Rising fascism in the US

@Walter Hinteler,

I didn’t realize that Berlusconi was quite on par with Meloni.

One view:
https://www.euronews.com/amp/2022/09/26/five-key-takeaways-as-italy-makes-historic-lurch-to-the-far-right

Little pertinent excerpt:

2. Italy will have its most right-wing government since WWII

If exit polls are accurate, Italy's future government will consist of a coalition of the Meloni-led Brothers of Italy -- a descendant of the Italian Social Movement, a neo-fascist party -- as well as Matteo Salvini's Northern League, which has an anti-immigrant and populist platform, and Silvio Berlusconi's more moderate Go Italy (Forza Italia), whose politics align more with liberal conservatism.

1 Reply

@Lash,

Lash wrote:

I didn’t realize that Berlusconi was quite on par with Meloni.

Forza Italia will probably make the neo-fascist Meloni prime minister, at least that has been their plan for months.

A BBC-report from 9 years ago:
Berlusconi praises Mussolini on Holocaust Memorial Day.

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@Lash,

Lash wrote:

If exit polls are accurate, Italy's future government will consist of a coalition of the Meloni-led Brothers of Italy -- a descendant of the Italian Social Movement, a neo-fascist party -- as well as Matteo Salvini's Northern League, which has an anti-immigrant and populist platform, and Silvio Berlusconi's more moderate Go Italy (Forza Italia), whose politics align more with liberal conservatism.

The count is (almost) over.

1 Reply

@Walter Hinteler,

This is a disgusting representative proudly relating a story about walking up to a black couple who are eating a meal while wearing a mask and harassing them about the evils of abortions:

"But my point is, listen, I told them, I said, do you find it ironic that the very people who are telling you to wear this mask are the same people who go into the inner cities and slaughter the babies of blacks and Hispanics. Those are the same people telling you they care about you and to wear that mask."

1 Reply

@coluber2001,

coluber2001 wrote:

This is a disgusting representative proudly relating a story about walking up to a black couple who are eating a meal while wearing a mask and harassing them about the evils of abortions:

"But my point is, listen, I told them, I said, do you find it ironic that the very people who are telling you to wear this mask are the same people who go into the inner cities and slaughter the babies of blacks and Hispanics. Those are the same people telling you they care about you and to wear that mask."

[youtube] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DvI9XOkOFD4[/youtube]

Obviously, Coluber, you are trying to understand why some people do things that most reasonable people think to be scummy.

We know why.

It is the same reason why intelligent people normally do intelligent things and dumb people do dumb things.

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The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump

by Bandy Lee, M. D.
©2017

prologue:
P. 7

An important and relevant question that the public has been asking is this: is the man simply crazy, or is he crazy like a fox? Is he mentally compromised or simply vile? When he lies, does he know he is lying, or does he believe his own lies? When he makes wild accusations, is he truly paranoid, or is he consciously and cunningly trying to deflect attention from his misdeeds?

We believe that we can help answer these questions by emphasizing that the two propositions are not mutually exclusive. A man can be both evil and mentally compromised-- which is a more frightening proposition. Power not only corrupts but also magnifies existing psychopathologies, even as it creates new ones. Fostered by the flattery of underlings and the chants of crowds, a political leader's grandiosity may morph into grotesque delusions of grandeur. Sociopathic traits may be amplified as the leader discovers that he can violate the norms of civil society and even commit crimes with impunity. And the leader who rules through fear, lies, and betrayal may become increasingly isolated and paranoid, as the loyalty of even his closest confidants must forever be suspect.

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As students we heard over and over again that anyone born in this country could become president, and that idea was always associated with the cream rising to the top. We always assumed that the best and the brightest would rise to the top and govern the country.

We were naive. We thought we were exceptional, special. Throughout history it's usually been the sociopaths who rose to the top in politics but we were different because we had democracy and the people would never choose a sociopathic leader, and we would never vote against our own best interests. Though our candidates may not have always won, overall the winner always had the best interests of the country and the people in mind. They had different ways of going about it, but there was always a balance, eventually anyway, and the game may have gone one way or another, but the game was always played and adhered to within the guidelines of the Constitution.

Seventy four million people decided they're tired of democracy, and their candidate, sociopathic or not, can never lose.

