“What is fascism?” asked Bolshevik revolutionary and Marxist Leon Trotsky in a 1930-32 pamphlet on the subject.
“The name originated in Italy,” Trostsky wrote. “The fascist movement in Italy was a spontaneous movement of large masses, with new leaders from the rank and file. It is a plebian movement in origin, directed and financed by big capitalist powers. It issued forth from the petty bourgeoisie, the slum proletariat, and even to a certain extent from the proletarian masses; Mussolini, a former socialist, is a 'self-made: man arising from this movement.”
According to Merriam-Webster Online, the word derives from the Italian fascismo, from fascio – a bundle or group; from the Latin fascis -- bundle
According to Merriam-Webster, Fascism is a “political philosophy, movement, or regime (as that of the Fascisti) that exalts nation and often race above the individual and that stands for a centralized autocratic government headed by a dictatorial leader, severe economic and social regimentation, and forcible suppression of opposition.”
4 comments:
So by Trostsky's definition, Bush would be a fascist, given that he was financed by large donations (as all politicians in the US are) and originated from the plebian level, otherwise known as elected (as all politicians in the US are). That explains why the left sees him as such, if that is their only definition of fascism.
However, Bush and conservativism in general doesn't match Webster's definition.
Just trying to get a different discussion started, since I've often been accused of only commenting on the denominational threads. ;)
That's the problem. The definition comes from the definer. Look at what they are doing with the word Marriage!
The definition comes from the definer.
The best plain english definition of relativism!
PBall is a word-smith!
I agree, the definition comes from the definer, you can then define words to suit your means.
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