The Doctrine of Fascism, according to Benito Mussolini, among other things, entails a state transformed into a religion conjoined with a commitment to the utter abnegation of the individual, and particularly the individual will.
The fascist is never an individual, but always a connected tentacle of some holy-yet-earthly state, and infused with that state’s generalized yearning to annihilate all those individual heretics who might oppose the religiosity of that state. All who are not tethered to that fascist state must therefore either die or soon become tethered. For the fascist, the state itself is the god to be both worshipped and obeyed.
Jews, conservative Christians, and free market, individualistic Americans, however, are not easily tethered to the state itself as God. We believe in individual autonomy rather than divine coercion. We, or at least we who have not been gulled into the despair of American liberals — for whom morality, beauty and even divinity itself are only manifestations of social and psychological determinism — we American conservatives are optimists. And we still embrace liberal democracy, which is to say we American conservatives still believe in a free will.
We who remain the unabashed enemies of fascism continue to believe in real choice, the choice of good and the choice of sin. We American conservatives embrace the will rather than hate it. That is what today’s fascists despise about liberal democracies and like about American liberals.
American liberals despair since they have reduced the will to no more than a series of coerced responses to the stimuli of society and psychology. But Islamist fascists despise American conservatives because we conservative members of liberal democracies embrace free will and thus we embrace creativity materialized via free enterprise.
Today’s fascists, on the other hand, who, this time around also happen to be Arab Islamists rather than German or Italian Christians, hate the will. They reject the individual’s ability to create the beautiful and the craven.
For the fascist, the will of the state is identical to the will of the individual. And today’s Islamist fascists, like their fascist forefathers, would be more than pleased to convert us to their state will or kill us in order to crush our individual free will, the human essence we conservative members of liberal democracies still hold so dear.
So the fascist state is not merely fundamentalist. Though fundamentalism may be a necessary condition for fascism, fundamentalism is certainly not a sufficient condition for fascism. Many who are fundamentalists are neither fascist nor dangerous nor even particularly frightening.
Fundamentalist Christians, for example, believe the rest of us wrong, but they also believe we could choose to be right, if only we would. Born again Christians hold free will so dear, in fact, they even hold themselves individually responsible for their own birth. So, coerced submission to God is utterly rejected by fundamentalist Christians. Coerced love of God is equally rejected by fundamentalist Jews, and likely even by most fundamentalist Muslims.
Article comments
— go to most recent comments1 - SFC SKI
Rahter than call it Fascism and have people get wrapped up in definitions and distracted by possibly incorrect compaisions, why don't we just call it another form of totalitarianism?
2 - Dave Nalle
Goodish point there, Ski. The predilection to use hot button terms like fascism too freely diminishes their impact. Fascism has a specific meaning, and using it for something else is sensationalistic and ultimately counter productive.
Our enemies in the war on terror really aren't fascists. They're theocratic authoritarians, but that isn't nearly as catchy a description.
Dave
3 - carmine
Dave, Actually I think you are somewhat wrong here. The link between Arabs and fascism is pretty well documented.
My argument is based on the liklihood that the fascism that now reigns in so many Islamic nations is indeed the direct descendent of Mussolini's and "he who cannot be mentioned in blog-land's" fascism. See the direct quotes from Mussolini on my blog Stop Pseudo Science
4 - Dave Nalle
I know about tha Arab links to Nazism, but Nazism is certainly not fascism, and while they may borrow from Nazi ideology and Fascist ideology, if you accep the idea that fascism is a system of government as defined by Mussolini and others, then the Arab nations really don't meet the criteria of fascist nations. Their economic and political structures are totally different, and the things which they share in common are the same things shared by all totalitarian regimes including the old Soviet Union, namely dictatorship, the 'cult of personality', and an artificial sense of persecution with a focus on combatting largely fabricated external enemies.
In fact, they seem to have most of the worst elements of fascism, nazism and communism with none of the few good aspects of those political philosophies because they've added in a big dollop of theocracy too.
And as for the connections to Nazism, most of the nationalist movements of the region like Hezbollah and the Baath and the various Mujehedin have a much stronger and more recent association with socialism/communism.
Anyway, the point being that they've got something new and unique and in many ways worse than fascism and it deserves a new, specifically applicable word.
