Buzzflash: Living in the Weimar Republic of America

[demobabe]

A BUZZFLASH EDITORIAL

It's become a bit of a cliché to compare the rise of Cheney-Bush fascism to the ascendancy of the Third Reich, but the analogy does reveal a fundamental truth about power and politics.

Fascists or Bolsheviks (just look at the short-lived Alexander Kerensky republic in Russia that fell to the Soviets in 1917) proceed on a premise that liberals are ambivalent about asserting power -- and take full advantage of that weakness.

Bush may be a tin horn cowboy propped up by Rove and Cheney, but almost all of his power at this time is derived by the unprecedented unitary authority granted to him by a Democratic Congress. In short, an utterly failed president guilty of illegal activity, whose poll numbers are in the dust, is able to make enough Democrats fearful that they give him power when they should be aggressively taking it away from him.

In the narrative of "toughness" that Rove has created for Bush -- and that Cheney has backed up with Franco-like substance -- Bush emerges as a "strong" figure, ironically, only because the timid Democratic leadership is so weak.

We are in a moment of history, when the Democrats should be controlling the debate and have Bush, Cheney, Rove and Gonzales cornered. Instead of impeaching Gonzales, they -- due to a lack of party discipline -- just gave him the power to legally spy on Americans without any real accountability, even after he has confessed to at least two programs of illegal spying.

The right wing depends upon a fundamental weakness in the character of "liberals" to achieve its authoritarian goals...

Read the rest here: http://www.buzzflash.com/articles/editorials/153

[AuntPatsy]

1. Well instead of nit picking the dems I would like to find out exactly what they fear, it might

be to our benefit to find out. I don't see all fear as weakness, I just refuse to judge to harshly or quickly until I am more aware of all the facts on why not more is being done to stop this cabal.

[Manifestor_of_Light]

5. I'm assuming it's blackmail or bribery.

[C_U_L8R]

2. This should be posted inside every liberal noggin

"The right wing depends upon a fundamental weakness in the character of "liberals" to achieve its authoritarian goals..."

"The right wing depends upon a fundamental weakness in the character of "liberals" to achieve its authoritarian goals..."

"The right wing depends upon a fundamental weakness in the character of "liberals" to achieve its authoritarian goals..."

"The right wing depends upon a fundamental weakness in the character of "liberals" to achieve its authoritarian goals..."

"The right wing depends upon a fundamental weakness in the character of "liberals" to achieve its authoritarian goals..."


Now what are WE gonna do about THAT !

[David__77]

3. I little historical nit pick...

Neither the Weimar liberals nor the 1917 provisional government hesitated to use force against the political left, regardless of liberal or enlightened pretenses. Weimar got it's start by bloodily suppressing working class leaders after World War I. It was the right-wing tendencies in the Weimar republic that paved the way for Hitler fascism, its president the "democrat" Hindenburg who installed Hitler himself as chancellor.

[demobabe]

4. kick

:kick:

[treestar]

6. Great article

The comments are really good, too.