Excellent deconstruction of the term "Islamo-Fascism"

[A HERETIC I AM]

(snip)
Middle Eastern powers include pan-Arab socialist dictatorships (Syria), monarchies (Saudi Arabia), constitutional theocracies (Iran), and assorted fundamentalist movements. None are “fascist.” For three decades of political scientists, “fascism” is a phenomenon of industrialized societies and exhibits features alien to the Middle East.

Classical fascism was evident in inter-war Italy, Germany and Japan, and full-blown fascism exhibits three dimensions: economic, political and cultural.

1. Economic fascism is based a merger of big business and big government. Sometimes, a formal corporatism emerges; other times, the private sector (monopolies and oligopolies) simply pass over into the public sector (as in the US), capturing the state and using it to wage that most profitable of activities: war. This later scenario is what happened in the United States, and the incestuous relationship between Big Business and Big Government ushered in a new Gilded Age of cronyism and corruption. Benito Mussolini was clear: “Fascism should more appropriately be called Corporatism because it is a merger of State and corporate power.”

For the Middle East, the preconditions of mature capitalism (and thus fascism) simply do not exist.(snip)
Read the rest at;




http://www.virtualcitizens.com/bosworth_2006-08-14_neo_fascism.html

[librechik]

1. It's Rove's Law:apply your worst feature to your enemy, and make it stick

BushCo is Fascism central nowadays. So of course the insurgents, democrats, etc are fascists!

Hey! Look over there! Those guys are the fascists!

Rove learned all he needed in kindergarten. A "husky boy" like him must've had a cruel time indeed, judging by the vengeance he is wreaking on all us kids.

[Extend a Hand]

5. exactly

they have a history of attributing to enemies their own worst failings. Its so Owellian. It really creeps me out.

clean air= dirtier air
no child left behind = destroy public education
help america vote = help republicans supress votes
'patriot' act = trample the constitution

the list goes on and on
:cry:

[corkhead]

9. Yes, Another classic example of PROJECTION. when are the sheeple going to

reject this BS

[SlavesandBulldozers]

11. never

[meldroc]

2. K&R

[Trajan]

3. The primary, objectionable component of fascism

according to me .... is the usage of state police to control dissent, stifle free thought and punish detractors .... Monarchies, dictatorships and so called 'constititional theocracies' can certainly exercize such power ....

Furthermore: How can you claim that NO corporate entities exist in any of these states ? .... Isnt Old Man Bin Laden a well known construction magnate in Saudi Arabia ? ..... Isnt Aramco a LONG TERM Corporate entity combining Arabian and American elements ? .... SURELY corporatism isnt dead in Syria and Iran ... is it ? ....

Is there ZERO business activity ? .... ZERO concentrations of wealth ? .... ZERO corporations ? ....

I question your premises, and therefore your conclusions ...

Having said that : I find the term 'Islamofascist' to be an unfair construct, and simply a vile epithet hurled by the neocon types for their own edification ....

Nevertheless ... is is absurd to make hard distinctions between 'classic' fascism and the police state repression that certainly exists in large degrees in each of those states ....

[A HERETIC I AM]

4. Are your questions directed at me or the author?

I didnt write the piece, i just agree with it.

The term "Fascism" when applied to radical, Islamic fundamentalism is simply incorrect, in my judgement. That is the point.

[Trajan]

7. OK .....

What term suits you then ? ....

As I said ... I do not use the term 'Islamofascist' ... I think it is only used to stir up hatred .....

But that being said : YOU presented this piece ... SURELY you are prepared to defend its thrust .....

I would ask you this : Is torture somehow more pleasant in non-corporate-fascist states ? ... Anti-intellectual thought more agreeable ? .... crushing of dissent more desirable ? ....

EACH of those states do just that ..... so who cares if they arent 'classic' fascist states ? ... they ARE unforgivable violators of basic human rights ....

I have been condemning such states all my life, and now I must embrace them ? .... I am Atheist and I CERTAINLY speak my mind ..... I would be in prison in each of those states ..... so obviously, such 'clarifications' mean little to me ....

[deaniac21]

10. I concur, Sir.

[fjc]

6. It's not so much a deconstruction

as it is intended to reveal who the real facists are.

[bryant69]

8. Hey let's wade hip deep into this again

Fascism encompasses (at least) two components - a fascist government and fascist ideology. In much the same way that Libertarianism or Communism comprises both a set of general ideologies and an idea about how to run a state. While fascism as a governmental style is not prevelant in the middle east, there are some parallels between fascist ideology and radical islamic philosophy. And some differences too, naturally.

Was Hitler a Fascist before he took power? Was Mussolini?

I don't think that people who use the term islamo fascism have thought this through, necessarily; most presumably are just saying it because it sounds good to them (like us calling Bush a Nazi).

