Antifa’s Proud History

It’s probable that fascism, in which a strongman takes control over a country and its people, has been around in one form another since the beginnings of organized society +/- 10,000 years ago.

Given the imperfect nature of the human animal, it’s possible that there is no permanent remedy; no way to prevent its return.

The main condition that precipitates fascism is economic suffering that undermines people’s confidence in democracy, and invites in a demagogue who plays to the anger and fear, promising to improve their miserable lives.  This is normally accomplished by demonizing a race that is perceived to lie even beneath those mired in this financial/social malaise. As President Lyndon B. Johnson once said, “If you can convince the lowest white man he’s better than the best colored man, he won’t notice you’re picking his pocket. Hell, give him somebody to look down on, and he’ll empty his pockets for you.”

In any case, the western world fought a long and terrible battle against the fascism that came to power in Europe in the 1930, one that was made that much harder by the fact that many American’s supported Hitler.  According to this article in the Washington Post: Surveys of U.S. public opinion from the 1930s are a startling reminder of just how widespread these attitudes became. As late as July 1942, a Gallup poll showed that 1 in 6 Americans thought Hitler was “doing the right thing” to the Jews. A 1940 poll found that nearly a fifth of Americans saw Jews as a national “menace” — more than any other group, including Germans. Almost a third anticipated “a widespread campaign against the Jews”—a campaign that 12 percent of Americans were willing to support.

“Trumpism” can best be described as a would-be-fascist power grab.  The president has a) identified terrifying internal (“radical leftists/socialists”) and external (immigrants) enemies, b) created prisons (on the southern border) where torture takes place, c) purged anyone potentially disloyal to him, discredited the free press, and subverted the rule of law.

At this point, however, it appears that Trump has failed, and that he’ll be unable to make the case that the coming landslide defeat he faces was the result of a rigged vote.  As such, he must be terrified.  He’s knows that things haven’t turned out too well for Benito Mussolini, Adolph Hitler and the other top Nazis, then later Nicolae Ceausescu, Saddam Hussein, Slobodan Milosevic, and Muammar Gadhafi.

Where Trump is unlikely to be sodomized with a bayonet, (as was Gadhafi), he’s extremely likely to face charges on money laundering, fraud, tax evasion, and obstruction of justice, perhaps negligent homicide and treason as well.

At this point, it appears that the November election will represent another victory for Antifa, but don’t, for a minute, think it will be its last challenge.