Are we in deep... or what?

Day 12

It's late in the day Sunday, November 20th... Day 12.

I don't feel like writing; I don't really feel like doing much of anything. It's been one damn long 12 days. There are so many topics I'd like to write about... there's a list of at least 16 that are scratched on a notepad on my desk... if I'd had the time I'd have easily thrown 10 essays on this blog this week.

Instead I've spent the large part of each day this past week explaining fascism.

Not in the classroom as I've done for years, and not in any philosophic way over cocktail meatballs with some newly minted Ph.D. starving for party conversation other than "have you tried the meatballs? they're good.... really good..."

No, not like that... much more like to hundreds of panicked people who are suddenly waking up to the realization that something potentially horrible has happened because suddenly they're hearing things that are scaring the hell out of them...

"Do you think Donald Trump is Hitler?"  No, of course not: Trump is Trump, Hitler was Hitler and you are you... 

I bite my tongue; I try not to snark. These are really good people and they flatter me by coming to me with such an important question -- one that I fully understand really means "Are we really in deep shit?" Right about now, from where I'm sitting and what I'm reviewing and what I've read and heard these last 12 days... "Are we really in deep shit?" might be the smartest damn question I've ever heard. 

Are we really in deep shit?

I've decided to draft the description of fascism that I like to use... modified slightly to the events in America that I know are driving people to suddenly wish they knew a little more about 20th century German history.

Typically, historians refer to a list of 14 characteristics of fascism. Bear in mind, many of them can be a list of characteristics present in communism -- but there are distinct differences.

Let's just stick to fascism. As I said, historians itemize 14 characteristics. Over time, because I'm so comfortable teaching about fascism, I've commingled several of them and even added one element (cult of personality) and my list also includes some more expansive descriptions for comparative purposes.

All of the following elements are present in a fascist government:

1. NATIONALISM:   Nationalism is patriotism on steroids.  It is a pathological need for people to see themselves as a very exceptional group having features no other groups possess, in a country like none other. Nationalism is jingoistic, bellicose, flag-waving, strutting. It is inherently suspicious, xenophobic, and isolating -- all traits that breed fear of nations and other people. Nationalism turns the symbols of state and artifacts of culture and history, such as flags, anthems, and oaths, into sacred totems in a way that has always reminded me of the Catholic doctrine of transubstantiation where bread and wine are said to be transformed from mere symbols of Christ into the sacred body and blood Christ. Understand this and you begin to spot when a failure to stand to pledge an oath or respect a flag or listen to an anthem goes from normal annoyance (as being considered rude or disrespectful) to pathological (as in dangerously compulsory). With nationalism, shows of patriotism are not a choice; they are mandatory. 

2. SCAPEGOATING:  The classification of large groups who are made into the national enemy devolves naturally from nationalism and serves as a powerful unifying force. Scapegoating whips people into a frenzy intended to play on their fulminating resentments and fears; people are goaded by their leaders to believe these groups are a threat to them, their families, and the nation. Scapegoating demonizes large groups that can be grouped in one or more of the categories below (I've inserted contemporary examples as they relate to America):  

Racial and ethnic (blacks, Hispanics); religious (Jews, Muslims), immigrant (Syrians,  South Americans), ideological or privileged (socialists, liberals, even organized labor; the intelligentsia, the artist community), power groups (politicians, journalists, lawyers), groups that burden the collective welfare (the disabled, the poor) or who are seen as depraved and sinful (homosexual, transgender). One or more groups are seen as the causal agent of the nation’s suffering and a true threat to the survival of the nation.  (The Nazis did this brilliantly.)  

