> Leigh:
> Nothing.
fascism analogies do not help, especially because there are a lot of things that distinguish Bushism from fascism (not to mention Nazism). And there are a lof of people (like those my parents' age) who think they know what fascism was. And they'll tell you Bushism isn't it...
why not stick with the specifics of what Bushism entails -- and let people draw their own conclusions?
here are the top definitions that a web-search produces for the word "fascism" (from http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=lang_en&oi=defmore&q=define:Fascism):
# A social and political ideology with the primary guiding principle that the state or nation is the highest priority, rather than personal or individual freedoms. fcit.coedu.usf.edu/holocaust/resource/glossary.htm
# "A philosophy or system of government that is marked by stringent social and economic control, a strong, centralized government usually headed by a dictator, and often a policy of belligerent nationalism." (From The American Heritage Dictionary) www2.truman.edu/~marc/resources/terms.html
# The name comes from the Latin fasces – a bundle of rods with a projecting axe, which was the symbol of authority in ancient Rome. The term was applied by Mussolini to his movement after his rise to power in 1922. The Fascists were viciously anti-Communist and anti- liberal and, once in power, relied on an authoritarian state apparatus. They also used emotive slogans and old prejudices (for example, against the Jews) to bolster the leader's strongman appeal. Fascism had a direct influence on Hitler's Nazism. Find out more www.channel4.com/history/microsites/H/history/browse/glossary.html
# a philosophy or system of government that advocates or exercises a dictatorship of the extreme right, together with an ideology of belligerent nationalism : cidc.library.cornell.edu/dof/concepts.htm
# a totalitarian political system led by a single dictator who allows no opposition, promoting an aggressive nationalism and often racism.
I'm not saying that any of these definitions is _correct_. Rather, they reflect (and influence) the current popular consciousness of what fascism is. We have to realize that a lot of people do not see the current regime as fascist.
I think neo-liberalism (or Pinochetism) is a better term.
JD