How are thee fascist let me count the ways....No. 11

[Thomas Hurt]

11. In such a perspective everybody is educated to become a hero. In every mythology the hero is an exceptional being, but in Ur-Fascist ideology, heroism is the norm. This cult of heroism is strictly linked with the cult of death. It is not by chance that a motto of the Falangists was Viva la Muerte (in English it should be translated as “Long Live Death!”). In non-fascist societies, the lay public is told that death is unpleasant but must be faced with dignity; believers are told that it is the painful way to reach a supernatural happiness. By contrast, the Ur-Fascist hero craves heroic death, advertised as the best reward for a heroic life. The Ur-Fascist hero is impatient to die. In his impatience, he more frequently sends other people to death.

Umberto Eco Ur-Fascism (1995)


Trump is always the hero....whose sacrifices only exist in his delusions.

[sandensea]

1. Out a list of 14 criteria shared by most fascist regimes, the GOP runs the board:

1. Powerful and Continuing Nationalism: Patriotic mottos, slogans, symbols, songs, and flags are seen everywhere.

2. Disdain for Human Rights: The people are encouraged 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: A patriotic frenzy is summoned over the "need" to eliminate a perceived common threat or foe: ethnic or religious minorities; liberals; communists; socialists, terrorists, etc.

4. Supremacy of the Military: Even with 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: 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: The media may be directly controlled; but more often, indirectly controlled by regulation, or sympathetic media spokespeople and executives. Censorship, especially in war time, is very common.

7. Obsession with National Security.

8. Religion and Government are Intertwined: The most common religion in said nation is used as a tool to manipulate public opinion. Religious rhetoric is common from government leaders, even when the major tenets of the religion are diametrically opposed to its policies or actions.

9. Corporate Power is Protected: The business aristocracy are often the ones who put the government leaders into power, creating a mutually beneficial business/government relationship and power elite.

10. Labor Power is Suppressed: Labor unions are demonized, suppressed, or eliminated entirely.

11. Disdain for Intellectuals and the Arts: Open hostility to higher education, and academia is promoted. Academics are censored or even arrested. Free expression in the arts and letters is openly attacked.

12. Obsession with Crime and Punishment: The police are given almost limitless power to enforce laws. The people are encouraged 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.

13. Rampant Cronyism and Corruption: Friends and associates of the regime appoint each other to government posts and use power to protect friends from accountability. National resources and even treasures are often appropriated or even outright stolen by said officials.

14. Fraudulent Elections: Elections are either a complete sham, or 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. The judiciary often colludes in the control of elections.

[Thomas Hurt]

2. Umberto Eco's list is similar but he has a different take on it.

He grew up in fascist Italy during the war.

[sandensea]

3. True.

Prof. Lawrence Britt's list (the one I posted) is academic - though none the less true for it.

Eco's, while also academic, is more nuanced, and captures more of the doublespeak subtleties typical of these regimes.

The opposition, he notes, are made out to be both fearsomely strong, and pathetically weak, as the occasion demands.

The regime and its apologists, on the other hand, are always portrayed as heroes - heroes that every young boy (though not girls, as girls don't count in RW regimes) should be lucky enough to grow up to be like, while making sure people understand that few can, as it's a privilege.

Classic Rethug mind fuck.

Grazie mille for posting this, Thomas. As prescient now as ever.