3.       SECURITY (Domestic and foreign): Threats to the nation are seen to come from within and without. It is believed (or so the people are made to believe and accept) there is a greater need for an expanded internal police state and more muscular military forces. Spending on social projects and services are reduced to increase funding for more powerful security. With this goes an almost fawning respect for the military and police who are seen as heroes defending the nation. Even the most absurd projects or policies might be embraced if they appear to guarantee security (building a wall, closing borders, travel restrictions, stricter tests for the entry of foreign nationals, the barring of large groups, stricter tests and racial or religious "purity tests,” and longer wait times for citizenship). New paramilitary forces will be developed (to increase border security and conduct dragnets for deportations). New systems of spying on citizens will be enacted and will be harsher than anything before them. National registries are created to “track” people. (Again we can look to the Third Reich as a shining example of heightened internal security and military aggression as a form of state necessity, as well as requirements to register with the state, carry papers, etc.) If any of this seems impossible in America, remember the Japanese-American internment camps during WWII. This was seen as justified to preserve national security in a time of crisis -- and when America took this terribly flawed step this country was truly not a fascist state. 

4.       OBSESSION WITH CRIME & PUNISHMENT: This is always on the classic list of 14 points but I see it bridging SECURITY (3 above) and CONTEMPT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS & CIVIL RIGHTS (5 below). The citizens acquiesce to ever more Draconian laws to help improve their safety and aggressively punish lawbreakers with disproportionately greater consequences than normal reason would otherwise justify. (I mention here “Stop and Frisk” and the punishment of women who have abortions as examples.) There is always an acceptance of torture and executions and long exiled imprisonments are imposed for ideological, political reasons. Execution is often meted out immediately after conviction. There is a complete absence of any transparency, review or appeal. Guilt by association is assumed and families may not be informed of arrests, trials or their outcomes. It is not uncommon for bodies to be buried in mass graves. Political adversaries often simply disappear but the state might also conduct long drawn out shaming campaigns, witch hunts, investigations, and sham trials as they are exceptionally effective tools for social and political control and if done right can really be great entertainment for the "Mad Max" crowd ("Lock her up!" "Lock her up!" and "Crooked Hillary" obviously come to mind.) Of course, all of this is also an element of both fascism and communism, or any other garden-variety form of totalitarianism. 

5.       CONTEMPT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS & CIVIL RIGHTS:  In fascism, the means always justify the ends (think: torture, deportations). Fascists convince the people they must sacrifice some of their civil rights to be more secure and that the usual international laws are bad for national security and must be set aside. Of course, all of this is part & parcel of 4 above. 

6.       SUPPRESSION OF THE PRESS and THE ARTS: A free and unfettered press is despised and scapegoated and seen as unpatriotic and subversive. Any artistic expression seen as critical of the regime is immediately called out and vilified. Laws are soon written forbidding dissent and crippling journalism, silencing the press and controlling all of the usual organs of critical analysis and reporting.  (The Nazis immediately seized all means of communication and mandated what kinds of art, music, and literature were acceptable.) 

7.       CONTROL AND/OR CREATION OF NEW FORMS OF MASS MEDIA: Censorship is strictly enforced. Newspapers and electronic media are subsumed or wholly recreated. They become propaganda organs for the government. Euphemistic speech and Double Speak become normative forms of communication. Truth is twisted; obfuscation, deceit and fraud become normal. It becomes impossible to discern fact from fiction. This is disorienting to people and necessary for the maintenance of fascism (or any kind of totalitarianism). (Oh the fun Goebbels might have had with television, cable and social media – and Sean Hannity!)

8.       RELIGION & GOVERNMENT BECOME ENTWINED: The Nazis did this quite brilliantly; they were so effective in convincing the German public the Fuhrer was a deeply religious man that even today this great lie tenaciously endures. In fact Hitler and prominent Nazi leaders had total contempt for religion. Goebbels understood the power of religion as a propaganda tool in a country of people who were historically religiously devout in one or the other of Germany's two most influential Christian churches, Catholic and Lutheran. Hitler even successfully fooled these churches (at least for awhile); the notorious Concordat with the Vatican is an example. Lutheran ministers and the Catholic Vatican originally saw the Nazis as friendly to their own values and goals. Both denominations were fighting "modernity" and embraced Nazism as being a powerful force able to restore people to "old fashioned German values." In time, the churches were fully Nazified and became propaganda arms of the state. 

