It CAN Happen Here!!! ---Naomi Wolf Calls BUSH A FASCIST (The Guardian) & PROVIDES EVIDENCE

[kpete]

Fascist America, in 10 easy steps


From Hitler to Pinochet and beyond, history shows there are certain steps that any would-be dictator must take to destroy constitutional freedoms. And, argues Naomi Wolf, George Bush and his administration seem to be taking them all

Tuesday April 24, 2007
The Guardian

As difficult as this is to contemplate, it is clear, if you are willing to look, that each of these 10 steps has already been initiated today in the United States by the Bush administration.

Because Americans like me were born in freedom, we have a hard time even considering that it is possible for us to become as unfree - domestically - as many other nations. Because we no longer learn much about our rights or our system of government - the task of being aware of the constitution has been outsourced from citizens' ownership to being the domain of professionals such as lawyers and professors - we scarcely recognise the checks and balances that the founders put in place, even as they are being systematically dismantled. Because we don't learn much about European history, the setting up of a department of "homeland" security - remember who else was keen on the word "homeland" - didn't raise the alarm bells it might have.

It is my argument that, beneath our very noses, George Bush and his administration are using time-tested tactics to close down an open society. It is time for us to be willing to think the unthinkable - as the author and political journalist Joe Conason, has put it, that it can happen here. And that we are further along than we realise.

.............

"The accumulation of all powers, legislative, executive, and judiciary, in the same hands ... is the definition of tyranny," wrote James Madison. We still have the choice to stop going down this road; we can stand our ground and fight for our nation, and take up the banner the founders asked us to carry.


Arguments And EVIDENCE HERE:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,,2064157,00.html

[screembloodymurder]

1. Kicked.

So it's come down to this.

[hobbit709]

2. Seconded

[madokie]

3. Theres no doubt in my mind that its happening here

I was susprised we got through the raygun/bush1 years as well as we did. This crew of felons in the WH needs to be incarcerated and now.

[indepat]

13. Ten for ten ain't bad in any league: the fascist rulebook at work in Amurikkka

[The Wizard]

33. And since torture is OK

and legally approved by the AG............................get out the horse whip and cayenne.

[ccpup]

4. as frightening as this is

it should be sent to Keith at MSNBC and every Democratic politician we have. Maybe even some of the moderate repugs as well. And no one, looking back and honestly assessing where our Country was headed, will be able to say "who knew this would happen?".

[shance]

19. Just take a look at Blackwater trying to expand and build an 840 acre "training ground" in Californi

Training for WHAT?

[Raksha]

30. It says at the end of the article that Naomi Wolf has a new

book called "The End of America" coming out in September. I'm sure Keith Olbermann will have her on his show before then, but he needs a heads-up on her book if he hasn't had one already.

[WinkyDink]

5. Well, good for NW, in 2007. I've been saying this for years.

Including the obvious Nazi "Homeland".
Maybe Naomi could have mentioned that Bush has Fascism in his very blood: Prescott.

[tomp]

42. that "homeland" thing was just so obvious.

but they got away with it in plain sight. the american people...sigh...

[formercia]

6. K&R

We've been saying this for Years but it's good to see it in the M$M.

[Canuckistanian]

7. Excellent article

And of course, only published in a foreign newspaper.

[The Count]

8. Her bit on the propaganda is right on: steady stream of lies polluting the news well

"What you already have is a White House directing a stream of false information that is so relentless that it is increasingly hard to sort out truth from untruth. In a fascist system, it's not the lies that count but the muddying. When citizens can't tell real news from fake, they give up their demands for accountability bit by bit."

[colorado_ufo]

16. Fox News is everywhere.

Recently I have had several occasions to travel and visit airports, and Fox News is on TVs in terminals. One of the newest banks here in town has tiny TV sets by each of the driveup kiosks, and every one is turned to Fox News - and can't be changed. This is frightening, but it also makes it easy to see the mindset of those in charge of these facilities.

