Is America heading toward fascism?
By Susan Goya
Online Journal Contributing Writer
November 25, 2004—Tom Sine, wrote a book in 1981, "The Mustard Seed Conspiracy," encouraging Christians to take an active role in working for the betterment of all in the world. In what may turn out to be words of prophecy, he said:
"Perhaps the most serious threat of 'galloping conservatism' is that in a time
of crisis it could easily be transformed into full-blown fascism. When people
are afraid, they are susceptible to trading away their civil liberties to
protect their 'things'. One of the archapostles of conservative economics,
Milton Friedman, has already said that, given the choice between preserving
American constitutional freedoms and the economic freedom to make a dollar
without interference, he would choose economic freedom hands down (Friedman,
1980, Free to Choose, Avon Books, p. xvi). How tragically ironic it would be if
conservative Americans bartered away their constitutional liberties to preserve
their affluent lifestyles!" (Sine, 1981, 56).
The hot-button word in this quote is "fascism," a word guaranteed to evoke an emotional response. What is fascism, and is America headed toward fascism? It turns out that a lot of people are wondering the same thing. It's hard to find a definition acceptable to both the right and the left. Fascism falls somewhere on the conservative side of the political continuum. It is reactive, nationalist, militaristic, unilateralist and often racist. It comes in many forms. Fascism is hawkish and tends to rely on a leader who projects a charismatic and authoritarian style. Fascism in a nation seeks to modify the basis of international relationships. The belief that the group has an historic destiny trumps thoughtful reason. It is pretty clear what a mature fascism looks like; it is not so clear what picture an emerging fascism would present.
The possibility of a constructive debate on whether fascism is emerging in America is further hindered by the fact that conservatives are likely to take it personally, and lash out at their "attackers" as "unpatriotic," while these same "attackers" defend the debate as necessary and, ultimately, a very patriotic attempt to protect traditional American ideals and freedoms. So both sides believe themselves to be the true patriots.
What scares some Americans is that the basis for waging war unilaterally seems to be a belief that the American way is superior, that the rest of the world acknowledges that superiority, and that Americans and the rest of the world should therefore blindly follow America's leader. Thoughtful Americans found Bush's statement in the second debate that he "just knows how the world works" incredibly revealing, while the rest of the world finds such a statement from the leader of the most militarily powerful country in the world downright frightening.
According to the most authoritative writer on the subject, Robert Paxton:
- The following mobilizing passions are present in fascisms, though they may sometimes be articulated only implicitly (parentheses are mine, not Paxton's and contain recent examples of each characteristic):
The primacy of the group, toward which one has duties superior to every right, whether universal or individual (the shutting down of the freedom of speech such as when friends tell friends that criticizing Bush is unpatriotic, or that no true Christian would vote for Kerry). - The belief that one's group is a victim, a sentiment which justifies any action against the group's enemies, internal as well as external (like when Bush, in one debate, justified the war in Iraq with, "They attacked us.")
- Dread of the group's decadence under the corrosive effect of individualistic and cosmopolitan liberalism (accusing people of treason for having reasonable misgivings about the war).
- Closer integration of the community within a brotherhood (fascio) whose unity and purity are forged by common conviction, if possible, or by exclusionary violence if necessary (by demonizing anyone who disagrees with them, by a lack of willingness to provide reasoned evidenced for their positions, by a belief that their views are synonymous with God's views).
- An enhanced sense of identity and belonging, in which the grandeur of the group reinforces individual self-esteem (the idea that Bush supporters are the only Americans who cherish American freedoms).
- Authority of natural leaders (always male) throughout society, culminating in a national chieftain who alone is capable of incarnating the group's destiny (exactly how Bush supporters feel about him, even to the point of denying incontrovertible evidence).
- The beauty of violence and of will, when they are devoted to the group's success in a Darwinian [dominance of the most powerful] struggle (the idea that protesting the conduct of the war "denigrates our brave soldiers").
As one observer has noted, "This is extremely dangerous talk, and not merely because it is divisive. It actually threatens to simultaneously harden the growing alliance between extremist and mainstream conservatives, and create a milieu in which violence against dissenters becomes acceptable. It is when we see this kind of coalescence that we are in real danger of seeing fascism blossom in America" (
David Neiwert,www.cursor.org).
In a review of Paxton's latest book, "The Anatomy of Fascism," published by Knopf in 2004, Amazon.com reviewer N. Ravitch wrote:
This book admirably summarizes a vast literature on Fascism and highlights a few
key points which can be kept in mind when the threat of Fascism is imagined or
raised.
Fascism cannot be understood only from its ideologues, it needs to be
looked at in practice.
The practice of Fascism, as indeed the rise to power of Fascism, requires collaboration and support from the much older, stronger, and more respectable conservative and establishmentarian foundations of any society.
Because Fascism is designed to prevent leftist revolution it is profoundly conservative, but because its means are radical it cannot really remain conservative in practice.
Because Fascism is conservative it does not require much in the way of terror, intimidation, or violence to capture the acquiescence and cooperation of large segments of society, particularly of "respectable" society. It does its evil under the cover of the good and the conventional.
Therefore Fascism's evil can be hard to discover until it is too late.
The Fascist label can be used indiscriminately and falsely, but it is possible that at the present time it ought to be used more insightfully.
In 1998, Paxton advised asking of today's neo- or protofascisms: "Are they becoming rooted as parties that represent major interests and feelings and wield major influence on the political scene? Is the economic or constitutional system in a state of blockage apparently insoluble by existing authorities? Is a rapid political mobilization threatening to escape the control of traditional elites, to the point where they would be tempted to look for tough helpers in order to stay in charge? It is by answering those kinds of questions . . . that we may be able to recognize our day's functional equivalents of fascism"
Back in1981, Tom Sine perceived that while several mainline denominations sympathize with the political left, "it is often impossible to get even a piece of tissue paper between the views of the political right and the new fundamentalist religious right . . . their agendas are the same" (Sine, 1981, 58). People self-identified as committed Christians should develop viewpoints informed more by "the mind of Christ" than a political party. The trite WWJD (What Would Jesus Do) never applied more than it does in today's American political scene. The Golden Rule is still one of the best statements of moral values ever formulated.
Source of Paxton quotes: (Paxton, "The Five Stages of Fascism," The Journal of Modern History 70 (March 1998) p. 6,7, 22, 23).
Claudia D. Dikinis
http://starcats.com/ >^..^< Political & Personal Astrology for a New Millenniumsic transit gloria mundi [so passes the glory of this world.]
HEADS UP: The greatness of every mighty organization embodying an idea in this world lies in the religious fanaticism and intolerance with which, fanatically convinced of its own right, it intolerantly imposes its will against all others: Adolf Hitler (German chancellor, leader of the Nazi party, 1889-1945)
"By words the mind is winged." - Aristophanes
"Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty" -- Thomas Jefferson - Thomas Jefferson
