From the author of HOW FASCISM WORKS. I hope to God he's wrong.

[Grasswire2]

[link:http://

Link to tweet

?s=20|

[WA-03 Democrat]

1. Vote!

[brush]

2. Yep, what happens in the mid-terms determines if we...

have a democracy going forward (Dems maintain House and Senate), or republicans take them back and we continue our slide towards fascism.

[ColinC]

8. Almost entirely

If we cannot gain the seats needed to pass democracy saving legislation, we are in trouble. We also need to make sure we elect the right kinda of Democrats. It won't matter of the seats gained are in the sinema-manchin anti democracy caucus

[BigmanPigman]

3. I hate thinking this is true but

in my gut I have known for some time that he is right. I just hate thinking it, let alone saying or writing it but from some of the posts on DU recently I see I am not alone. I am a realist.

[Equomba]

4. I don't doubt this could happen.

Had you asked me five years ago I would have said "you're out of your mind! We have safeguards against such a thing". Unfortunately, the 'safeguards' are elected officials, and the truth is that enough of them are willing to remain silent to enable this to happen, and all for their own self-interest.

[Delphinus]

23. Welcome to DU!

Glad to have you here and to hear your cogent response.

[ZZenith]

5. Fuck that.

We beat the fascists in Germany last time and we’ll beat them here.

[ColinC]

7. We had a united front last time.

Technology among other things, have completely changed the playing field.

[ZZenith]

13. We have technology, that's right!

Thank God we have technology.

[malaise]

27. You also beat them in the 2020 elections

and the Jan 6 attempted coup

[ZZenith]

28. It's worth repeating!

And you had a hand in the 2020 victory, malaise, thankyouverymuch.

[malaise]

30. Don't know about that

[ZZenith]

31. Ha!

I know your tireless efforts to get people to do the right thing buoyed my spirits more than once.

We appreciate your clear-eyed perspective on U.S. politics.

[malaise]

33. Thanks

I'm glad to hear that.

[ColinC]

6. I think that is almost entirely dependent on how our next election goes.

Right now, I'm not too optimist

[Dorian Gray]

9. While I understand his concern

I also think his thread is so defeatist that it's problematic. (In that it's going to make people feel hopeless and want to give up.)

[betsuni]

10. My reaction to that thread was "Bummer" and I went back to my Netflix movie.

I agree with you.

[Hortensis]

11. Sure hope so too!!! But we're not a "QUASI democracy," not yet,

and that overblown misrepresentation undermines his credibility with me.

Remember that last fall we held national elections that were determined to be overall very free of election theft? No accident -- a lot of people worked hard and smart to stop whatever the wannabe fascists hoped to follow 2016 with.

[betsuni]

14. Quasi democracy, oligarchy, fascism, billionaires and corporations control everything,

capitalism dooms, nationalism, theocracy. Too dramatic, too much.

[Hortensis]

15. :) At least he stopped short of claiming "democracy is dead,"

a favorite dystopian wallow for those into that kind of thing.

[TreasonousBastard]

12. Over 2000 years ago Plato explained democracy's flaws, and...

no one has yet proven him wrong.

Historically, democracies have been fragile, and our Founders knew that. They did their best to devise a solid one.

But Franklin, when asked what sort of government the Constitution gave us replied "A republic, if you can keep it"

[Buckeyeblue]

16. I would say the billionaires have interesting bed fellows in Christian Fundamentalists

The irony is that Christian Fundamentalists (nationalist or whatever you want to call them) are not just intellectually deficient, they are, as a group, lazy. They didn't want to put in the work to get ahead. They want it handed to them. Their own limitations drive their dogma. It's interesting, really. And they love attention. Most of this anti-vaxx bullshit is about clamoring for attention.

If I was a billionaire I would think twice about this partnership.

[Elessar Zappa]

17. Only if we let it happen.

The fascists are a minority and CAN be defeated. Even the voter suppression can be overcome but it’ll take work and EVERY DEMOCRAT voting.

[kentuck]

18. I think it is possible...

As someone posted in another thread about the Mob and how they exhibit control.

Something has infected a big part of our country.

It has contaminated their hearts and minds.

In some ways, it is worse than Covid-19, because it attacks the soul.

It attacks the part of the brain that permits one to rationalize and to think through problems that they encounter. The part of the brain that connects to the heart and permits empathy and comfort. Some have become totally reliant on their emotions and incapable of using that part of their brain anymore. Some can no longer distinguish truth from fiction. (Some can be persuaded that 2+2 is not 4.)

As far as we know, it is not passed from human to human, except on an emotional level, through Party identification or a preferred means of propaganda. They have enemies and they want to "own" them. It is their reward. It makes them feel good because they believe they have been victimized in many ways.

The way they seek to regain total control is through the ballot box. If they can prevent enough voices from voting, they can re-establish their authoritarian ambitions.

The only way to defeat them is to prevent them from stopping the votes and assuring they do not corrupt the vote, as they have done since the last election. (Actually, they corrupted it before that time by saying that the election would be rigged if a "certain" candidate did not win.)

[Sympthsical]

19. Well, "Things will probably be ok," doesn't sell books

Texas is not the rest of the country. It's a part - kind of a sucky part at the moment - but there is also California, New York, etc.

The minority is becoming increasingly so, so we're getting this more desperate grip on power.

No one's saying the next decade or so won't be painful. But this, "For verily, the end of the world is nigh," is just desperate click bait.

Don't forget to buy his book!

[Oneironaut]

20. Half of the country wants Fascism.

I don’t believe we can continue this way. I genuinely believe these people wouldn’t care so long as they get to be designated “better” than minority groups.

We all know what’s going to happen. In 2022, every Republican is going to claim the election was stolen. This will happen in 2024 too. Republicans are stripping away voting rights, and that’s going yo be their priority.

I hope we survive.

[Chainfire]

21. I we don't survive it won't be because we weren't warned.

[Cosmocat]

25. I think its worse than that

IMO close to half want it, but another 20% or so don't care.

Really, the only people who see where this is headed and want to fight it are those of us who vote D.

Q

[sinkingfeeling]

22. I agree with him.

[GoCubsGo]

24. Yep, unfortunately, he's probably right.

The system is so rigged at this point that it's going to take extraordinary measures to beat it. And, looking at certain members of the Senate, I'm not sure the will for it is there.

[Wounded Bear]

32. We've been sliding in that direction for quite some time...

at least since Reagan, probably since Nixon since the repubs never got over how he was forced out of office for his crimes.

Actually removing a president by impeachment is virtually impossible given our current system of government, and the amount of damage that can be done in a mere 4 years cannot be corrected in 8 years of the next administration.

[FakeNoose]

34. When he posts this stuff, it sounds like he's rooting for the fascists

There aren't enough billionaires and neo-fascist Christian nationalists to OUTVOTE us normal people. And that's the truth. Is Jason Stanley denying the truth? Or maybe he's trying to convince us not to vote because it wouldn't make a difference?

Either way he makes me sick to my stomach.

[peggysue2]

35. The next two elections . . .

Will determine the fate of the Nation. 2022 and 2024 are critical junctures for our Republic. The question is simple across the board:

Do you believe in democracy? Or not?

Clearly, Republicans--the minority--have given up on democratic principles and are quite willing to install authoritarian regimes and fascist rule from here on out.

It's up to us now. All of us.