Historic religious anti-Semitism may have given the Nazis a strong platform upon which to build but it was science and medicine that was the great undoing of the Jews. Once the Jews were defined as a "race" their fate was sealed. Throughout history's inquisitions and pogroms, conversion was always an option of relief. However, one cannot convert from one's race -- which takes us to 9 below.  

9.       RACE/SCIENCE & PUBLIC HEALTH: Fascism always has some racial or biologic “ideal” – broadly it can be merely Caucasian but more narrowly, as with the Nazis, it can become more racially or biologically specific as in the myth of an Aryan race (there is no such thing as an “Aryan” race). In German fascism, science and medicine were twisted by pseudo-scientific eugenic theories that made racial purity, sexual relations, reproduction and any sexual behaviors not deemed beneficial to the state a matter of state controlled "public health and hygiene" policies. The medical community became agents of the state and took control of every aspect of human relations; i.e., physicians decided who could marry, who was fit to breed, who should be sterilized, who must have an abortion, who could not have an abortion, and eventually who even should live or die. 

10.   HYPER-MASCULINIZATION & SEXISM: Fascism is always hyper-masculinized and women do not play key roles in leadership. In Germany, after being given the vote during the Weimar Republic, it was cancelled (and women didn’t seem to mind). Women and men had distinctly different spheres of influence (the woman's was private, the man's public). The wives of public officials were silent and models of Nazi ideals and matronly decorum; they mostly remained out of view.

Although there may be no strong similarities between sexual norms of conduct in the Germany of the 1930s and America of today, there remain interesting points to be considered:

In contemporary America, we should not fail to note the objectification of the female body and how it is "scored" on a scale of 1-10 -- this scoring is now out of the closet; Trump has proven it is acceptable for public men to speak this way. Assigning value according to a particular body type and look divides women into those who are desirable and those who are somehow defective (not totally unlike properties that can be weighted for their view and location). It links back to German fascism in that it subliminally sends messages about which women should breed and which should not. In fascism, mothers are more chosen for their strong racial characteristics than intelligence or other traits.

Through his strutting hyper-masculinity, we see a less-than-subtle suggestion that it is still a masculine prerogative that a man who is attracted to a woman can do as he wishes. Trump grabbing "pussy" is the modern equivalent of a man throwing a woman over his shoulder and taking her against her will. To a certain mind set, Trump is as successful in acquiring trophy wives as he appears to be in acquiring -- and selling off -- properties. This kind of uber-sexuality is also strongly suggestive of the hunter and conquerer -- evoking visceral images of a time when men were men -- and women definitely were not... they were there to please men and procreate. Men who transmit their hyper-masculinity and sexual prowess are in the tradition of the powerful tribal chief. In this world, brute force is prized over intellectualism (which is often seen as effete). 

At first blush, comparing Trump women -- whether in Trump's intimate circle or as in the much broader population of female supporters -- to images of docile, modestly dressed Nazi hausfrauen seems absurd. But is it? I was struck by Melania Trump's demure posture and care to appear the silent partner, more content to raise their son than mess with politics. She has famously said she never tells her husband what to do. This most likely greatly adds to her value as women in the envious eyes of most husbands (how totally perfect: a trophy wife with the added advantage that she never tells her husband what to do!).

What about highly intelligent, highly educated, cosmopolitan Ivanka? Everyone knows she is the brainy one and that she played a powerful role in her father's campaign. Yet during his first appearance with his family in an interview with Leslie Stahl after the election, when asked what her role might be in her father's administration Ivanka blushed shyly and said her job was to be her father's "daughter." It was brilliant stagecraft... and so very hausfrauen. The Trump women may be very modern but they know how to serve their leader.... sorry, I meant husband/father.  It's notable that today, just as it was in Nazi Germany, women supported this kind of blatant misogyny. The Nazis allowed a few women to have some prominent roles so long as those positions were not seen as equal to men or undermining male supremacy. It should be remembered that Hitler had very fierce female surrogates and defenders and Hitler's appeal to German women was powerful.

