14 Points of Fascism
(2000-2009)
In his
original article, "Fascism
Anyone?", Laurence Britt compared the regimes of Hitler, Mussolini, Franco, Suharto, and
Pinochet and identified 14 characteristics common to those fascist
regimes. This page is a collection of news articles divided into
topics relating to each of the 14 points of fascism. This article
does not make the conclusion that the United States or any American
political party is fascist in nature, but rather we present this
information as a warning against the emergence of fascism
in America and where it may be coming from.
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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. |
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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.
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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; immigrants, liberals; communists; socialists, terrorists, etc. |
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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. |
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| 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. Opposition to abortion
is high, as is homophobia and anti-gay legislation and national
policy. |
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| 6.)
Controlled Mass Media:
Sometimes the 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. |
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| 7.)
Obsession with National Security:
Fear is
used as a motivational tool by the government over the masses |
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| 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. |
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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. |
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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. |
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| 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 is openly attacked, and
governments often refuse to fund the arts. |
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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 |
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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. |
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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. |
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This picture is what stopped the ballot
recounts in Florida shortly after it seemed that legitimate
President Gore had a lead. The "citizens" started what was
later called "the preppy riot". Screaming, yelling, pounding
on the walls, these "outraged citizens" intimidated the
polling officials to halt the court mandated recount. A
closer look reveals who they really were. They were bussed
and flown in at Republican lawmakers expense. Some even flew
in on Tom Delay's private plane.
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Further analysis of
American Fascism done by the POAC can be
read here.
Financial industry paid millions to
Obama aide: Summers earned cash last year from firms
over which he now has influence
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30040084
Further reading:
"Now and
Then"- Part 1 A 3 part series by W David Jenkins III on the
similarities between America now and Germany post Reichstag fire
"Now and
Then"- Part II: The Propaganda Machine
Now and
Then- Part III Hitler's Playbook: Bush and the Abuse of Power
It
may sound crazy to some, but the style of governing into which
America has slid is most accurately described as fascism.
Is America Becoming Fascist?
Eternal Fascism: Fourteen Ways of Looking at a Blackshirt
The Danger
of American Fascism: With a fascist the problem is never how
best to present the truth to the public but how best to use the news
to deceive the public into giving the fascist and his group more
money or more power.
Sheila Samples: Freedom To Fascism -- A Bumpy Ride: Republicans
don't seem to realize that they are no longer individual members of
a coherent "party," but are merely part of a mean-spirited and
dangerous movement that is threatening to sweep away democracy as we
know it.
Germany In 1933: The Easy Slide Into Fascism
The
Brownshirting of America: Bush’s supporters demand lock-step
consensus that Bush is right. They regard truthful reports that
Saddam Hussein had no weapons of mass destruction and was not
involved in the September 11 attack on the US – truths now firmly
established by the Bush administration’s own reports – as treasonous
America-bashing.
Fascism then. Fascism now? When people think of fascism, they
imagine Rows of goose-stepping storm troopers and puffy-chested
dictators. What they don't see is the economic and political process
that leads to the nightmare.
What is
Fascism? Some General Ideological Features
Neo-fascism in America : Too many people believe fascism is only
about goose-stepping, jack-booted Nazis.
Too many people believe that American democracy is so strong that
fascists could never take control of America. If you are sympathetic
to those views, I invite you to consider the possibility that you
are mistaken.
It
is in times of fascism rising that armies of ignorance are once more
resuscitated from the bowels of a society bordering on the edge of
mass psychosis. The America at the dawn of the twenty-first century
is no exception...
Republican Party
Brown Shirts: "The Wide-Awakes": The organization was known for
virulent anti-Catholicism, secretive rituals, and a military-style
organization complete with "officers" and units.
Harper's Magazine: We Now Live in a Fascist State
They Saw It
Coming: The 19th-Century Libertarian Critique of Fascism
Victims of Creeping Fascism: We are witnessing nothing less
astonishing than the demise of the American experiment. 12-20
The ten phases
of a Bush scandal. 12-22
America is headed for a soft dictatorship by the end of Bush’s
second term.
