Adrian Fontes, newly elected Arizona Secretary of State, used the word "fascist" many times last night on MSNBC to describe the MAGA "terrorists," a word he also used, to describe those who were intimidating honest, hardworking, election officials in many Arizona counties to resign. Their resignations cost the State years of experience. His office needed help, he said, to bolster the effort to counter the MAGA people. How to help? is my question.
Thank you another piece that rings so true, this history echoing again today seems so tragic.
The discussion of sham elections reminds me that the concept of controlled opposition seems so central to the strategies of these neofascist, predatory kleptocrats. Maintaining a false appearance of competence and fairness is central to cover for and to justify the hoarding of resources and power. They corrupt our Liberal democratic governance but seek to maintain the appearance everything is a-OK. Otherwise very few could publicly justify supporting this ugliness.
Thank goodness we’re not so far gone as Depression-era Italy. We still can demand free and fair elections, and as citizens must collectively assure this occurs every election. Cheers
Excellent work on this piece Ruth! The failure to recognize the faces of fascism by the dummied down denizens of this country is perplexing! I’m sharing this article with some of those peerless in vacuous idiocy, that have failed to understand what’s happening globally.
I think of Mussolini and other autocrats when I see our US homegrown efforts at voter suppression and gerrymandering. The contrast between the two photos is chilling. Thank you for this, Ruth.
The image of the Palazzo Braschi, Rome circa 1934 is nightmarish, something you'd imagine in a dystopian novel. Only this was real and what's brewing in the United States and other countries leaning into fascism is equally real.
The voting situation across the US is getting progressively worse with the GOP's denial of election results and increasingly restrictive voting regulations, all in the name of voting integrity. Which is actually a bid to restrict access, demoralize voters so only the 'right' people go to the polls and/or only the 'right' votes are counted.
It's going to be a continuous slog to push against the MAGATs but push we must while highlighting the excesses we're already seeing in Florida, Texas, etc. with book bans (which are really idea/history bans), the retooling of educational facilities to weed out 'renegade' teachers and librarians and the continuous propaganda that generates and feeds the disinformation and outrage machine.
Time is running out to expose the leaders, backers, donors of the movement for what they are: fascists, Christian Nationalists, anti-democratic ideologues and bigots, no different from what's existed before, merely wrapped this time in the American flag.
I'm glad Adrian Fontes used the word fascist. Republicans will howl, of course, but the time has passed for being timid or polite. MAGA leaders are arsonists hoping to burn the country to the ground. If they can't get their way, they're quite willing to use violence. January 6th was a dark preview.
Which is why as a pro-democracy coalition, we must fight now and into the foreseeable future. We fight with our voices, our votes, our interactions with others. Some people will be more active than others but we all need to engage, do what we're capable of doing to push against the lies, the fabrications, the assault on reason.
"Autocrats who feel that an upcoming election may threaten their power won’t hesitate to game the competition by shutting down or buying out opposition media outlets and finding ways to silence rivals". RBG
Apropos and even more sinister, Trump brazenly had Louis Dejoy remove sorting machines from post offices all over the country to gum up the works just ahead of the 2020 election because he was afraid of mail in absentee voting. Which brings me to a question, I thought Biden was going to replace two or three board of governors, who would then vote Louis Dejoy out as Postmaster General?
That was a fabulous conversation - I subscribe to you youtube and listened last night. Very helpful to this blue girl from a red family. I plan to watch and listen again. Thank you!
In one of the most fascist tirades I have heard in the Trump era, Arizona state Senator Wendy Rogers shut down any discussion about election denial. A Democrat Senator was not even allowed to say the words "election denial" She was stopped in her tracks by Rogers. The GOP falsely claims that AZ is a bastion of voter fraud, to justify their changes to the voting system. The GOP has set the rules for speech in the AZ Senate and it doesn't include speech from the left. Anything that hurts their fascist sensibilities is rejected. It's authoritarianism, not democracy. It's not about the truth.
Great read, thanks. Also, great interview with Emma Vingeland on Majority Report/TYT. I think a good introduction with folks is the Nationalist approach, rather than American approach, at 1st. Folks seem less offended that way. It is a worldwide trend. Happy to see people like Emma, who represent a far left view, giving this subject the warranted exposure. Ralph Reed, Christian Coalition, gave a recent interview that indicates the GOP field in 24 is wide open for their support. He specifically mentioned Pence and Pompeo. Anybody interested In hearing Ruth, as well as other truth tellers, check out their name on UTube. Many interviews, presentations there. Ruth, watched the Italian clip you did for about 15 min. Couldn't understand much, but the message seemed to come thru. Thanks for getting the warning out.
