The 14 points of Fascism. Now YOU can identify fascists too!

[Still-alive]

Let’s face it folks, we live in increasingly trying times and as things get harder for many many people and divisions continue amongst has all so to will a continuing rise in Fascism.

Luckily we have history to thank for just how one might gauge what fascism is and who it’s proponents truly are. Because you’ll practically NEVER get these from a fascist themselves a few intellectuals and scholars have attempted to do just that.

So! I’d like to introduce you all to Umberto Eco’s handy dandy 14 points of Fascism taken from his famous essay from 1995 “Ur Fascism.” Eco was an Italian historian, philosopher, cultural critic, political and social commentator, and novelist born in 1930s fascist Italy. He importantly argues that it is not possible to organize these into a coherent system, but that "it is enough that one of them be present to allow fascism to coagulate around it"

Umberto Eco himself

so here they are:

1. "The Cult of Tradition"

characterized by cultural syncretism (the combination of different forms of belief or practice), even at the risk of internal contradiction. When all truth has already been revealed by Tradition, no new learning can occur, only further interpretation and refinement.

2. “The Rejection of modernism"

This views the rationalistic development of Western culture since the Enlightenment as a descent into depravity. Eco distinguishes this from a rejection of superficial technological advancement, as many fascist regimes cite their industrial potency as proof of the vitality of their system.

3. "The Cult of Action for Action's Sake"

This dictates that action is of value in itself, and should be taken without intellectual reflection. This, says Eco, is connected with anti-intellectualism and irrationalism, and often manifests in attacks on modern culture and science.

4. "Disagreement Is Treason"

Fascism devalues intellectual discourse and critical reasoning as barriers to action, as well as out of fear that such analysis will expose the contradictions embodied in a syncretistic faith.

5. "Fear of Difference"

fascism seeks to exploit and exacerbate, often in the form of racism or an appeal against foreigners and immigrants.

6. “Appeal to a Frustrated Middle Class"

fearing economic pressure from the demands and aspirations of lower social groups.

7. "Obsession with a Plot"

the hyping-up of an enemy threat. This often combines an appeal to xenophobia with a fear of disloyalty and sabotage from marginalized groups living within the society (such as the German elite's 'fear' of the 1930s Jewish populace's businesses and well-doings; see also anti-Semitism). Eco also cites Pat Robertson's book The New World Order as a prominent example of a plot obsession.

Also scape goating

8. Fascist societies rhetorically cast their enemies as "at the same time too strong and too weak."

On the one hand, fascists play up the power of certain disfavored elites to encourage in their followers a sense of grievance and humiliation. On the other hand, fascist leaders point to the decadence of those elites as proof of their ultimate feebleness in the face of an overwhelming popular will.

9. “Pacifism is Trafficking with the Enemy" because "Life is Permanent Warfare"

there must always be an enemy to fight. Both fascist Germany under Hitler and Italy under Mussolini worked first to organize and clean up their respective countries and then build the war machines that they later intended to and did use, despite Germany being under restrictions of the Versailles treaty to not build a military force. This principle leads to a fundamental contradiction within fascism: the incompatibility of ultimate triumph with perpetual war.

Looking at you military industrial complex!

10. "Contempt for the Weak"

which is uncomfortably married to a chauvinistic popular elitism, in which every member of society is superior to outsiders by virtue of belonging to the in-group. Eco sees in these attitudes the root of a deep tension in the fundamentally hierarchical structure of fascist polities, as they encourage leaders to despise their underlings, up to the ultimate Leader who holds the whole country in contempt for having allowed him to overtake it by force.

11. "Everybody is Educated to Become a Hero", which leads to the embrace of a cult of death

As Eco observes, "[t]he Ur-Fascist hero is impatient to die. In his impatience, he more frequently sends other people to death."

12. "Machismo"

which channels the difficult work of permanent war and heroism into the sexual sphere. Fascists thus hold "both disdain for women and intolerance and condemnation of nonstandard sexual habits, from chastity to homosexuality."

13. "Selective Populism"

The People, conceived monolithically, have a Common Will, distinct from and superior to the viewpoint of any individual. As no mass of people can ever be truly unanimous, the Leader holds himself out as the interpreter of the popular will (though truly he dictates it). Fascists use this concept to delegitimize democratic institutions they accuse of "no longer represent[ing] the Voice of the People."

14. "Newspeak"

Fascism employs and promotes an impoverished vocabulary in order to limit critical reasoning. The term originates from George Orwell’s 1984.

