Fascism.

It’s a word that’s becoming more and more common in the political sandbox. I see it used by people on the left side of our political aisle, and by people on the right side of our political aisle.

Therein lies a problem: people cannot agree on what, exactly, “fascism” means. Some dub it a far-right ideology, and some deem it a cousin of socialism and communism, which would put it on the left. Definitions abound, often in some degree of conflict with each other, and as often as not, after reading them, I come away concluding that people are mostly applying the Potter Stewart standard:

I know it when I see it.

That said, there are some elements of fascism that are common across the range of users:

• It involves government force, usually of a dictatorial and “thuggish” form.
• It is identitarian.
• It is a Bad Thing.
• It is exclusively being perpetrated by the other side.

That last bullet, by the way, is the titular problem. The Left accuses the Right, and in particular Him-Who-Shall-No-Longer-Be-Named and his followers, of fascism. The Right accuses the Left, in particular the progressive/social-justice Left, of fascism. Both are correct after a fashion, and both are wrong after a fashion.

First, the wrong. Neither side of our scrum is behaving in an archetypically fascistic fashion. Each has elements common to the Big-F, but it remains that the actual functioning of our government, no matter who’s running it, doesn’t bear a whole lot of resemblance to the unfettered strong-man examples of history (and please don’t tell me that Him-Who-Shall-No-Longer-Be-Named held a candle to any of the 20th century’s true fascists). In short, “fascism” is a major exaggeration of reality, past, current, or probable.

Next, the correct. Both sides’ “fascism” includes an exclusive claim to the truth, a declaration that the other side (and only the other side) produces nothing but lies, an expectation of loyalty (to the leader(s), to their truths, and to the tribe), an animus to the opposition that transcends mere ideological difference and descends into personal hatred, and a lack of objection when coercion and force are used against that opposition. Both sides’ accusations of “fascism” levied at their opponents have an element of validity about them. And, both sides have devolved to tribal, identitarian expectations.

Then there’s the absurd. Scowling rage-loon John Brennan just put us on notice.

members of the Biden team … are now moving in laser like fashion to try to uncover … an unholy alliance frequently of religious extremists, authoritarians, fascists, bigots, racists, Nativists, even libertarians.

When libertarians are deemed to be in alliance with fascists, we’ve bordering on farce that’d be comic were it not so dangerous.

“Fascism” is being used as much as a bogeyman as it is a short-hand for disliked behaviors. Unlike “socialism,” which has undergone a deliberate, decades-long, and frighteningly effective re-branding, the Big-F is widely abhorred, in a manner that extends beyond the rational to the visceral. Branding a person, a group, or a movement “fascist” evokes a desire to shun in those who aren’t therein. It’s also a “fightin’ word,” in that it’s bound to elicit an emotional rejection by the accused.

While I have used the term many times on this blog, it’s always been within an economic context rather than the behavioral one that’s more commonly intended. History shows us that fascistic regimes differed from socialistic ones in that the former left ownership of business and industry in private hands, choosing instead to invoke strong government control. There are certain advantages (for the ruling class, that is) to this over socialism’s public ownership model, including easier scapegoating of the inevitable inefficiencies and failures, but the economics angle is an aside to today’s discussion.

The crux of the matter is that the term is always and exclusively about the other team, and that the accusers’ side contains none of the elements or behaviors assigned to the opposition. That latter bit is demonstrably false. Today, many on both the Left and the Right often seek some form of coercive behavior, as most recently evinced by the reactions to Google, Amazon, and Apple’s actions re Parler. On the Left we find demands that “false” (determined by them, of course) information or inciting (again, determined by them) commentary throttled, deplatformed, censored, etc, whether it be by government or private companies. On the Right we find demands that government ensure that private companies not censor information and commentary that they wish to transmit through those companies’ devices and software. In both cases, they are supporting statism, the only differences being flavor, fealty, and priorities.

This takes us to a conclusion: The true ideological divide is not between left and right (or Left and Right) as they are commonly understood in America. The divide is between the State and the individual, between coercion and liberty, between big government and small government. The argument about who’s the real fascist, about whether fascism is of the Left or of the Right, about whether Him-Who-Shall-No-Longer-Be-Named, Him-Who-Shall-No-Longer-Be-Named-ism, and the MAGA crowd are fascists, or about whether Antifa and BLM are fascists, is a distraction from this conclusion.

If you believe you need state coercion to get your desired outcome, no matter what side you’re on and no matter how bad you think the other side is on, you don’t “get” what liberty is about. And, if you’re still looking to claim the “fascism” label exclusively for you to use on the other team, first clean your own house.

• About the Author

About Peter Venetoklis

I am twice-retired, a former rocket engineer and a former small business owner. At the very least, it makes for interesting party conversation. I'm also a life-long libertarian, I engage in an expanse of entertainments, and I squabble for sport.

Nowadays, I spend a good bit of my time arguing politics and editing this website.

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