What a horrible insulting ugly political "ad" that picture is. I imagine Dorothy and Toto standing on the side pulling away a curtain exposing "The Great Oz". I have never seen this and the whole thing looks so silly it's funny. No wonder he was ridiculed as "Big Head"
And thank you so much Prof for posting Jerad Yates Lucid session on Youtube.
Absolutely agree, Steve. The media has a lot to answer for in their breathless, ain't-this-fun coverage leading up to 2016 and beyond. It was oh, so funny and entertaining and the clickbait couldn't be beat.
I grew up in the Tri-State area; everyone in the region knew who and what Donald Trump was--an egomaniacal conman. I guarantee you, the NYT's has a massive archive on the man (long before his election) detailing his dubious financial dealings, serial lying, the stiffing of contractors, racism, sexual exploits and the overall crass, bully-boy persona. And yet Jeff Zucker, former CNN boss, agreed early on that yes, Trump probably was bad for the country but he was . . . great, great TV.
Right, too, that Trump, his acolytes, donors and enablers were permitted to spread their deceitful, damaging messages for far too long with little rebuttal. That will no doubt make the turn around harder, longer. Too many minds poisoned. Which makes the calling out and pushing back now all the more necessary.
The teaming of you and Jared Yates Sexton in your networking Zoom meetings simply could not be better. Your personalities and areas of expertise are SO complementary. Please consider doing more as a professional duo. Doing so amplifies both of you. Powerful!
It is very hard to see and read truth these days. I try to maintain equilibrium and carry on, but I am exhausted. This does NOT mean that I will succumb to the lies and poisonous hatred spewed forth by right wing media; but I feel I am constantly banging my head against the wall trying to figure out how to break through the constant propaganda millions are fed daily and hourly by a very widespread right wing media megaphone.
FOX, NEWSMAX, OANN, right wing talk radio, the Sinclair Network . . . and on and on! Their barrage is endless!
The voices of truth and reason still seem so small and weak. And yet . . . What is there to do but continue to do our best to build and support the truthtellers and help get their voices heard more broadly.
Thank you, Ruth, for your voice! We need it so badly!
Adrian Fontes, newly elected Arizona Secretary of State, used the word "fascist" many times last night on MSNBC to describe the MAGA "terrorists," a word he also used, to describe those who were intimidating honest, hardworking, election officials in many Arizona counties to resign. Their resignations cost the State years of experience. His office needed help, he said, to bolster the effort to counter the MAGA people. How to help? is my question.
Thank you another piece that rings so true, this history echoing again today seems so tragic.
The discussion of sham elections reminds me that the concept of controlled opposition seems so central to the strategies of these neofascist, predatory kleptocrats. Maintaining a false appearance of competence and fairness is central to cover for and to justify the hoarding of resources and power. They corrupt our Liberal democratic governance but seek to maintain the appearance everything is a-OK. Otherwise very few could publicly justify supporting this ugliness.
Thank goodness we’re not so far gone as Depression-era Italy. We still can demand free and fair elections, and as citizens must collectively assure this occurs every election. Cheers
YIKES!
Excellent work on this piece Ruth! The failure to recognize the faces of fascism by the dummied down denizens of this country is perplexing! I’m sharing this article with some of those peerless in vacuous idiocy, that have failed to understand what’s happening globally.
I think of Mussolini and other autocrats when I see our US homegrown efforts at voter suppression and gerrymandering. The contrast between the two photos is chilling. Thank you for this, Ruth.
The image of the Palazzo Braschi, Rome circa 1934 is nightmarish, something you'd imagine in a dystopian novel. Only this was real and what's brewing in the United States and other countries leaning into fascism is equally real.
The voting situation across the US is getting progressively worse with the GOP's denial of election results and increasingly restrictive voting regulations, all in the name of voting integrity. Which is actually a bid to restrict access, demoralize voters so only the 'right' people go to the polls and/or only the 'right' votes are counted.
It's going to be a continuous slog to push against the MAGATs but push we must while highlighting the excesses we're already seeing in Florida, Texas, etc. with book bans (which are really idea/history bans), the retooling of educational facilities to weed out 'renegade' teachers and librarians and the continuous propaganda that generates and feeds the disinformation and outrage machine.
Time is running out to expose the leaders, backers, donors of the movement for what they are: fascists, Christian Nationalists, anti-democratic ideologues and bigots, no different from what's existed before, merely wrapped this time in the American flag.
