what elements of fascism are we seeing today?

[w8liftinglady]

The Government involvement in the banking system had me thinking...what other subtle elements of fascism have we seen develop over the last 8 years?(or am I dreaming things?)

[XemaSab]

1. Telling people it's patriotic to shut the hell up and support the "Commander-in-Chief"

:eyes:

[Lydia Leftcoast]

2. Disdain for intellectuals

Xenophobia
Public insistence on "traditional morality" while the higher-ups violate the rules they preach
Perversion of religion for political ends
Glorification of the military and the equation of militarism with patriotism

[Democrats_win]

3. Cameras on all stop lights. Free-speech zones, ID requirements

ID (can you believe it? Now the Nazis could ask for our papers as was done in the movie Casablanca.) Drug laws (where's freedom), seizure of property associated with drug laws and without just compensation or a trial.

Note, fascism is corporate control of government and you might notice that is about the way things are.

[w8liftinglady]

4. 14 common characteristics for fascist states(and,yes,this will be my next ltte)

Dr. Lawrence Britt, a political scientist, published research on fascism in which he examined the fascist regimes of Hitler, Mussolini, Franco, Suharto and several Latin American regimes. Britt found 14 defining characteristics common to each fascist State:

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.

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 incarceration of prisoners, etc.

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; liberals; communists; socialists; terrorists, etc.

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 are glamorized.

5. Rampant sexism - The government of fascist nations tend to be almost exclusively male-dominated. Under fascist regimes, 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 - 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.

7. Obsession with National security - Fear is used as a motivational tool by the government over the masses.

8. Religion and Government are intertwined - Government 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.

9. Corporate Power is Protected - The industrial and business aristocracy of a fascist nation 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 - Because the organizing power of labor is the only real threat to a fascist government, labor unions are either eliminated, or are severely restricted.

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 and letters is openly attacked.

12. 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.

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.

14. Fraudulent Elections - Sometimes elections in fascist nations are a complete sham. Other times elections are manipulated by smear campaigns against or even assassinations 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.

[Hydra]

6. 14/14

Bad...

[barbtries]

15. oops i just duped your post

first thing i thought of when i saw the subject line.

[w8liftinglady]

18. no prob..let's find real examples of all...

[w8liftinglady]

17. number one

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.

?w=350&h=300

[intheflow]

19. I wrote a sermon based on these points

which I preached at a UU church in the spring of '05. I posted it here, if you're interested and FWIW. I'm glad that so many other people seem to be catching on to the fascism arising in the US. I've seen it gaining traction since the mid-1990's when I first became aware of the concept of "corporate personahood." It's very scary times to be living in, but thankfully we have the hope of a new beginning (or a return to our democratic roots) with President Obama.

[w8liftinglady]

35. wow...that is powerful!

[barbtries]

38. i bookmarked it

to read tomorrow. thanks for sharing

[w8liftinglady]

20. Number 2

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 incarceration of prisoners, etc.

[w8liftinglady]

21. number 3

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; liberals; communists; socialists; terrorists, etc.
http://rawstory.com/news/2005/Ann_Coulter_describes_Muslims_as_ragheads_0210.html
Conservative Ann Coulter describes Muslims as ragheads; Senate leader ducks comment
http://www.buzzflash.com/articles/editorblog/127
The Lynch Mob Politics of McCain-Palin

[w8liftinglady]

22. number 4

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 are glamorized.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_budget_of_the_United_States
The United States military budget is that portion of the United States discretionary federal budget that is allocated to the Department of Defense. This military budget pays the salaries, training, and healthcare of uniformed and civilian personnel, maintains arms, equipment and facilities, funds operations, and develops and buys new equipment. The budget funds all branches of the U.S. military: Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard.

For 2009, the base budget rose to US$515.4 billion, with a total of US$651.2 billion when emergency discretionary spending and supplemental spending are included.<1> This does not include many military-related items that are outside of the Defense Department budget, such as nuclear weapons research, maintenance and production (~$9.3 billion, which is in the Department of Energy budget), Veterans Affairs (~$33.2 billion) or the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan (which are largely funded through extra-budgetary supplements, ~$170 billion in 2007) - the United States government is currently spending at the rate of approximately $1 trillion per year for all defense-related purposes. <2>

[w8liftinglady]

23. number 6

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.
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/10/14/buried-pbs-doc/
Did PBS bury controversial torture documentary under pressure from Bush administration?»
Scott Horton reports today that PBS may have refused to nationally air a controversial documentary on the use of torture by the U.S. government in order to protect its funding. Previously, the Bush administration threatened to cut PBS’s funding after it aired Bush’s War, a Frontline special critical of the war in Iraq:

On Thursday evening WNET in New York will air an important new documentary by Emmy and Dupont Award winning producer Sherry Jones entitled “Torturing Democracy.” It appears on WNET and several other affiliates independently because PBS would not run the show. <…>

According to producer Sherry Jones, PBS told her that “no time slot could be found for the documentary before January 21, 2009″ — the day after George W. Bush and Dick Cheney leave office.

