The notice lately and pretty much exclusively on Fox News the use of the term "Islama-fascists".This seemed kind of curious because my limited understanding of Fascism. I knew it was a form of a nationalist government run amok. Radical Islam was more civil uprising of extreme religious fanaticism.
So I embarked on a journey for a better understanding of Fascism. What are it's characteristic or at least some basic truths in the definitions of a fascist society
I'd have to say after a little researh I found little to justify the the term 'Islama-fascist" they lack the control over the machinery of society. A fascist is not something that people strive to be, it is something they become as power is accumulated and corruption of the means of production and the political establishment become mutually dependant on manipulation and coercion as a mean to exercise and maintain power.
Being a person who by pure reflex look at issues from many different angle. The varied arguments on any side of a debate usually have some truth in them but then short sightedness or a narrow view prevail and the truth is obscured by hardline ideology.
That being said. For simplicity I settled on "The 14 Defining Characteristics Of Fascism" by Dr. Lawrence Britt
I think it would be prudent for me to say at this point before I am labeled part of the "hate America crowd", which I as a person that loves and believes in the ideals that this country was founded on... Well except that blacks as 3/5 a white thing, but the power of the system created managed to fix that problem, find incredibly offensive. Need to say that I was as shocked as any America loving citizen to come to the conclusion with the evidence as I interpreted it that The United States, the land of freedom and democracy is a Fascist State.
I'd like to go throught many of the 14 definitions and briefly give my thought on how they apply to the US.
1. Powerful and Continuing Nationalism - Fascist regimes tend to make constant use of patriotic mottos, slogans, symbols, songs, and other paraphernalia. Flags are seen everywhere, as are flag symbols on clothing and in public displays
I'm inclined to give us the benefit of the doubt on this one. Mainly because of 9/11 but the manipution of that event can not be under estimated as a major factor in propelling society in the direction of a fascist mentality.
2. Disdain for the Recognition of Human Rights - Because of fear of enemies and the need for security, the people in fascist regimes are persuaded that human rights can be ignored in certain cases because of "need." The people tend to look the other way or even approve of torture, summary executions, assassinations, long incarceration of prisoners, etc
This one is too easy... Guantanamo, Abu Griab, secret prisons, torture....Enough said?
3. Identification of Enemies/Scapegoats as a Unifying Cause - The people are rallied into a unifying patriotic frenzy over the need to eliminate a perceived common threat or foe: racial , ethnic or religious minorities; liberals; communists; socialists, terrorists, etc
Muslims Terrorists and illegal Aliens where my first thoughts on this one. But there are other suttle ones that have been in play for a long time. The conservative in this country have engaged in a decades old and very successful campaign to make liberal a dirty word. Few Politicians today would proudly call him or herself a liberal. The brand of Socialist is making a comeback in the business community as populist movements in South America begin to show strength.
4. Supremacy of the Military - Even when there are widespread domestic problems, the military is given a disproportionate amount of government funding, and the domestic agenda is neglected. Soldiers and military service are glamorized
Neo-Con doctrine requires Military spending to maintain a constant percentage of GDP, regardless of current threat environment at the time or evidence of rampant corruption within the "Military Industrial Complex" not to mention the killing be made on all those "Support Our Troops Ribbons". Restraint on spending is usually directed at programs that help the lower classes, Medicaid, college financial aid,etc
5. Rampant Sexism - The governments of fascist nations tend to be almost exclusively male-dominated. Under fascist regimes, traditional gender roles are made more rigid. Divorce, abortion and homosexuality are suppressed and the state is represented as the ultimate guardian of the family institution.
Same-sex Marriage Amendment, Restrictions on Abortion Rights, convenient Marriage. Family Values Movement.
6. Controlled Mass Media - Sometimes to media is directly controlled by the government, but in other cases, the media is indirectly controlled by government regulation, or sympathetic media spokespeople and executives. Censorship, especially in war time, is very common.
Fox News Channel, Conservative Talk Radio are the obvious aspects of this one. I also believe in my heart that Brit Hume of the Fox News Channel is a covert neo-con operative.
