The “Blame America First” crowd has spent the last few decades proclaiming that the USA is the root of all evil. The unconstructive criticism that continuously pours from their mouths and pens, parroted by the media without evaluation or analysis, is broadcast around the world and is believed. For if it wasn’t true, wouldn’t the media be correcting it?
And if they didn’t have America to blame for all of their problems, facing the fact they they (and their own countries) have a causal role in their difficulties might so shatter their victimhood personna that they might actually take responsibility for their own actions. Shocking.
I cannot believe John has bought into the successful propaganda campaign in the 1960’s that successfully pinned Nazism/Fascism as a “right” leaning ideology.
Like all totalitarian regimes of the 20th century, it was a product of the left.
NAZI = “National Socialism”
Why do you think the left campaigned so hard to make sure this was pinned as a “hard right” ideology? The socialism part kinda always stands out yes ya think?
EDIT: here is a link to a very excellent analysis on the whole matter of NAZI = LEFT
Daneric is right, of course. I was simply acknowledging the conventional “left/right” terminology when I made the observation about convergence. In truth, the convergence happened long ago, although it may not have been as openly acknowledged. I’ve sometimes said that if you look back to the 1930s and 1940s, you should think of Communists and Fascists as rival criminal gangs, like the Crips and the Bloods. A close student could probably come up with some differences between the Crips and the Bloods, but they would be of minor interest to anyone who encountered either of them in their native habitat. Likewise with Fascists and Communists.
I think the right-leaning blogosphere (and radio) should start a massive “pushback” on the topic of what Nazism actually was and dispel the myth that it was actually “far right”.
Maybe then the idiotic leftists will think twice before throwing around the Nazi = Rightwing theme
The link of Nazi to the fringe right in the 60’s likely had to do with the issue of race. The libertarians probably haven’t helped this with their triangle that indirectly associates conservative with fascism and liberal with communism, making their approach the logical third way for a free society.
I have always looked at it as:
- Fascism didn’t approve of people who looked/acted different
- Communism didn’t approve of people who thought different
The right today doesn’t approve of people who act illegally, which seems to be the same as act different in the mind of liberals. So they hang out the label of fascist.
One can definitely see the link of liberals with communism’s disapproval of people who think different. “Those bad, bad people at Fox who present ideas I don’t agree with”, or “those victimized volunteer military personnel who think war can be justified”.
I admire your intent Daneric. One would hope a “pushback” might have some effect--in fact some slight positive result might even accrue. But you hope for the installation of reason among the left and that requires not only a mind open to change coupled with a willingness to see alternatives but a level of intellect that seems largely absent among the large majority of these people. They already have ALL the answers and their belief structure, which is grounded firmly in victimhood and blame for whomever they view as a hated oppressor, cannot easily be shaken by verbage or argumentation offered by their opposition. Too many of our educational institutions create this phenomenon over many years--fine-tuning the details within very small minds. “Pushback” seems hardly the answer, except to win a very rare and numerically small number of converts. We are dealing with a war of fundamental ideological ideas, and wars of ideas when carried to the extremes looming before us too often become very messy, very violent, and very deadly real wars. I fear that is the human condition; one we have really never surmounted in all of our history. We like to believe we have progressed, but I, for one, am not particularly convinced.
These protests are expensive, no less. Petro for fire-bombs, paper, poster-board, silk screening and ink-prints, paint, floral weaving, color-themed tee-shirts, hired hecklers, oh my!! I’m not sure, but—isn’t that a 1200 thread-count sheet fluttering in the wind???
Extravagant little cusses, aren’t they?
Reminds me of the old saying: “When they’re trying to ride you out of town on a rail, get in front and make it look like a parade!”
I do wish that the dimwit protestors in this country (especially those that feel the need to take their clothes off) looked more like Brazilian chicks-
I appreciate and completely agree with your views that the left is incapable of reform excepting a few converts. My “pushback” would hopefully somewhat enlighten the squishy middle ignorant masses like the guy that sits right in front of me at my work. But then again, yes you are right it is a waste…
This is what happens when “thought disorders” become a political movement. There is no left or right about it. It can’t make sense or it couldn’t be what it is.
Daneric: The campaign to label the Nazis as “right” was instituted by the Communists in Germany in the 1920s in order to differentiate themselves from their Nazi opponents.
The easiest way to tell them apart is that the Nazis were German and the Communists were Russian, rhetorical differences at any one time are meaningless. In fact they both governed with terror and repression, and they both sought to create empires and destroy traditional “bourgeois” society.
All of the European fascist/communist/Nazi/etc. movements of the post WWI era in fact drank from the intellectual well of anarcho-syndicalism
anarcho-syndicalism
which had originated in France in the 19th century and whose intellectual fathers were:
Proudhon
and
Sorel.
Check out those links.
Just don’t expect the left to give up on one of its foundational myths.
I think the right-leaning blogosphere (and radio) should start a massive “pushback” on the topic of what Nazism actually was and dispel the myth that it was actually “far right”.
Maybe then the idiotic leftists will think twice before throwing around the Nazi = Rightwing theme
I think it was a convergence of the Euro and left and right… The left dropped the demand for things like state ownership but co-operated with the right because of their shared hatred of political and economic liberalism.
The real problem in ‘understanding it’, especially for Americans, is that you’ve been convinced your right wing and/or conservatives by the leftists… In the Euro political spectrum (the one we should use if talking about things like fascism), most of you are not right wing… Your liberals… The United States had a liberal revolution, not a right wing one. You support it. Euro right-wingers did not. Ergo, your liberals… Further confusing matters is that US socialists / left wingers… call themselves liberals… Socialists are not liberals in Europe… they’re totally different.. If anything, a doctrinaire Adam Smith quoting libertarian (in the US) is a good example what liberal means… in Europe…
All of the European fascist/communist/Nazi/etc. movements of the post WWI era in fact drank from the intellectual well of anarcho-syndicalism
anarcho-syndicalism
which had originated in France in the 19th century and whose intellectual fathers were:
Proudhon
and
Sorel.
Check out those links.
Just don’t expect the left to give up on one of its foundational myths.
Those are all valid connections but, there ALSO was once a powerful Euro right with its own alternative view on life. Those people (especially Sorel) are notable because they were leftists who shared enough with the right to appeal to the right (or, in Sorel’s case, even work with them). Fascist and national socialist movements were not only made up of anarcho-syndicalists… they also had euro right-wingers.. they made up the bulk of the members…
Again, I’ll just say, I think the error on our side is assuming we are right wing…
The errors on the left in this issue are first off that same error along with failing to realize the left did have a hand in fascism and national socialism. Leftist orthodoxy of the period regarded the right as vanquished by liberalism (i.e., irrelevant) and not the enemy (middle class types and capitalism was the real enemy). So, they shared a common enemy with the right (the liberals) and when some leftists noticed they shared other views they worked together… and created fascism… to overthrow the common enemy… The US, British, and yes… French style of government and social order… which, in Europe, is called political (i.e., representative democracy) and economic (i.e., free market) liberalism....