[w8liftinglady]

24. number 7

7. Obsession with National security - Fear is used as a motivational tool by the government over the masses
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2001/10/05/MN88641.DTL
Web sites pull information in interest of national security
Fear of giving useful data to terrorists
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/23/AR2007032301613.html
Terrorized by 'War on Terror'
How a Three-Word Mantra Has Undermined America

[w8liftinglady]

26. number 8

8. Religion and Government are intertwined - Government 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.

http://www.aclu.org/religion/govtfunding/index.html
President Bush is continuing his campaign to allow taxpayer funds to be used for religious discrimination. His "faith-based initiatives" seek to grant religious social service providers - who have long provided admirable and essential services to America's communities -- the right to discriminate, proselytize and play by different rules than other charities while spending tax dollars.

[w8liftinglady]

29. number 9

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

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122398468353632299.html
U.S. to Take Equity Stakes in 9 Banking Behemoths
BofA, J.P. Morgan, Citi and Wells Fargo to Get the Most Cash

[w8liftinglady]

30. number 10

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, or are severely restricted.
http://www.uslaw.com/library/article/carelxDiscourageUnion.html?area_id=43
Employee Lawsuits: Discouraging Union Organizers
Strict rules can stem activities of union organizers.

[w8liftinglady]

31. number 11

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 and letters is openly attacked.
http://rawstory.com/news/2007/Professor_who_criticized_Bush_added_to_0409.html
Professor who criticized Bush told added to terrorist 'no-fly' list
http://www.democracynow.org/2001/11/26/a_professor_is_criticized_for_saying
A Professor Is Criticized for Saying the U.S. Should Bring Bin Laden Before An International Tribunal Instead of Bombing Afghanistan: A Debate On the Role of the University in Wartime

[w8liftinglady]

32. number 12

12. 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.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/02/07/MNUFREACT.DTL
San Francisco Police Chief Heather Fong held a press conference Monday to denounce The Chronicle's ongoing series about the Police Department's use of force as "irresponsible'' and a "disservice'' to the city.

[w8liftinglady]

33. number 13

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.
http://www.oldamericancentury.org/bushco/cronyism.htm
Bush's talent for cronyism: foxes guarding the henhouse

[w8liftinglady]

34. number 14

14. Fraudulent Elections - Sometimes elections in fascist nations are a complete sham. Other times elections are manipulated by smear campaigns against or even assassinations 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.
http://whatreallyhappened.com/WRHARTICLES/2004votefraud.html
http://www.commondreams.org/views05/0813-29.htm
http://www.nogw.com/electionfraud.html

[Truth2Tell]

5. Recommended. nt

[w8liftinglady]

8. Thank you..and if anyone has specifics,I would appreciate it.

[dkofos]

7. loyalty pledges

[Hubert Flottz]

9. Painting your political opponents as evil Untermensch(subhumans)

Race Baiting on a national scale and using the MSM to help you do it.

[Felix Mala]

10. All this voter registration malarkey...

The fake, multiple names... With the millions registering, these errors and the few downright deceptions probably don't even add up to one percent of the electorate, and yet the Neocons have convinced themselves and their legions that any Obama win will not be legitimate. Claiming mass fraud when your side loses - should they lose - is about as fascist as you can get because it hinders the ability of the winner to govern.

[OnceUponTimeOnTheNet]

11. K&R

[Octafish]

12. Government-Controlled Press

Don't bother asking Corporate McPravda about the First Amendment.

There are more. All worthy of KR&B-ing.

[Selatius]

13. It's not gov't controlled. It's corporate controlled. In Nazi Germany, the gov't controlled it.

In the US, the corporations run the news outlets, not the government itself. The government is simply another tool corporations use to influence the debate and control things to their benefit.

[ContinentalOp]

28. Well Fox at least is party-controlled.

And since that party is currently in power, Fox is de facto government-controlled. It actually is not corporate controlled in the usual sense, since it's run strictly for political purposes. If it were truly run for the corporate bottom line it never would have gotten past the initial, unpopular, money losing phase and that airspace would be used for something else.

[Octafish]

40. Fox News is run by Roger Ailes, konservative GOP hack. Rev Moon owns the Washington Times.

Poppy Bush's favorite paper -- it's good to be loyal to the guy who signs paychecks.

Know your BFEE: Forget Rev. Wright! It’s Bush and His Cronies Who Owe an Apology for Rev. Moon!

[Octafish]

39. Lao Tzu: ''The opposite of a great truth also is true.''

This is one of those cases.

Remember Operation MOCKINGBIRD. The CIA(Wall Street NAZI Big Oil Mafia Narcotrafficking KKK Eugenic MoFos) calls the tune.

