Are You Comfortable Saying Trump = Facism?

[GoLeft TV]

Donald Trump is STILL the Republican front runner, and we’re getting very, very close to the Iowa caucuses. What does Trump’s continued momentum mean for the Republican party? And what does it mean for the American people as a whole?

America’s Laywer, Mike Papantonio, discusses this with Thom Hartmann on RT’s The Big Picture.

[uhnope]

1. Yes I'm comfortable. But is Hartmann is comfortable with saying his paymaster Putin = Fascism?

Get off RT already Thom

[Ernest Partridge]

3. Please cite your evidence.

Putin a fascist? My friends in Russia would not agree.

Mind you, I don't approve of much of what Putin is doing in Russia. Nor do many Russians.

But a "fascist"? What specifically is it about Putin and his government that fits the definition of "Fascism"?

Please spell it out. Lacking specification and evidence, I will withhold judgment.

Just because the US corporate media says so, doesn't make it so. (Cf. Iraq).

Putin's primary "offense" (in his words): "The Americans don't want us to be their partners, they want us to be their vassals." He refuses to submit to the Neo-Cons' "global hegemony."

Didn't we fight our war of independence over sovereignty -- a refusal to be King George's "subjects"?

If Putin fails to defend Russia's sovereignty, he will surely be replaced, and probably by someone much worse.

[uhnope]

5. how impressive, you actually quote Putin as proof that Putin is A-OK

it makes me doubt you'll really listen to other evidence, but you did ask politely, so here goes.

Putin's authoritarian rule qualifies for fascism easily:
-the undermining of democracy in Russia
-the anti-gay laws and demonizing gays
-the beatings, killings and imprisonment of journalists
-the beatings, killings and imprisonment of liberals and opposition figures
-the dismantling of the independent media
-the "Nashi" Kremlin- & crony-sponsored Putin Youth who harass & beat Putin opponents & those resisting shakedowns
-the talk of "New Russia" as part Russia expanding by taking over other countries
-the neo-nazi gangs that terrorize gays, liberals, judges and journalists--and that has been tied to Putin's advisor
-Putin's theft of millions of rubles, starting with food aid money while St. Petersburg starved in the 1990s (not really a definition of fascism, put included for good measure.

This isn't my idea, BTW. For more evidence, see:
http://www.newsweek.com/vladimir-putin-fascist-325534

Check out the Hitler-Youth-like "Nashi" organization and tell me Putin's Russia isn't fascist:

[2naSalit]

2. Quite comfortable, thank you. nt

[jtuck004]

4. Sigh. The question should be what the people who vote for him think. If they run

screaming from the room at the mention of the word "socialism", think fascism is something from history, and that Evilhair is their great white hope, you have a serious educational issue.

It's not an academic question, because in our pull-tab economy, he could win.

[Iwillnevergiveup]

6. Yes, I'm comfortable

A lot of blame for this horrendous election season lays squarely at the feet of media.

K&R

[Kip Humphrey]

7. Fascism is an economic theory, effectively what we call corporatism today, and is reflected in TPP

under its corporate sovereignty provisions. Trump is adopting Nazi-like tactics and rhetoric, lacking only the brown shirts. There is an important distinction here and one should not conflate the two as doing so dilutes the term "fascism" at a time when global fascism is both real and on the verge of succeeding. Trump himself opposes the TPP and has no history of fascist sympathies. That said, he is the closest thing to a Nazi I have seen in contemporary American politics.

[MrScorpio]

8. Yes, I am

[zebonaut]

9. I call it the "Rise of the Turd Right"

[MrMickeysMom]

10. He IS fascism...

and his supporters are mindless drones of fascism... Sort of like Entertainment Tonight hosts...