Economic fascism.

Shawn January 02, 2019 at 14:34 4275 views 8 comments

Everything seems to be about the economy nowadays. Presidents win or lose reelections here in America based on how well the economy is doing. We even employ "Economic hitmen" to sink and destroy companies or even nations we don't agree with or are insubordinate. This is something worrying, to value a person on how much income they can generate. Many marriages are made and maintained under such a premise. The US is perhaps the only country that displays traits of this stipulated term I call "economic fascism". Perhaps, the person that knows this the best; but, hasn't even used this word is Noam Chomsky. Chomsky often talks about how neo-liberalism is the common uniting force among the Democrats and Republicans.

What do you think about this stipulated term of 'economic fascism'? Do you think I'm jumping to conclusions or is there any merit to this idea?

Comments (8)

John Doe January 02, 2019 at 14:53 #242477 0 likes

Reply to Wallows There's merit to the idea for sure. You should check out Sheldon Wolin's notion of inverted totalitarianism. :up:

Shawn January 02, 2019 at 14:58 #242479 0 likes

Reply to John Doe

I have actually read his "Democracy Incorporated". The thing I noticed that Wolin struggles with is as if trying to describe how the water feels like to a fish. It's so normal that we don't fidget or cry out against it. Living the American dream I suppose.

John Doe January 02, 2019 at 15:01 #242482 0 likes

Reply to Wallows Cool! What did you make of the book? Do you have a significant difference in mind between 'economic fascism' and 'inverted totalitarianism'?

I think the most interesting bits of that book generally have to do with his analysis of events he was alive for (e.g. FDR administration) as well as the aims of the founders, constitution, Federalist Papers, etc.

Shawn January 02, 2019 at 15:13 #242486 0 likes

A great deal of the book is history, and reinterpreting it through a different lens. I find many of Wolin's comments as insightful and penetrating. Here's some random underlined text relevant to the topic that I found in my bookshelf:

Sheldon Wolin, Democracy Incorporated [...] pg. 47:The United States has become the showcase of how democracy can be managed without appearing to be suppressed. This has come about, not through a Leader's imposing his will or the state's forcibly eliminating opposition, but through certain developments, notably in the economy, that promoted integration, rationalization, concentrated wealth, and a faith that virtually any problem - from health care to political crisis, even faith itself - could be managed, that is, subjected to control, predictability, and cost-effectiveness in the delivery of the product.

Shawn January 02, 2019 at 15:18 #242489 0 likes

Some more:

Sheldon Wolin, Democracy Incorporated [...] pg. 59:Almost from the beginning of the Cold War the citizenry, supposedly the source of governmental power and authority as well as a participant, has been replaced by the "electorate," that is, by voters who acquire a political life at election time. During the intervals between elections, the political existence of the citizenry is relegated to a shadow-citizenship of virtual participation. Instead of participating in power, the virtual citizen is invited to have "opinion": measurable responses to questions predesigned to elicit them.

Shawn January 02, 2019 at 15:28 #242494 0 likes

Quoting John Doe

Do you have a significant difference in mind between 'economic fascism' and 'inverted totalitarianism'?

I guess, they're two sides of the same coin. One is a more active and dominant belief that hides under the guise of inverted totalitarianism. Hard to explain but I suppose you get the gist.

John Doe January 02, 2019 at 18:01 #242524 0 likes

Reply to Wallows I suppose that I see you raising a variety of separate concerns we might try to articulate, such as (1) the loss of public political spaces (our political space has been swallowed up by particularly dubious private corporate entities -- CNN, Fox News, Twitter, Reddit, etc.), (2) the economic mentality that permeates power structures (politicians and judges are now essentially brands being bought and sold on the political market), (3) the fracturing of political identities and ascendance of a style of politics which transforms politics into a competition between private interests for control over powerful institutions, and so forth.

ssu January 02, 2019 at 18:13 #242527 0 likes

Quoting Wallows

". Perhaps, the person that knows this the best; but, hasn't even used this word is Noam Chomsky.

Perhaps because it's not exactly fascism.

Fascism seems just to be a common swearword (just like marxism is for others), but fascist economy is a specific kind of economy.

The difference between the fascist model and the current American model is that in the fascist model the industry is subjugated to serve the nation and it's government, whereas in present day society it is more like corporations and the oligarchs, the industry has more power over the government. And globalism makes the nation states compete between themselves to get the multinational companies, not the other way around. Fascism would hate this and nationalsocialism would totally be against it.

Hence basically if you look for fascist economies, the most closest one is of course China.