Defining Fascism

[John K. Taber]

OK, I stand corrected. I like Brad DeLong's definition
of fascism. I'll run with it pending further comments from
lbo-sters.

I also like Michael Perelman's comment.

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Brad DeLong:

I always thought that fascism had five important elements:

- --A strong belief that--through social darwinism--morality is
ultimately tied to blood and race, understood as descent and genetic
relationship.

- --A strong rejection of the classical "liberal" belief that
individuals have rights that any legitimate state is bound to respect.

- - -In its place, an assertion that individuals have duties to the
state, seen as the decision-making organ of the collectivity.

- --A strong belief that parliamentary democracy is not the way to
choose the leaders of the state: a combination of charismatic
expression and bureaucratic oligarchism is.

- - -A strong fear of Marxist communism, and an eagerness to use any
and all weapons--suspension of parliamentary democracy, mass
propaganda, rallies, street violence, and so forth--to combat it.


So I don't think calling the current Russian or the current Chinese
governmetn "fascist" is terribly useful. They have some of these
elements, but not all of them.


Michael Perelman:

Brad's definition of fascism was excellent, except the part below might
use some modification.  I think that he should add that the state has
the
responsibility of serving the people (Volk) as a whole.  Of course, no
fascist regimes did that any more than liberal regimes respect the
rights
of individuals when they are inconvenient.

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--
John K. Taber