Fascism 101 (part 2: a closer look)

I read  As We Go Marching by John T. Flynn many years ago along with several other book on the topic of fascism. Flynn was an expert writing at the time of the rise of the fascists. He also wrote with the style of the journalist that he was and the book is very readable.

Flynn was a progressive journalist who wrote a number of best-selling books in the 1920s. After the "New Deal" he changed into what might be best described as "old right". He fought FDR's domestic plans and his plans to take America to war. John Flynn was a leader of the America First movement of that time that opposed the foreign policy of Roosevelt.   Flynn told us where fascism always leads; to militarism and war as the stimulus-spending economic agenda demands.

Flynn wrote:

"One of the most baffling phenomena of fascism is the almost incredible collaboration between men of the extreme Right and the extreme Left in its creation. The explanation lies at this point. Both Right and Left joined in this urge for regulation. The motives, the arguments, and the forms of expression were different but all drove in the same direction. And this was that the economic system must be controlled in its essential functions and this control must be exercised by the producing groups."

Flynn told us that "the right" and "the left" would never agree on who, exactly, the producer group is. No surprises there. The left says it is the laborers that are the producers while the right says it is the business owners. The political compromise was to cartelize both groups!  This government control of both groups came with the willing acceptance of both groups. Workers and businesses, under fascism, are to cooperate under government supervision to build a mighty nation. 


Under fascism, national greatness becomes a top priority. The government is to make "us" great as a collective, even as any individual becomes as expendable as a borg. But, this program has achieved far better political success than old-fashioned socialism since fascism doesn’t nationalize private property as socialism does.  There is no push to equalize income levels and there is plenty of room left to give the illusion of personal freedom. (within limits, of course)


Next we look at the components of fascism.