[Paleopsych] Fourteen Defining Characteristics Of Fascism

[Christian Rauh]

If it came in a package, which version would you choose?
The original or the upside-down?

Christian

G. Reinhart-Waller wrote:
> For the sake of argument le us counter Dr. Britt's defining
> characteristics of fascist regimes. In turning his 14 points upside
> down, we then have the following characteristics of a non-fascist regime:
> 
> 1.  No nationalism....all members of a given country relate and pay
> homage to all other nations, most especially those their ancestors came
> from.
> 
> 2.  Place "human rights" above security.  If someone kills your brother,
> think of the murderer's rights before thinking of protecting your family.
> 
> 3.  Don't label anyone as the enemy....this only promotes
> scapegoat-ism.  View all as brothers and friends, even Islamic militants.
> 
> 4.  De-glamorize the military by cutting their funding.  The military
> serves no purpose, most especially for domestic problems.
> 
> 5.  Remove males and other fascists from public office and allow support
> for divorce, abortion and homosexuality to thrive.
> 
> 6.  Eliminate all controls of media....free speech must be supported
> even if it twists the facts.
> 
> 7.  Removes all traces of National Security....provide for a
> laissez-faire government in which soldiers and police become new rock
> stars because crime will automatically disappear.
> 
> 8.  Eliminate all forms of religion and replace with a scientific ideology.
> 
> 9.  Eliminate all corporations in favor of "mom and pop" businesses.
> 
> 10.  Support and promote Labor Unions.
> 
> 11.  Allow all artists and academics freedom of expression.  Applaud
> gourmet treats such as barbecued dead babies or artistic works such as
> crucifix in urine.  Never censure a professor since what he has to say
> is intellectually correct.
> 
> 12.  Provide no controls for crime which in turn eliminates any form of
> punishment.  Butterflies are free and so are humans.
> 
> 13.  Eliminate cronyism in government and academe....only strangers can
> attain high positions, especially those without any background.
> 
> 14.  Provide no security for elections.  Voting is a special treat
> available only to those with huge funds to buy their way into government.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Steve Hovland wrote:
> 
>> 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.
>>
>>
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>>  
>>
> 
> 
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