Definitions of "fascism" could easily fill a library. The great Marxist theorist Antonio Gramsci alone spilt tanker-loads of ink on the project of defining fascism.
In the interest of defining our terms we'll jury-rig an abridged definition right here and now; Fascism is what you're left with when the military-industrial complex of a nation-state dominates the levers of policy-making. There you go; short and sweet.
There is no more a perfect example of a fascist state in today's world than the state of Israel. But wait, is that not the "only democracy in the Middle East?" Sure, but that's got nothing to do with anything. Hitler was democratically elected too.
In Israel, the "security" of the state trumps all other considerations. Never more so than with the new more-rightist-than-ever Likud coalition government.
The security of the state is paramount. Anyone who questions Likud policies is a traitor. All criticism of the government is anti-Semitism. All government policy is designed to further marginalize the Palestinians, thereby guaranteeing instability in perpetuity. Instability equals insecurity, therefore we need a massively over-funded military machine, which is massively profitable for the usual war-profiteers, who are then able to fund their war-mongering Knesset pets to create more insecurity and more military spending ad infinitum.
Under the Harper gang Canada has been jockeying to become the single most slavishly devoted cheer-leader of the fascist Likud regime. And with considerable success!
What occupation?
What illegal settlements?
What apartheid?
What war crimes in Gaza?
The Alliance Church crowd around Big Steve is wilfully blind to everything that is so obvious to most of the world, and was obvious even to previous Canadian governments, both Liberal and Conservative.
Instead, we get FM Baird's embarrassing Toady Tour of Israel.
Big Steve's speech to the half-empty Knesset.
Our prime minister accepting a "World Statesman of the Year" award from an extremist Israeli lobby.
And on it goes, and now it has come to this.
Canada intends to use its hate-crime laws and the odious police-state Bill C-51 to criminalize criticism of Likud policy, no matter how racist and genocidal.
If you criticize the policies of the fascist mob that holds the reins in the Knesset, you are guilty of hate speech.
You are an anti-Semite.
Nevermind that the most cogent critics of that fascist mob have always been Jews. Chomsky. Finkelstein. Uri Avnery. Canada's own Michael Neumann.
Within hours of the CBC story appearing, the Washington Post, hardly an anti-Semitic or anti-Israeli platform, had an opinion piece up slamming the Harperite position and labelling it "very troubling."
And while I don't like to toot my own horn, we had the same story right here months ago.
How does this rabid cheer-leading for the most overtly fascist state in the Western world impact the popularity of the Harper gang?
Harper is leading in the polls a mere five months before the next federal election.
Eyes wide open...
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