I'm glad Adrian Fontes used the word fascist. Republicans will howl, of course, but the time has passed for being timid or polite. MAGA leaders are arsonists hoping to burn the country to the ground. If they can't get their way, they're quite willing to use violence. January 6th was a dark preview.
Which is why as a pro-democracy coalition, we must fight now and into the foreseeable future. We fight with our voices, our votes, our interactions with others. Some people will be more active than others but we all need to engage, do what we're capable of doing to push against the lies, the fabrications, the assault on reason.
We fight while we still can.
"Autocrats who feel that an upcoming election may threaten their power won’t hesitate to game the competition by shutting down or buying out opposition media outlets and finding ways to silence rivals". RBG
Apropos and even more sinister, Trump brazenly had Louis Dejoy remove sorting machines from post offices all over the country to gum up the works just ahead of the 2020 election because he was afraid of mail in absentee voting. Which brings me to a question, I thought Biden was going to replace two or three board of governors, who would then vote Louis Dejoy out as Postmaster General?
That was a fabulous conversation - I subscribe to you youtube and listened last night. Very helpful to this blue girl from a red family. I plan to watch and listen again. Thank you!
History is good. How might we learn from it? How might we take action?
In one of the most fascist tirades I have heard in the Trump era, Arizona state Senator Wendy Rogers shut down any discussion about election denial. A Democrat Senator was not even allowed to say the words "election denial" She was stopped in her tracks by Rogers. The GOP falsely claims that AZ is a bastion of voter fraud, to justify their changes to the voting system. The GOP has set the rules for speech in the AZ Senate and it doesn't include speech from the left. Anything that hurts their fascist sensibilities is rejected. It's authoritarianism, not democracy. It's not about the truth.
Great read, thanks. Also, great interview with Emma Vingeland on Majority Report/TYT. I think a good introduction with folks is the Nationalist approach, rather than American approach, at 1st. Folks seem less offended that way. It is a worldwide trend. Happy to see people like Emma, who represent a far left view, giving this subject the warranted exposure. Ralph Reed, Christian Coalition, gave a recent interview that indicates the GOP field in 24 is wide open for their support. He specifically mentioned Pence and Pompeo. Anybody interested In hearing Ruth, as well as other truth tellers, check out their name on UTube. Many interviews, presentations there. Ruth, watched the Italian clip you did for about 15 min. Couldn't understand much, but the message seemed to come thru. Thanks for getting the warning out.
De Santis reminds me a great deal of Mussolini, but with a lot less charisma.
What a horrible insulting ugly political "ad" that picture is. I imagine Dorothy and Toto standing on the side pulling away a curtain exposing "The Great Oz". I have never seen this and the whole thing looks so silly it's funny. No wonder he was ridiculed as "Big Head"
And thank you so much Prof for posting Jerad Yates Lucid session on Youtube.
Absolutely agree, Steve. The media has a lot to answer for in their breathless, ain't-this-fun coverage leading up to 2016 and beyond. It was oh, so funny and entertaining and the clickbait couldn't be beat.
I grew up in the Tri-State area; everyone in the region knew who and what Donald Trump was--an egomaniacal conman. I guarantee you, the NYT's has a massive archive on the man (long before his election) detailing his dubious financial dealings, serial lying, the stiffing of contractors, racism, sexual exploits and the overall crass, bully-boy persona. And yet Jeff Zucker, former CNN boss, agreed early on that yes, Trump probably was bad for the country but he was . . . great, great TV.
Right, too, that Trump, his acolytes, donors and enablers were permitted to spread their deceitful, damaging messages for far too long with little rebuttal. That will no doubt make the turn around harder, longer. Too many minds poisoned. Which makes the calling out and pushing back now all the more necessary.
We're at war, one we cannot afford to lose.
The teaming of you and Jared Yates Sexton in your networking Zoom meetings simply could not be better. Your personalities and areas of expertise are SO complementary. Please consider doing more as a professional duo. Doing so amplifies both of you. Powerful!
It is very hard to see and read truth these days. I try to maintain equilibrium and carry on, but I am exhausted. This does NOT mean that I will succumb to the lies and poisonous hatred spewed forth by right wing media; but I feel I am constantly banging my head against the wall trying to figure out how to break through the constant propaganda millions are fed daily and hourly by a very widespread right wing media megaphone.
FOX, NEWSMAX, OANN, right wing talk radio, the Sinclair Network . . . and on and on! Their barrage is endless!
The voices of truth and reason still seem so small and weak. And yet . . . What is there to do but continue to do our best to build and support the truthtellers and help get their voices heard more broadly.
Thank you, Ruth, for your voice! We need it so badly!