If you don't mind the primitive formatting, here's an excellent resource:

CIA RELATIONS WITH MEDIA – OFFICIAL OR OTHERWISE

Covert Action Information Bulletin
Dec. 1979-Jan. 1980

It is clear that one of the most sensitive areas in government is the use by the CIA of media and of reporters as spies "in the national interest." As the CIA is supplying certain information to reporters in the U.S., even at their own request, it should not be forgotten that it is specifically forbidden from engaging in domestic propaganda activity by the 1947 National Security Act.

Nonetheless, the CIA has with impunity violated this part of its charter. It was exposed again and again during the Church Committee hearings which traced the pattern back many years; by Carl Bernstein in the October 1977 Rolling Stone, who asserted that about 400 American media people secretly collaborated with the Agency; and by the New York Times on December 27 and 28, 1977 which revealed operational assistance to the CIA rendered over the years by various editors and journalists whom it named.

The CIA has used major U.S. news organizations as cover for its officers. It has paid editors, reporters, columnists, commentators, and free lancers for their intelligence favors. It has owned or funded over fifty news organizations. And it has sponsored, subsidized or produced more than 1,000 books (about one-fourth of them in English).


Getting Briefed by the CIA

One of the ways in which the CIA exploits media personnel is characterized in an internal Agency regulation dated November 30, 1977 which sanctions the maintenance of "regular liaison with representatives of the news media." How does this process work? Take the case of journalists whose beat is foreign or military affairs, and who periodically travel to Headquarters in Langley. There they sit down with Herbet E. Hetu, the chief CIA spokesperson, or his representative, and receive a "substantive" briefing on some topic. Normally, the briefings are "on background," meaning the informati0n they receive can only be described as deriving from "a government official" or some such label, but can not be attributed to the CIA.

These sessions are, by the admission of the journalists, entered into on their own initiative — a fact which is the CIA's automatic justification of the program. Many observers question the propriety of these liaison activities, both from the standpoint of the CIA and of the journalists who choose the Agency as a news source, particularly when the source is not CIA-attributed, which it rarely is.

The "voluntary" nature of the journalist's relationship with the CIA under such circumstances does not preclude the possibility that it is the CIA which receives the briefing and the journalists who gives it. Some are proud to say they have briefed the Agency.

CAIB has learned that a few chosen journalists in the U.S. receive briefings from the CIA, in printed form, delivered to them by courier, and known to contain a mixture of classified and non-classified material. Our source informed us that in some instances, recipients of these printed briefings have simply put their own by-line on the stories, which are printed almost verbatim by their newspaper.

The best-known case of this kind is that of C.L. Sulzberger, New York Times foreign affairs correspondent. According to an intelligence agency source quoted by Carl Bernstein, Sulzberger was provided with a "background paper" and then "gave it to printers and put his name on it." Even though he acknowledged knowing every CIA director personally since Allen Dulles, Sulzberger denied the incident.

CONTINUED...

http://covertaction.org//content/view/178/75/

The above was written 28 years ago. In the last seven years, we seen domestic pro-war propaganda generated by the government and used to convince America to go to war -- an unnecessary, illegal and immoral war.

[barbtries]

14. find one we haven't seen:

http://www.rense.com/general37/char.htm
Dr. Lawrence Britt has examined the fascist regimes of Hitler (Germany), Mussolini (Italy), Franco (Spain), Suharto (Indonesia) and several Latin American regimes. Britt found 14 defining characteristics common to each:

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.

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.

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; liberals; communists; socialists, terrorists, etc.

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.

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. Divorce, abortion and homosexuality are suppressed and the state is represented as the ultimate guardian of the family institution.

6. Controlled Mass Media - Sometimes to 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.

7. Obsession with National Security - Fear is used as a motivational tool by the government over the masses.

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.

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.

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.

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 and letters is openly attacked.

12. 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.

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.

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.

i posted these on my blog a few years ago. still relevant imo

[seemslikeadream]

16. spelling nazis?

Just kidding but if you ever want some attention fake a spelling error they fall for it every time

Here's the ten steps


http://www.huffingtonpost.com/naomi-wolf/ten-steps-to-close-down-a_b_46695.html

1 Invoke a terrifying internal and external enemy


2 Create a gulag


3 Develop a thug caste


4 Set up an internal surveillance system

5 Harass citizens' groups


6 Engage in arbitrary detention and release


7 Target key individuals


8 Control the press


9 Dissent equals treason


10 Suspend the rule of law

[fascisthunter]

25. yup... all the above

[fascisthunter]

27. Corporations and Their Lobbysists Controlling our Government

and forcing us average tax paying Americans to bailout their corporate Wall Street criminals....

That is fascism... and not socialism

[BlueIris]

36. Restricted access to contraception. nt

[barbtries]

37. remember the primary debate

when a woman came on and asked obama why he didn't wear a flag pin?
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.