More on the Fascism of Now

A major focus of this web log in recent weeks has been the way theologians and the church in Germany essentially supported Hitler and fascism. But up until very recently the likeness of Nazi Germany to the United States of today has been deemed virtually non-existent. Now, however, the realization that the current U.S. administration is essentially fascist is beginning to set in among thinking people in America, as the material presented below indicates.

I am grateful to Alma M. for alerting me to an article by author and radio host Thom Hartmann as introduced by Stephen Mitchell of the Church and Society Network: Advocating for Peace and Justice Committee of the Rocky Mountain Conference of the United Methodist Church. Here, in this article, is important history about fascism in Germany in the 1930's and '40's which already had its echo in American politics of that time. And here, too, is present-day history-in-the-making as the current American President, placed in office and supported largely by huge corporations, commands the Oval Office, albeit with waning influence. This waning influence represents the hope of the American people for a just society both here and abroad.

I present now an excerpt from the Hartmann article as well as a link to the original as posted on Common Dreams. I believe you will receive new information and new insight into the U.S. political scene of today.


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In the years since George W. Bush first used 9/11 [2001] as his own "Reichstag fire" to gut the Constitution and enhance the power and wealth of his corporate cronies, many across the political spectrum have accused him and his Republican support group of being fascists.
On the right, The John Birch Society's website editor recently opined of the Bush Administration's warrantless wiretap program: "This is to say that from the administration's perspective, the president is, in effect, our living constitution. This is, in a specific and unmistakable sense, fascist."
On the left, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., specifically indicts the Bush administration for fascistic behavior in his book Crimes Against Nature: How George W. Bush and his Corporate Pals Are Plundering the Country and Hijacking Our Democracy.

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. Most recently, George W. Bush said: "This nation is at war with Islamic fascists who will use any means to destroy those of us who love freedom, to hurt our nation."

In fact, the Islamic fundamentalists who apparently perpetrated 9/11 and other crimes in Spain and the United Kingdom are advocating a fundamentalist theocracy, not fascism....

[Edited for punctuation by TMP]

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For the entire article please visit:
< http://www.commondreams.org/views06/0828-23.htm >.