On Feb 19, 2010, at 4:59 PM, Chip Berlet wrote:
> Yes, I am arguing that when anxiety and fear are what binds together a
> populist movement, it can oscilate among a variety of ideological
> positions from left to right, (sometimes at the same time in a
> contradictory fashion), but that when it consolidates to the right
> in a
> consistent way, it looks to a strong state to protect its percieved
> interests.
Were the Palmer raids fascist? Was it fascist when the Wilson admin prohibited The Nation from using the mail? Was McCarthyism fascist? Was Nixon's declaring a war on drugs fascist? How about FDR putting Japanese-Americans in concentration camps?
About 15 years ago, R. Emmett "Bob" Tyrell told me that the Republicans use their crazy base the same way the Dems use environmentalists, labor, and civil rights types - as an easily manipulable source of votes. Once in office, they govern in the interests of Wall Street and the Fortune 500.
Doug