This is more than the continuation of disinformation; it is the beginning of brainwashing, in my opinion.

[Hubert Flottz]

9. Sent a link to my senator...

[Solly Mack]

10. Oh, is it safe to say now?

"beneath our very noses,"

I thought they were fairly obvious about it

[Horse with no Name]

11. I have to wonder how this will all play out in the history books

I just hope that my kids pass on to their kids that we tried to stop it--but were powerless.

[melody]

12. Political researchers have been saying it for ages and no one listened

The Bushes are Nazis. They are sociopathic fascists. It was always their intention to destroy us so the
global fascist dream could go forward.

[meldroc]

14. Those of you who still believe in the Second, get your guns now.

Get to your local gun stores, and make sure you have at least one pistol, one shotgun and one rifle (hell, make it an evil, baby killing "assault weapon".)

Pretty soon, you'll no longer be able to, and soon after that, you'll likely need them...

[Kurovski]

15. Impeach, indict, imprison.

K&R.

[bobbie]

17. Why do people keep saying "it can happen here"?

It happenED here decades ago.
November 22, 1963 to be precise.

They've had a strangle-hold on power since.

[aquart]

18. Slow, ain't she?

Years ago, I attended a Columbia School of Journalism event which included New York Times reporters, among them the sycophanic Frank Bruni who'd been slavering over George on the campaign trail. I went up to him during the reception and asked if he didn't think Bush and friends fit the dictionary definition of fascism.

"NO!" he squeaked, physically jumping BACKWARDS. "What's the dictionary definition of fascism?"

Told him to look it up.

[DixieBlue]

20. K&R.

Think this'll get any play over here?

Probably not.

[Uncle Joe]

21. Kicked and recommended

Thanks for the thread kpete

[devilgrrl]

22. but but but but liberals are going to take everybody's guns!!!!!!!

:sarcasm:

[krispos42]

23. No, the government is

Who will be in charge when this happens is not known.

In light of this article, do you really want ONLY the government to own guns?

[devilgrrl]

25. Wow, I see my comment went right over your head - even with a :sarcasm: tag.

I was making light of freepers and other wingnuts complaining that they thought liberals were going take away their freedoms when it's really the right that's doing it. I used the take away your guns bullshit to illustrate the point. Duh!

So what you're saying is, that if the government makes a turn toward the left - they too will limit freedom like the fascist right? Well then, I guess we'll have to wait and see on that won't we?

[bananarepublican]

47. Freepers don't care about their freedoms, they care about their guns!

Mind you, Herr Bush and his 'brown-shirts' may think twice about going 'all the way', knowing that the populace is well armed.

Nazi Germany caused a lot of trouble, but Nazi Germany did not have the wherewithall to destroy continents at the push of a button.

[Solon]

50. OK, I never understood this argument...

To the government, the populace is armed with BB guns, at best. Most of the populace, if they have the money, has access to semi-automatic weapons, some of which can be modified to to full automatic if you get the right kit or know what to do, mechanically. These are technically classified as "small arms". Contrast this with what the government has, such as gunships, jets, nuclear weapons, tanks, armored vehicles, etc. In the past, like 150 plus years ago, this argument would have held up, but nowadays, it doesn't, the populace simply doesn't have the access to the arms necessary to fight the government in an insurrection scenario, at least not without some help. The best the populace can hope for is a protracted guerrilla war, where most of the government's arsenal can't be used in force.

Even then, the government still has organization on its side, the only hope we could have is that the armed forces themselves split in half or so, at least then we would have actual soldiers on our side, in addition to a few states, specifically some big ones, on our side. Granted, this is just an example, I much prefer peaceful, democratic means, of changes in government.

ON EDIT: This isn't an endorsement of one side or the other in the gun debate, I declare myself neutral, and I'm only demolishing this ONE argument.

[bananarepublican]

54. Don't forget Herr Bush is bogged down in 'Eye-rack' and 'Stanistan'!

How long would WWII have lasted if the German people had openly opposed Hitler's regime? This would have been a war on three fronts!!! Given the 'internets' we are a lot better off, but only for the moment.