7. Obsession with National Security - Fear is used as a motivational tool by the government over the masses.
War on Terror, Domestic Spying. I think I might also add to the fear in this category is suspicion. A society that is made to feel suspicious of each other makes it easier to phycologically Isolate individuals who intern are more suseptical to mass manipulation
8. Religion and Government are Intertwined - Governments in fascist nations tend to use the most common religion in the nation as a tool to manipulate public opinion. Religious rhetoric and terminology is common from government leaders, even when the major tenets of the religion are diametrically opposed to the government's policies or actions
CHRISTIAN RIGHT.....COME ON DOWN!!! The thought of Dr. James Dobson of Focus On the Family, a radical religious Christian group with a fixation on homosexuals that boarders on bizarre, has the ear of the President should send a chill down the spine of any mainstream American.
I might add to this a thought I had the other day. When George Bush, a Born Again evangelical, dies and stands before his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ for judgment. How will he explain the blood of 100's of thousand of innocent victims in Iraq that stain his hands?
9. Corporate Power is Protected - The industrial and business aristocracy of a fascist nation often are the ones who put the government leaders into power, creating a mutually beneficial business/government relationship and power elite.
Tax Breaks for Big Oil at a time of record profits and deficits, Price protection for big Pharma at the expense of public funds.
10. Labor Power is Suppressed - Because the organizing power of labor is the only real threat to a fascist government, labor unions are either eliminated entirely, or are severely suppressed.
Minimum wage is probably the most symbolic of this using the argument it will hurt business despite the fact that every cent of that increase gets pumped directly back into the economy. There has also been a serious decline in union membership and a major up tick in anti-union rhetoric over the last couple decades
11. Disdain for Intellectuals and the Arts - Fascist nations tend to promote and tolerate open hostility to higher education, and academia. It is not uncommon for professors and other academics to be censored or even arrested. Free expression in the arts and letters is openly attacked
This is my favorite because it is so blatantly played out on the Fox News Channel. I watch a lot of Fox because I believe you can't beat the far right unless you know how they think. But I can't count the amount of times the Fox Channel has targeted college professors and even high school teachers for ridicule and even personal destruct for trying to present ideas in an environment where critical thought should begin and flourish.
Dixie Chicks....Hang in there ladies!
12. Obsession with Crime and Punishment - Under fascist regimes, the police are given almost limitless power to enforce laws. The people are often willing to overlook police abuses and even forego civil liberties in the name of patriotism. There is often a national police force with virtually unlimited power in fascist nations.
Mandatory minimums sentencing, warrentless searches, detention without redress. I think it's important to note here the obsession with child sexual predators, although this is a crime worthy of severe punishment, fixating on the stranger on the street undermines the fact that more sexual abuse of children happens within the family and far more children are at risk from a drunken parent then the bogey man in the shadows.
13. Rampant Cronyism and Corruption - Fascist regimes almost always are governed by groups of friends and associates who appoint each other to government positions and use governmental power and authority to protect their friends from accountability. It is not uncommon in fascist regimes for national resources and even treasures to be appropriated or even outright stolen by government leaders.
Tom Daley And Dick Cheney....COME ON DOWN!!!!
14. Fraudulent Elections - Sometimes elections in fascist nations are a complete sham. Other times elections are manipulated by smear campaigns against or even assassination of opposition candidates, use of legislation to control voting numbers or political district boundaries, and manipulation of the media. Fascist nations also typically use their judiciaries to manipulate or control elections.
OK, maybe this on depends on prospective.
But from the examples I mention here I am sadden to offer AN UNAVOIDABLE TRUTH
The United States under the Leadership of George bush and the Neo-con Movement has become a Fascist Nation.
I think it is important to make a distinction between the citizenry and the government. I don't necessarily believe that the people under the control of a fascist government are fascist. Governments are fascist. The people who run the government are fascists. The People are usually manipulated or just complacent and lack vigilance in recognizing histories lessons.