Seriously read 1984 if you haven’t!

so there you have it. Read these, memorize these, identify when they are being used, shun them when you can!

[MrOracle]

About half of these points are correct, and the other half are completely contradictory. Which likely explains why he didn't provide a definition of Fascism, nor did he make any effort to tie these points to Fascism and explain why Fascists believe those things. If he did, his failures of logic and reason would be much more apparent.

Instead, he is trying to redefine the term as he wishes, ignoring both the original doctrine as well as its real-world implementations.

This is why you cannot just take something someone wrote as truth. Merely writing something down and getting it published is NOT evidence of truth.

[Gespenster_division]

Facism sounds like ANTIFA to me.

[Still-alive]

Sounds more like Trump and his loyal followers. Also the proud boys

[Gespenster_division]

Nope Antifa.
1. Antifa which is 100 years old
2. Socialism is over 100 years old.
3. Again Antifa. Any new ideas or differing opinion is forcefully shut down.
4. Again anyone who disagrees is denied a platform to freely speak and is beaten into silence.
5. Antifa masked and dressed in black enforces uniformity and conformity.
6. Yeah antifa is all white middle class college students and graduates saving minorities by destroying minority neighborhoods.
7. Again Antifa. Currently their xenophobia extends to Russia and they hype up the enemy threat of Republicans, Conservatives and Christians.
8. Again the narrative of "White Privledge".
9. "Silence is white violence:
10. Anyone who hasn't gone to college hasn't an opinion that should be heard. ANTIFA members are elitist at the back of it all believing nonsense like minorities are too stupid and poor to have voter ID and poor white people are all racist trailer trash.
11. ANTIFA members believe they are heroes by beating up old white baby boomers.
12. ANTIFA doesn't believe women have their own minds whether to choose careers or a more traditional role or something in-between.
13. Applies to basically every left wing leader. ANTIFA will overlook their failings as a leader no matter how serious provided their politics align with the left so that's hillary's corruption and incompetence, bill Clinton's crimes, Obama Executing a 16 year old boy without trial, Biden's groping girls, Elizabeth Warren appropriating native American heritage to further her career, Harris's record as a prosecuter etc

[Still-alive]

Nope proud boys and trump supporters in general.

you've been so brainwashed into thinking antifa is a legitimate threat. no doubt from proud boy right wing propaganda.

[Gespenster_division]

The fact that antifa are actively preventing people's freedom of movement and assaulting those who have opposing political views shows they are a threat. Meanwhile proud boys are helping old ladies Cross the street.

[NightHawk99]

@Gespenster_division Number 4 technically says you and a lot of right-leaning folks abide by one of these 14 points of fascism.

[menina]

I can identify some of these points and there's a "politician" in the country where I live who has these characteristics.
Hopefully he will never be part of the government and if he does, I can always go back to my land where there is no fascism for sure.

[Gwenhwyfar]

I agree with this

[Still-alive]

Do you feel like you’ve met anyone in your life that encapsulates any of these points?

[Gwenhwyfar]

Thankfully no one personally

[Still-alive]

That’s good. If you do though this list is helpful to identify them.

[Gwenhwyfar]

Thanks

[Jackblue]

Feudalism, socialism, fascism it is all the same, the group is all that matters everyone who doesn't confirm is selfish and does not care about the glory of the group and for that they are the enemy. If anyone doesn't believe me then ask yourself why do minority women so often endure abuse from minority men, or why didn't Russians question Stalin. White women of course often endure abuse from white men I am not saying they don't, they endure it for the same reason. Some women of course are afraid, but many others would not come forward even if they could have their abuser put in jail. Until society recognizes that we are all but individuals people will continue to turn a blind eye to wrongdoing

[RedThread]

It's interesting that George Orwell was a democratic socialist and anarchist. Maybe not because those were the underground groups fighting fascism in Europe at the time.

"No gods, no masters" was a popular slogan for anarcho-socialists at the time.

Anyway it seems everyone has a different opinion of what constitutes fascism. I'd agree with some of those and disagree with others.

[Still-alive]

which ones do you disagree with?

this is probably the most well known maybe even most accepted guide on how to detect fascists in my opinion

[RedThread]

It's not that I'd disagree persay but I'd need more information with more examples on certain points.

[Still-alive]

well i mean you could pretty much watch any Trump speech and checklist most of these.

[Bel88]

I'm far more concerned about the rise of communism at the moment; it's a far greater threat.

[Still-alive]

disagree...