Fascism is Not Far Off

Occasionally in the media, a left-leaning commentator is ostracized for referring to our government's policies as "fascist." They are reprimanded as being completely off-base, if not a little insane. Such accusations appear outrageous because the United States obviously isn't anything close to the level of totalitarianism that Nazi Germany, for example, reached.

If someone is outright claiming that the United States government is tantamount to one that systematically rounded up and slaughtered millions of civilians, in the process suppressing all possible forms of free speech, then yeah, that's crazy talk. However, if one is truly familiar with the origin of the term "fascism" and they're utilizing its original connotations, then they might not be too far off when they deem the U.S. government as fascist.

The term has acquired several meanings over time and is used to universally label any repressive state. But it was innovated as a more specific label by World War 2-era Italian Dictator Benito Mussolini, who established his fascist state nearly a decade before Hitler rose to power.

The term itself is rooted from the Latin fasces, referring to rods bundled around an axe, which was a symbol of the Roman empire. Fascism, for Mussolini, was used just as a fancier term for corporatism. He defined fascism as a "merger of corporate and state interests."

If you don't think this has increasingly become the case over time in the United States, there should be many examples to persuade you. Consider the case of the race to replace Tom DeLay as Majority Leader in the House of Representatives earlier this year.

If you're not up to speed on the issue, DeLay resigned from the powerful position following accusations of corruption (which had been stalking him for a long time). Specifically, he was being indicted for charges of money laundering.

Party rules required "the Hammer," as DeLay has been nicknamed, to step down from his position. With him out of the picture, a race ensued to follow him and to attempt to restore dignity to his position for the "Good Old Party."