Dave
5 - Ruvy in Jerusalem
I have to agree with all of Dave's points here except for the last. You do not need a new name - you need an address - somewhere to send the smart bombs. Actally, two addresses. The addresses are Riyadh and Teheran.
But for the sake of your own economy, your country needs to find a quick exit strategy from central Iraq that does not bring your soldiers to OUR country.
6 - Dave Nalle
Ruvy, Israel is on the way to the ocean. I believe the route is a winding one that runs through Damascus, Riyadh and Southern Lebanon. Tehran we just nuke.
Dave
7 - gonzo marx
Dave sez...
*And as for the connections to Nazism, most of the nationalist movements of the region like Hezbollah and the Baath and the various Mujehedin have a much stronger and more recent association with socialism/communism.*
Dave, ya had me completely until this sentence....
the Mujahadeen FOUGHT the russian communists and drove them out of afghanistan
the Baathists of Iraq were an oligarchal totalitarian regime, by very definition of the terms
now, Hizb'allah is closest.. it does remind one of the old soviet usage of small insurgencies, financially backed to run a coup.. or legit take over of the government... but it does stop there
Hizb'allah itself is definately a cult of personality type thing, with a very clear theocratic totalitarianism in which the Qu'ran is used and abused to justify their actions.. as dictated by their masters in Iran
just some Thoughts
Excelsior?
8 - Baronius
Most definitions of fascism (and there are many) include corporatism, which is a blurring of the distinction between industry and government. What does that mean exactly? I dunno. It varies. It can mean that corporations run the government; it can mean nationalization of the industries; it can be called "public/private partnerships". One of the sectors starts to dominate the other.
The free-market conservative is instinctively at odds with corporatism. The modern liberal doesn't share that instinct. Note: I'm talking about the political and economic worlds, which were more a part of Nalle's analysis than Carmine's.
Does corporatism exist among the Arab states? Only in small industries like oil production. (Sorry, I couldn't help myself.) Also banking, construction, shipping... Enough to argue the case that Arab culture is fascist in the political and economic spheres too.
9 - Dean
"So I agree with how conservatives frame this war."
Which war?
We have so many going on.
And so litle good news.
10 - Dean
btw, do you pretend to speak for all conservatives?
Or just those conservatives conned by the neo variety?
A new word is needed -- "neo-conned".
11 - gonzo marx
a Thought for Baronius...
you are spot on with the corporate tie in with fascism... but far less of it in the arab world
now here in the States... a decent argument can be made that some of our governmental policies border on corporate fascism... like multibillion dollar no bid contracts with Haliburton, or Bechtel...
both of whom have gotten in trouble (not!) for overcharging or shoddy work (Bechtel and the Big dig fer shoddy, and the GAO has numerous reports about Haliburton/KBR overcharging and skimming)
yet BOTH they and others STILL receive billions in no bid contracts...
so much for fre market capitalism, eh?
Excelsior?
12 - Glen Boyd
Personally i think anyone who tries to drop a bomb on Isreal (nuclear or otherwise) is in for one hell of a surprise.
But thats just me...
-Glen
13 - SHARK
And move over, Jon Benet Ramsey, you're about to be swamped by a distorted historical analogy to World War II!
Thanks for the preview of the new pre-election MARKETING STRATEGY of the Neo-con Right;
"facism" -- oohhh, scary!
"appeasers" -- oohhh, a wimpy liberal who wants to hand Europe over to Hitler!
("cut and run" appears to have lost its impact -- ahahahahaha -- Only to be replaced by the new, improved SCARE TACTICS of the now discredited Republicans. "cut and run" -- please have a seat next to "axis of evil" and "weapons of mass destruction"!)
And move over, Jon Benet Ramsey, you're about to be swamped by a distorted historical analogy to World War II!
Never mind that:
1) the real "war on terrorism" starters [on 9/11], Bin Laden and Al Kayda, are still at large;
2) Iraq has diverted billions of $ and U.S. military & intelligence from that pursuit -- in the process, creating a virtual recruiting office/training ground for future terrorists;
3) at least one "Islamo-facist STATE" in the Middle East also happens to be an "ally" and the Bush family's personal friends, SAUDI ARABIA;
4) "Islamo-facists" don't meet your "state" owned criteria.
5) If the U.S. weren't so addicted to OIL, we wouldn't give a flying fuck about the entire Middle East -- and these terrorists wouldn't be fucking with us.
