How Fascism Typically Takes Over a Nation by Rhetoric… 

Words. Speeches. News conferences. Rallies. Media. Money. And they all point in one direction: violence in service of the fascist leader.

THOM HARTMANN MAR 29

Analysts of fascism from Umberto Eco to Hannah Arendt to Timothy Snyder and Ruth Ben-Ghiat generally agree on a core set of characteristics of a fascist movement. It includes:

— A romantic idealization of a fictional past (“Make America Great Again”)

— Clear definition of an enemy within that is not quite human but an “other” (“vermin,” “rats,” “animals,” all phrases Trump has used just in past weeks to describe immigrants and employees of our criminal justice system)

— Vilification of the media (“fake news” or lugenpresse)

— Repeated attacks on minorities and immigrants as a rallying point for followers (shared hatred often binds people together)

— Disparagement of elections and the rule of law (because neither favors the fascist movement)

— Glorification of political violence and martyrdom (the January 6th “patriots” and Ashley Babbitt)

— Hostility to academia and science leading to the elevation of Joe Sixpack’s ability to “do his own research” (simple answers to complex questions or issues)

— Embrace of fundamentalist religion and the moral codes associated with it

— Rejection of the rights of women and members of the queer community as part of the celebration of toxic masculinity

— Constant lies, even about seemingly inconsequential matters (Hannah Arendt noted in 1978: “If everybody always lies to you, the consequence is not that you believe the lies, but rather that nobody believes anything any longer.”)

— Performative patriotism that replaces the true obligations of citizenship (like voting and staying informed) with jingoistic slogans, logos, and mass events: faux populism

— Collaboration with oligarchs while claiming to celebrate the average person