Bryant
Check it out --> http://politicalcomment.blogspot.com

[rman]

12. None are fascist? Google "Muslim Brotherhood"

Its history goes back to WW2 when Germany had an alliance with Saudi Arabia.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muslim_Brotherhood
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Muslim_Brotherhood_in_Egypt

Legalizing the Muslim Brotherhood | csmonitor.com
http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/1123/p08s02-comv.html

On edit:
This isn't to say that anything close to a significant number of Muslims support any kind of fascism.

[muriel_volestrangler]

17. From the Wikipedia articles

Banna's concept of nationalism was emphatically Islamic, and its long-term goal was to see all humanity united by the Muslim faith. However, the Society had no clear definition of the sort of political system it wished for. The idea of reviving the Islamic caliphate (which had been abolished by Kemal Atatürk in 1924) was sometimes mentioned in the Brotherhood's publications, but Banna was not in favour of it. Some critics have argued that the Society's ambitions amounted to a kind of fascism, but Banna explicitly rejected the aggressive militarism that rose to power in Germany and Italy in the 1930s, as well as all secular nationalisms (both Arab and European), and condemned racial differentiations as incompatible with Islam. The chief practical consequence of the Brotherhood's Islamic nationalism was an energetic campaign against colonialism in Egypt and other Islamic countries; this was one of the main reasons for the Society's popularity. (Lia 1998, 79-81, 167; Mitchell 1969, 37-42; Carré 1983, 36-43)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Muslim_Brotherhood_in_Egypt_%281928-1938%29

Its history goes back to 1928, not WW2, and it was in Egypt; as for Saudi Arabia in WW2:

Overview: Althought Saudi Arabia never actively participated in the conflict, it did sever diplomatic relations with Germany on 11/09/1939. In October of 1941, it did likewise with Japan. During the war, United States elevated its own influence in the country, especially after the petroleum Aramco consortium was granted a licence from the royal government that permitted it to extract petroleum on two-thirds of the kingdom's territory. In 1943 U.S. officially established diplomatic relations with Saudi Arabia and subsequently began construction of an air base there, in vicinity of Zahran (Dhahran). On 28/02/1945 the kingdom formally declared war on Germany and Japan. Saudi Arabia is a co-founding member of the League of Arab Countries (on 22/03/1945), and it was admitted to the U.N. on 24/10/1945.

http://members.tripod.com/~marcin_w/index-2.html

[Igel]

13. Some people require economic justice; for the people

that view things through the lens of economics, corporatism is the most important thing.

Others use other lenses.

The word 'fascism' had, originally, only one referent: Mussolini's Italy. It grew to include two. Which are the most important features is a guess. And dictating such definitions, rather than discussing them, is something I've only seen in the more dictatorial branches of academe.

I would go with Muslim fascism (sparing delicate Islamic sensitivities, lest the most ardent practioners decide to be peaceful and riot) or Islamic totalitarianism. Both work. But 'totalitarianism' is clumsy, and "Islamototalitarianists" borders on the ludicrous.

Your point is that you agree with the writer. Thank you for sharing your agreement. With that precious and valuable information I feel truly enlightened.

[A HERETIC I AM]

14. Snarky! Point well taken.

I'll just keep reading more and posting less, ere i mistakenly position myself such that I unintentionally "Enlighten" someone who so clearly does not require it.


Shitfire! I thought the piece was well written and made some salient points. Judging by some of the replies to this thread, i labored under a misapprehension. I'll accept your supercilious response in the spirit in which it was presented, arrogance included.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

15. So when did fascists convert to Islam?

Because they started out Christian.

[EVDebs]

16. When corporate interests (invisible) took control of the Kingdom...

""To more precisely assess the "personality" of the corporate "person," a checklist is employed, using actual diagnostic criteria of the World Health Organization and the DSM-IV, the standard diagnostic tool of psychiatrists and psychologists. The operational principles of the corporation give it a highly anti-social "personality": It is self-interested, inherently amoral, callous and deceitful; it breaches social and legal standards to get its way; it does not suffer from guilt, yet it can mimic the human qualities of empathy, caring and altruism. Four case studies, drawn from a universe of corporate activity, clearly demonstrate harm to workers, human health, animals and the biosphere. Concluding this point-by-point analysis, a disturbing diagnosis is delivered: the institutional embodiment of laissez-faire capitalism fully meets the diagnostic criteria of a "psychopath." ""

http://www.thecorporation.com/index.php?page_id=2

Aramco, Shell, Exxon, Chevron, etc. etc. etc.

They aren't even Christian. They're invisible entities much like the 'powers of the air' the Bible mentions in the end times Ephesians 2 : 2

http://www.bible.org/page.asp?page_id=1224

[alfredo]

18. Pass the article to your friends.