1 Reply

@coluber2001,

coluber2001 wrote:

As students we heard over and over again that anyone born in this country could become president, and that idea was always associated with the cream rising to the top. We always assumed that the best and the brightest would rise to the top and govern the country.

We were naive. We thought we were exceptional, special. Throughout history it's usually been the sociopaths who rose to the top in politics but we were different because we had democracy and the people would never choose a sociopathic leader, and we would never vote against our own best interests. Though our candidates may not have always won, overall the winner always had the best interests of the country and the people in mind. They had different ways of going about it, but there was always a balance, eventually anyway, and the game may have gone one way or another, but the game was always played and adhered to within the guidelines of the Constitution.

Seventy four million people decided they're tired of democracy, and their candidate, sociopathic or not, can never lose.

True. Sadly true...but true, nonetheless.

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Certainly the topic of this thread is US-related.
But maybe it is interesting for one or the other to learn something about the current development of fascism in Germany (next to Italy the home country of modern fascism).

Embracing Extremism: The True Leader of Germany's Right Wing AfD

1 Reply

@Walter Hinteler,

Again something about European fascism, this time about Italy.

Next week marks the 100th anniversary of the so-called March on Rome and the seizure of power by the fascists under Mussolini on 27 October 1922.

At the same time, after the election victory of Giorgia Meloni and her party Fratelli d'Italia, the country is on the verge of having a government that will be more right-wing than at any time since the end of the Second World War. Meloni is expected to be given the mandate to form a cabinet this week and to be sworn in shortly afterwards.

Photos of fascist dictator Benito Mussolini in a government building in Rome have caused a stir and outrage in Italy. The Ministry of Economic Development (Mise) had hung pictures of all previous heads of departments for 90 years in its headquarters, Palazzo Piacentini.

Former minister Pierluigi Bersani took to Twitter today (Tuesday) to complain about being pictured next to Mussolini on a wall and demanded that the Mise remove his photo. The ministry responded, according to Ansa news agency and Adnkronos, that Mussolini's photo would be taken down to avoid controversy.

However, this was only the beginning. The Mise pointed out in its press release that a photo of Mussolini hung in the ancestral gallery of the heads of government in Palazzo Chigi - the seat of the Prime Minister. The country's largest trade union confederation (CGIL) called the incident "serious" and "pathetic".

On the other hand, right-wing Senate President Ignazio La Russa, who himself has a statue of the "Duce" among other fascist memorabilia in his living room, complained about the criticism and asked: "Are we doing Cancel Culture now too?" He recalled that a picture of Mussolini also hangs in the Ministry of Defence and that an obelisk in front of the Olympic Stadium in Rome still bears the inscription "Mussolini Dux" ("Mussolini Führer") in large letters.

1 Reply

@Walter Hinteler,

Mussolini photo to be removed from Italian ministry wall

Quote:

Removal of fascist dictator’s image leads to revelation that more hang in other government buildings

1 Reply

@Walter Hinteler,

I wonder if I’m the only person here who’s shocked as **** that picture was still hanging. Obv, I don’t know much about Italian mores re Il Duce.

1 Reply

@Lash,

The country has failed to come to terms with its dark past - the Duce still enjoys uncanny popularity.

1 Reply

https://images.dailykos.com/images/502335/story_image/demagogue.png?1517379804

Ironically, or not, Trump holds contempt for the very people who follow him asserting that, “I could stand in the middle of 5th Avenue and shoot somebody, and I wouldn’t lose any voters,”

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@Walter Hinteler,

Perhaps that has more to do with a rejection of EU immigration policies and the increasing authoritarian ,and somewhat socialistic social & economic policies that infect both Europe and America.

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https://able2know.org/topic/555216-447#post-7273508

Democrats censure progressives for letter to Biden, asking him to prioritize a peaceful solution to the Ukrainian war.

1 Reply

@Lash,

And, what would Biden or the US have to do with ending the war peacefully?

3 Replies

@roger,

Peaceful is not a word I would use for ending a war. It might end, but it's never really settled and there is so much death and destruction during the war it's never really forgotten.

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@roger,

Incentivize peace through diplomacy.
Agree not to pursue adding Ukraine and countries surrounding Russia to NATO.
Stop pressuring European countries to isolate Russia.

1 Reply

Rising fascism in the US

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