Fascism, the Republican party objective

[funjumper101 15]

The current iteration of the Republican party, brought to us by the Koch brothers and Dick Armey via the Tea party, is succeeding in driving the USA into fascism. These are not patriots, or anything even close. They are what is truly and totally wrong with the USA these days.
Corporations are not people. A person can be put in jail. A person can be executed via the electric chair or lethal injection. Corporations can't vote in elections.

For the uneducated, here is a cogent explanation of what fascism is and how it is manifested. Many of these characteristics have come out in recent years. Which ones do you recognize as being at the forefront these days?

Fourteen Defining
Characteristics Of Fascism
By Dr. Lawrence Britt
Source Free Inquiry.co
5-28-3


Dr. Lawrence Britt has examined the fascist regimes of Hitler (Germany), Mussolini (Italy), Franco (Spain), Suharto (Indonesia) and several Latin American regimes. Britt found 14 defining characteristics common to each:

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.

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 incarcerations of prisoners, etc.

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.

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.

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.

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.

7. Obsession with National Security - Fear is used as a motivational tool by the government over the masses.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

[RonD1120 62]

What is Fascism? Some General Ideological Features

by Matthew N. Lyons

I am skeptical of efforts to produce a "definition" of fascism. As a dynamic historical current, fascism has taken many different forms, and has evolved dramatically in some ways. To understand what fascism has encompassed as a movement and a system of rule, we have to look at its historical context and development--as a form of counter-revolutionary politics that first arose in early twentieth-century Europe in response to rapid social upheaval, the devastation of World War I, and the Bolshevik Revolution.

http://www.publiceye.org/eyes/whatfasc.html

Fascism or Socialism, is that our choice?

Look for the shiny things of God revealed by the Holy Spirit. They only last for an instant but it is a Holy Instant. Let your soul absorb them.

[Andy9o8 2]

Whoa! Deja vu.

[airdvr 210]

You do realize you are as extreme as the people you're railing against.

Please don't dent the planet.

Destinations by Roxanne

[lawrocket 3]

I've tried to get him to answer some simple questions in the past. It's been refused. He is what he despises.

My wife is hotter than your wife.

[turtlespeed 226]

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I've tried to get him to answer some simple questions in the past. It's been refused. He is what he despises.

Why let a good over reaction go to waste?

I'm not usually into the whole 3-way thing, but you got me a little excited with that. - Skymama
BTR #1 / OTB^5 Official #2 / Hellfish #408 / VSCR #108/Tortuga/Orfun

[muff528 3]

Dr. Britt forgot #15:

Fabricating academic pinheads and then referring to their writings to provide "support" for delusional rants.

But just to answer #1, most fascist takeovers of governments have been characterized by either discarding, distorting or adding to the stolen country's national symbolism. For example take the addition of clinched fists, silhouettes of "heroes" or the usage of personal logos such as the flash and circle and the swastika, etc. Also, slogans, rallying cries and songs are added to that country's repertoire and the use of traditional national symbols, pledges and songs is discouraged, demeaned or even condemned.

[Andy9o8 2]

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Dr. Britt forgot #15:

Fabricating academic pinheads and then referring to their writings to provide "support" for delusional rants.

But just to answer #1, most fascist takeovers of governments have been characterized by either discarding, distorting or adding to the stolen country's national symbolism. For example take the addition of clinched fists, silhouettes of "heroes" or the usage of personal logos such as the flash and circle and the swastika, etc. Also, slogans, rallying cries and songs are added to that country's repertoire and the use of traditional national symbols, pledges and songs is discouraged, demeaned or even condemned.

"War on terror"
"Mission Accomplished"
"Patriot Act"

[muff528 3]

"War on terror" -- mis-titled but a real war with a real enemy nonetheless.

"Mission Accomplished" -- gimme a break.

"Patriot Act" -- written with provisions for Congressional oversight and with a sunset by the old guy. The new guy seems to have extended the parts which might be considered the most unconstitutional. Actually I am against the Act but only because of the inevitability of its misuse by a would-be megalomaniac.

[champu 1]

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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.

This one I found interesting. There's been plenty done what I'll boldly call "incorrectly" in the fight of terrorism over the last few decades, but using races, ethnicities, or social ideologies as a scapegoat for problems and identifying terrorists (not "brown people" but rather terrorists) as enemies are not two concepts you can successfully link merely with the creative use of forward slashes and commas.

[lawrocket 3]

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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.

This one I found interesting. There's been plenty done what I'll boldly call "incorrectly" in the fight of terrorism over the last few decades, but using races, ethnicities, or social ideologies as a scapegoat for problems and identifying terrorists (not "brown people" but rather terrorists) as enemies are not two concepts you can successfully link merely with the creative use of forward slashes and commas.

Of course, this is titled "Fascism, the Republican party objective."

Identification of scapehoat? Check.
Unifying cause? Check.
The people are rallied into a unifying frenzy? Check.

Over the need to eliminate a perceived common threat or foe? Check.
racial , ethnic? Not this post.
religious minorities? Not this post, but funjumper has had plenty to say about "religious."
liberals? Nope. But boy, conservatives get it!
communists? Nope. Buut fascists get it in this post!
Socialists? Nope. Capitalists!
terrorists? Depends on why they're terrorizing.

I see things like this all the time. Posts that are what they claim to be against.

My wife is hotter than your wife.