Posted by Captain Ray

Hitler was a fascist.. his party were socialists you idiot. They had very little to do with right wingers.. dumb ass!!

Raymond

I think not moron, the BNP follows the National Socialist Party line- they are a right wing party.......go back and study the different parties asshole...and also if that is true and you republipukes like Blaire so much- the labour party is akin to our democratic/ left wing party.......

[Captain Ray]

The BNP??? Where does the British National Party come into play here? Right Wingers are so far from fascism that your comments are beyond stupid. I could see it if you were making these comments about Mark (xist) or BD.. but you are an a tack that will never get you upwind.

Are you drinking alot this weekend? It seems from this end of the internet.
that you must be.

Raymond

[Old School]