14 - Clavos
If the U.S. weren't so addicted to OIL, we wouldn't give a flying fuck about the entire Middle East
True. But we're past the point of changing that in the short term--at least not without significant sacrifice, which candy-assed, spoiled, pampered Ameicans will never accept.
and these terrorists wouldn't be fucking with us.
We are the richest, most powerful nation on Earth--the biggest target. Someone will ALWAYS fuck with us. Out of envy, if for no other reason.
15 - Dean
We have had 33 years since 1973 to switch from Middle East oil. We saw the handwriting on the wall at the time, but instead of doing something constructive, we now consume much more oil. To top that off we have a Middle East foreign policy that sucks wind.
"We are the richest, most powerful nation on Earth--"
We are also the dumbest.
16 - Bliffle
"So I agree with how conservatives frame this war. We are at war with Islamist fascists. But we are not at war with Muslim fundamentalists."
Oops! How does that figure? Muslim doctrine calls for submission to god (and mohamed) so is contrary to the idea of Personal Will you have presented. So ALL islam defies your idea.
It's as if you suddenly couldn't go where your logic was leading you. Failure of courage?
Of course, the article may have been a parody of Ayn Rand. Only the author can know.
17 - gonzo marx
Clavos sez...
*True. But we're past the point of changing that in the short term--at least not without significant sacrifice, which candy-assed, spoiled, pampered Ameicans will never accept.*
well Clavos.. i can give you a simple Answer, than can be accomplished in mere months that woudl radically reduce our dependence on foreign oil significantly
a tax credit for each and every tractor trailer out there to convert to biodiesal, another tax credit to every truck stop gas station that converts a tank/pump to biodiesal... and a last one ( oh.. say some of the billions from the "energy plan" that paid off big oil in a year of record profits) to establish a biodiesal refinery/distribution company...
there...one paragraph... and the millions of truckers out there shift from consuming billions of gallons of oil into burning bio fuel THAT WE CAN GROW RIGHT HERE DOMESTICALLY!!!
hey, you can even cut some farm subsidies, and have them shift to growing soybeans, or whatever works best for creating bio fuels...
you can send me my Nobel prize now....
Excelsior?
18 - Clavos
Good idea, gonzo. But, though I AM half Swedish, I have no pull with the prize committee.
Has any done a study to see how much oil actually would be saved by doing what you suggest? Are there hard numbers ou there?
19 - Kinoun
Perhaps the "conservatives" time would be better spent NOT searching for enemies among their own fellow citizens. The same old crap flung at the "liberals" - in this case ANYONE who dares to question the Bush Adm., is waisted on Americans in general. No one's falling for it. Perhaps it worked during the Vietnam Era. And, given the state of mind in America during the last election it did manage to sway enough voters in the Red states who weren't willing to spend a few more minutes questioning matters... But even that's begun to change...
As much as despise "conservative" philosophy as it stands now (almost as much as I dispise the old knee-jerk "liberal" philosophy that so many democrats cling to) I do have to agree with Sinclair Lewis:
"When fascism arrives in America it will be clutching a bible and draped in the flag."
20 - gonzo marx
Clavos... no real Study has been done on it, but you can find just how many trucks are out there... the conversion kit costs between 300 and 500 dollars (cheaper for those fleets of trucks who have their own mechanics)
do the same with diesal running cars and consumer trucks, and you have a huge percentage of what's on the road off of foreign oil and literally growing our own economy...
now, export it to Europe, India and China...
Kinoun sez...
*I do have to agree with Sinclair Lewis:
"When fascism arrives in America it will be clutching a bible and draped in the flag."*
Quoted for Truth
nuff said...
Excelsior?
21 - Dean
When fascism arrives it is usually clutching a gun and draped in propaganda.
22 - gonzo marx
Dean... that's the tactic AFTER they have usurped power fomr the legitimate government
before hand, they try and appear "reasonable" and populist as much as possible, hiding their true Motivation...
hence the Sinclair Lewis quote... which actually covers both, if you think about it a bit cynically
your mileage may vary
Excelsior?
23 - Clavos
The Bible IS a gun.
The flag IS propaganda.
24 - Dean
Is that what Stalin, Hitler, Hirohito and Mussolini used?
25 - Dean
I forgot Mao.