Do you think our military wiz-bangery is bringing unopposed freedom and democracy to Arab lands? The last time I looked the surge was not going too well.

Given the above, I don't consider the original argument has been demolished.

[suziedemocrat]

52. Freepers care about protecting their HATRED.

It's the one uniting force of all Freepers. Hate the losers collecting welfare that they pay for with their taxes. Hate bleeding heart libruls who are going to ruin Social Security and refuse to nuke the low-life Arabs and Persians. Hate the treeehuggers who won't let us get the unlimited oil in Alaska that would make gas around 95 cents a gallon. Hate, hate, hate. It's a powerful force that makes it ever so easy to manipulate them.

[bananarepublican]

55. Yes! This blind hatred makes them exceedingly ignorant. Don't they realize that...

... GHW and GW Bush have been looting the national treasury for decades!

$40B plus has been spent on 'national security' for how many years now? What is the real amount including the so called black budget? Isn't the national defence bill approaching half a trillion per annum now? Despite all this spending, and the PDB of 08/06/01... 911!!!

Bush's answer, clamp down on domestic freedoms (spying and all that), spend more on arms and 'intelligence'. It seems the only ones who benefitted from 911 was Halliburton, Blackwater, 'Big Oil', and other defence and security contractors (i.e. Bush, Cheney, Armitage, and all the parasitic rest). It's obvious these pricks need even more tax breaks!!!

Whilst the nation is being totally hoaxed, freepers want to have their guns sighted on 'libruls'. What morans!!

[Emillereid]

24. K & R!!!!

[november3rd]

26. thanks kpete

I linked to this on my blog, too, and included a link to your DU post. You have performed a great service to the country.

I wish we could all say as much today, or on every given day.

Yesterday, I had a vision.

Speak to the conscience of Americans.

We believe in America--we, the people.

The capitalist chiefs and the Christian right stormtroopers have their convictions. It's a free country.

But we--we, the people believe that all are endowed by our Creator with certain INALIENABLE rights.

Let's talk about it!

We can stand on principle.

[NastyDiaper]

27. Utter Incompetence protects us here.

It gave us Congress. Barely.

[Joe Chi Minh]

28. K & R

[Jcrowley]

29. Kick and Rec n/t

[Raksha]

31. K & R - a very important article. n/t

[mentalsolstice]

32. Kick n/t

[kerry-is-my-prez]

34. and the brits are called "understated" and Merkin's "brash"

the Guardian is one of the few newpapers to be at the forefront of truthtelling.

[ClayZ]

35. K and R

[BeHereNow]

36. And WHEN is the Congress going to remedy these points?

That is the question we should all be asking.
What good is pointing all of this out when we have
a complicit Congress?
BHN

[Morgana LaFey]

37. More links

This is such an urgently important subject, here are a few more very thought provoking links on fascism in America:

Fascism Anyone? by Laurence W. Britt
http://secularhumanism.org/index.php?section=library&page=britt_23_2

Wake Up and Smell the Fascism (examples of Britt's 14 points)
http://www.oldamericancentury.org/14pts.htm

When Democracy Failed - 2005; The Warnings of History
by Thom Hartmann
http://www.commondreams.org/views05/0222-22.htm

WAKE UP! - Strauss / Neocons and Terror PLUS dire warnings
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=1780890#


This isn't actually about fascism in America, but a fascinating and somewhat chilling account of how it gained a stranglehold in Nazi Germany -- how insidious it was. DEFINITE MUST READ for anyone who hasn't:

They Thought They Were Free
http://www.thirdreich.net/Thought_They_Were_Free.html
see also: Germany In 1933: The Easy Slide Into Fascism, Bernard Weiner , June 9, 2003
http://www.crisispapers.org/Editorials/germany-1933.htm

More re fascism in America:

The NASCAR Nazi: Bush is creating an un-American America
http://www.ocweekly.com/ink/04/38/lost-washburn.php

Nazification of America Phase 3
http://www.hermes-press.com/nazification_step3.htm

The Reichstag Fire and 9/11; Pretexts for Dictatorship and the Fourth Reich
Includes: Parallels between the Third Reich and the Bush Regime; 9/11 and the Reichstag Fire; What was the Reichstag Fire; Nazis in America; Poland 1939, Iraq 2003 http://www.oilempire.us/reichstag-fire.html

The Rise of the Fourth Reich
http://www.whatreallyhappened.com/reich.html

Bush's 9/11 Reichstag Fire by Harvey Wasserman
http://www.commondreams.org/views02/0913-03.htm

20 Comparisons by Barrie Zwicker
http://www.deceptiondollar.com/news/BloorRemarks911-03.htm

The Bush Plan for America: The Rise of an American National Security State
By Jennifer Van Bergen, 14 December 2003 http://www.ftaaimc.org/en/2003/12/3232.shtml

America, We Have a Problem
http://www.moderateindependent.com/v2i4dodd.htm

Fascism and America Today by Aldo Vidali
http://www.apj.us/20010312fascism.html

Roads to Fascism: Sixty Years Later by Roderick T. Long
http://www.lewrockwell.com/long/long7.html

This is the Fight of Our Lives by Bill Moyers
http://www.commondreams.org/views04/0616-09.htm

The New Fascism (Will Pitt)
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x162026

Published on Monday, July 19, 2004 by CommonDreams.org
The Ghost of Vice President Wallace Warns: "It Can Happen Here" by Thom Hartmann
http://www.commondreams.org/views04/0719-15.htm

Jim Macgregor: Neo-fascism in America
http://www.surfaceonline.org/essayamerica6.htm

E-book - It Can't Happen Here by Sinclair Lewis
http://etext.library.adelaide.edu.au/l/lewis/sinclair/happen/
Also read: The Iron Heel by Jack London and
"Der Fuhrer" by Konrad Heiden and "The Plague" by Camus
discussed here: http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=2344349#2344364

"Now and Then"- Part 1
by W. David Jenkins and Sara DeHart June 6, 2002
http://www.oldamericancentury.org/dave300019.htm
"Now and Then"- Part 2: The Propaganda Machine
by W. David Jenkins and Sara DeHart June 14, 2002
http://www.oldamericancentury.org/dave300020.htm
"Now and Then"- Part 3
Hitler's Playbook: Bush and the Abuse of Power
by W. David Jenkins III and Sara DeHart July 4, 2002
http://www.oldamericancentury.org/dave300021.htm

[WiseButAngrySara]

43. Morgana LaFey thank you so much for these lnks! ....n/t

[Morgana LaFey]

57. You are most welcome. nt

[lonestarnot]

38. Fascist pig!

[Arugula Latte]

39. Hey, New York Times. Why don't YOU print this?

:shrug:

[meldroc]

40. Kicking again.

So many people are asleep in this country while the fascists destroy what's left of our democracy.

[Conscious Confucius]

41. 11. Voter Fraud and Suppression

Forcibly eliminate all political opponents, and rig elections to gain office.

[TahitiNut]

48. ELECTION Fraud ... not "voter" fraud

:grr:

[WiseButAngrySara]

44. k(pete)nr and bookmarked! ....n/t

[bananarepublican]

45. An idea for Meatloaf... "Ten out ten ain't bad". n/t

[me b zola]

46. k&r

[pstans]

49. Naomi Klein Rocks

I love her book No Logo.

[TheUnspeakable]

51. k&r-Thanks!

[supernova]

53. Best thing I've read on DU

in a long while about this subject.

How do you reason with people who fundamentally, to their core, don't believe being reasonable is being responsible?

WE MUST WIN IN 2008!

[malaise]

56. Great article

but nothing will happen until the people act.

[TheUnspeakable]

58. morning kick