11.   KLEPTOCRACY:  A kleptocracy is a government where those in power steal or exploit natural resources; more bluntly it is government run by rapacious thieves. While Hitler seemed more immune to the need to steal everything that wasn’t locked down, his friends had no reservations whatsoever. Herman Goring had an insatiable lust for treasures but he wasn’t alone. The Nazis confiscated every national and private treasure available to them. Fascist leaders usually absorb wealth like a sponge grabs water. They are not only NOT business averse, they pave the way for their business friends to make more money for everyone, making them eager to reduce wages, destroy unions, and control labor. Slave labor? Sure, why not? They like that too. Deals are made not for the benefit of the nation or the state; they are negotiated for the benefit of the kleptocrats. Ever hear of kleptomania? Most kleptomaniacs steal baubles on the spur of the moment. True kleptocrats plunder wealthy nations. 

12.   CRONYISM/NEPOTISM/CORRUPTION: This naturally accompanies 11 above. Fascists brazenly reward themselves, their families and their cronies with whatever plunder can be confiscated while they are in control. They will privatize national treasures and resources, operating the entire bureaucracy very often on a mixed corporate/military model. Success and even survival is keyed to loyalty and cronyism; merit has nothing to do with political advancement. The hard disciplined German bureaucracy actually made the engines of Nazism succeed. With very rare exception, most high level Nazis were amazing mediocrities; they had no brilliant gifts as military men, diplomats, executives, or in other professional categories. The were largely party hacks and quacks who were dismissive of the professional soldier, competent executive, and professional statesmen.

One of the first things they did when they acquired the reins of government was purge the ranks of the competent... today we call it "draining the swamp." 

13.   FRAUDULENT ELECTIONS: Oh, fascists love elections – at least in the beginning when they are still trying to put over the con job. Sometimes, however, fascists lose elections and still come out on top.  Case in point: Hitler was actually defeated in the German election of 1932. A little manipulation… and he came in through the back-door. What can I say? Shit happens. 

Here’s one more thing: 

14.   I’ve never seen this last point in any list describing fascism but I always insert it: CULT OF PERSONALITY. Fascism is less ideological than cultish; most fascist regimes fail after the powerful leader is either deposed or dies because the movement is more about the leader than any pure ideology (differing from communism which is truly ideological and international vs cultish and nationalist).

Fascism is a top down movement led by an iconoclastic strong leader with great rhetorical skills able to incite the passions of the people. A good case of sociopathy, willingness to brazenly lie without any concern whatsoever for truth, and an ability to create a close knit utterly ruthless cohort of close friends is essential. Experience in public office is meaningless. Hitler never held a job in his life before he started percolating out of the scum and he certainly never held any elected office, not even Lower Slobovian Swine Inspector.

Compared to Hitler, Donald Trump is a veritable wonder of achievement. 

Perhaps the most essential trait a demagogue must possess is an utterly unshakable belief in his own greatness. He must see himself as a man of Destiny. So must his followers; anyone who doesn’t is in danger. Demagogues are notoriously thin-skinned. Naturally, they surround themselves with fawning sycophants. Occasionally, some Machiavellian genius will get into the inner circle; they don’t actually believe any of the crap about the cult leader’s perfection – but they know how to manipulate it to their advantage.  

Hitler’s very title der Fuhrer (the Leader) had messianic meaning and messiahs deserve blind obedience. They are appointed by a higher power to save a nation in dire need.

A mythic Hitler transcended any concepts of nationhood; all loyalty flowed directly to him and all power flowed from him down. Thus, there arose the Fuhrer Principle (Fuhrer Prinzip) where it could actually be said to the people – and accepted by them – that “Hitler is Germany and Germany is Hitler.” The law was what Hitler decreed it to me. Everything was what Hitler decreed it to be. Hitler lived in a bubble; he lived in his own skewed toxic reality and he succeeded because he sold it to others who bought it hook, line, and sinker.

With the right balance of strength and toxic character flaws, a fascist-leaning sociopath can turn the world upside down.

What does this have to do with this being Day 12?

 I don’t know. You tell me. Are we in deep shit, or what?