Fscists, Fascists everywhere

By Lee Russ

Sunday, September 03, 2006 at 05:56 PM

As many have noted, the new Republican campaign to paint all dissenters as Fascists or Fascist sympathizers has a few built-in problems.

First off, it makes the majority of Americans into Fascists, given that support for Iraq is well below 50%.

Second, it completely misses the essence of Fascism, which has always been extreme nationalism, antipathy to liberalism, and ruthlessness in dealing with dissenters, all for the supposed good of the state. (Say, who in today's political world does that sound like?)

Third, as I noted yesterday, the whole campaign is rather obviously just that: a PR campaign with one eye on November's elections and the other on today's polls.

So, in keeping with the spirit of the new "lets all hate each other together" theme of some desperate Texans, here's a "Fascist sampler" of sorts:

Quotes on Fascism and Fascists:

Genuine American fascists are on the run, and part of their survival strategy is to redefine the term "fascism" so it can't be applied to them any more.

Thom Hartmann, in the Baltimore Chronicle.

The American fascist would prefer not to use violence. His method is to poison the channels of public information. 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.

Vice President Henry Wallace, speaking in April, 1944, as quoted in the Thom Hartmann piece above.

Quote on the reason why far right Republicans tend to be so sensitive to being called Nazis themselves:

...our society still bears the imprint of World War II. Hence the term "Nazi" is a ready-made label that carries far worse connotations than "liberal." That's why the frothing, pseudo-patriots get so upset about the term.

Yours truly, in a piece for Buzz Flash last year.

Speculation on how the White House may have come up with their new shiny leather covered theme:

The strutting leader strode quickly down a hallway, caught a glimpse of something in the corner of his eye and turned toward it.  There, in the near distance he spied the cold eyed glare of certainty, the dead lack of concern over steel sharpened and ready for the vocal cords and arteries of the naysayers, the faint but visible outline of guard towers rising between floodlights and barbed wire.

"Fascists," the leader cried as he raced down the hall, "The fascists are coming, the Fascists are coming!!!"

The entourage raced along behind him, minds racing as fast as their feet as they desperately considered the question that could cost them their very lives: Should they tell the leader that he had just passed a mirror, not a window?

A citizen describes the new PR campaign:

To what sad, desperate depths the GOP, and their supporters, have sunk.

Scott Crowder, in a letter to the editor of the Salt Lake Tribune.