Reply #8: Does anybody get the feeling that history is repeating itself, but with new twist on an old theme?

[hansberrym]

From Musolini's Fascist Doctrine: http://www.historyguide.org/europe/duce.html
'Against individualism, the Fascist conception is for the State; and it is for the individual in so far as he coincides with the State, which is the conscience and universal will of man in his historical existence. It is opposed to classical Liberalism, which arose form the necessity of reacting against absolutism, and which brought its historical purpose to an end when the State was transformed into the conscience and will of the people. Liberalism denied the State in the interests of the particular individual; Fascism reaffirms the State as the true reality of the individual. And if liberty is to be the attribute of the real man, and not of that abstract puppet envisaged by individualistic Liberalism, Fascism is for liberty. And for the only liberty which can be a real thing, the liberty of the State and of the individual within the State. Therefore, for the Fascist, everything is in the State, and nothing human or spiritual exists, much less has value, outside the State. In this sense Fascism is totalitarian, and the Fascist State, the synthesis and unity of all values, interprets, develops and gives strength to the whole life of the people.'


The only good thing about Fascism and Communism is that we have thus far been able play one against the other since they represent the extremes of right vs. left ideology. But had the forces of Statism joined together, WWII might have come out very differntly for the free world.

What is troubling now is that the left v right issue seems to be fading and Statism (defining characterisitic is subsumming of the individual to the interests of the state or larger community)is on the rise. The Statism vs. classical liberalism divide does not break down cleanly in terms of left v. right wing ideology. There are many on both the right and left that embrace statist ideals, and the same is true for classical liberal ideals(individualism, free will, free speech, freedom of religion, etc.)

Does it strike anyone else as odd that the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, with its free will denying mandate to purchase health insurance, was enacted by an overwhelminly left wing House and Senate? The classical left wing approach would be to provide a service by way of taxation rather than forced purchase of a product sold by a corporation.

Is the most important distinction left vs. right anymore? Or should we be more concerned with the State vs. the Individual contest?

Does it make sense that we are still at war some 4 years after the dems captured the house and 2 years after electing a dem president?