Canadian Election 2006

[sparkmaster]

Admit it, he does have a point.

[DonPMitchell]

Bush was obviously just joking.  I'm not very happy with Bush's performance, but I think he's basically an emotionally stable good-old-boy.  Which is not the worst type of man to make leader.

Totalitarianism has never worked.  Historically, very defective narcissistic people end up in these positions (Pol Pot, Joe Stalin, Adolf Hitler), and they make poor decisions.  Societies that have strict hierarchies of control have great difficulty with excellence and innovaction.  One of the reasons that American/Anglo cultures have done so well is their tradition of individualism, and the ability of people to question their leadership -- not just on a political level, but in the workplace.  I know folks who work in China, for example -- huge problem there is that an organization is limited by how smart its boss is.  If the boss is an idiot, the whole department is lost, because it is unthinkable for anyone to correct his mistakes or challenges his position.  This was a also a disadvantage in Germany during WWII, not just from the inefficency and burocracy of fascism, but the whole tradition of class hierarchy, where nobody can question the opinion of Herr Professor Uber Doktor.  Even the Roman emperors were incompetant, and their fearfullness and focus on staying in power caused the end of Rome's expansion and prosperity, and a long slide from a warrior nation into a useless welfare state.

[SCEtoAUX]

Bush may have been joking, but often an innocent "joke" can unintentionally reveal more than intended.

Lawrence Britt did a study on the common characteristics of fascist societies, looking at life under Hitler, Mussolini, Franco, Pinochet, and Suharto, and was able to define 14 common threads shared by all. These 14 warning signs sound like a veritable checklist of US society under Bush. 

 

 

1. Powerful and Continuing Nationalism

      Fascist regimes tend to make constant use of patriotic mottos, slogans, symbols, songs, and other paraphernalia. Flags are seen everywhere, as are flag symbols on clothing and in public displays.
   
2. Disdain for the Recognition of Human Rights

      Because of fear of enemies and the need for security, the people in fascist regimes are persuaded that human rights can be ignored in certain cases because of "need." The people tend to look the other way or even approve of torture, summary executions, assassinations, long incarcerations of prisoners, etc.
 
3. Identification of Enemies/Scapegoats as a Unifying Cause

      The people are rallied into a unifying patriotic frenzy over the need to eliminate a perceived common threat or foe: racial, ethnic or religious minorities; liberals; communists; socialists, terrorists, etc.
   
4. Supremacy of the Military

      Even when there are widespread domestic problems, the military is given a disproportionate amount of government funding, and the domestic agenda is neglected. Soldiers and military service are glamorized.
   

5. Rampant Sexism

      The governments of fascist nations tend to be almost exclusively male-dominated. Under fascist regimes, traditional gender roles are made more rigid. Opposition to abortion is high, as is homophobia and anti-gay legislation and national policy.
   

6. Controlled Mass Media

      Sometimes the media is directly controlled by the government, but in other cases, the media is indirectly controlled by government regulation, or sympathetic media spokespeople and executives. Censorship, especially in war time, is very common.
   

7. Obsession with National Security

      Fear is used as a motivational tool by the government over the masses.
   

8. Religion and Government are Intertwined

      Governments in fascist nations tend to use the most common religion in the nation as a tool to manipulate public opinion. Religious rhetoric and terminology is common from government leaders, even when the major tenets of the religion are diametrically opposed to the government's policies or actions.
   

9. Corporate Power is Protected

      The industrial and business aristocracy of a fascist nation often are the ones who put the government leaders into power, creating a mutually beneficial business/government relationship and power elite.
 

10. Labor Power is Suppressed

      Because the organizing power of labor is the only real threat to a fascist government, labor unions are either eliminated entirely, or are severely suppressed.
 

11. Disdain for Intellectuals and the Arts

      Fascist nations tend to promote and tolerate open hostility to higher education, and academia. It is not uncommon for professors and other academics to be censored or even arrested. Free expression in the arts is openly attacked, and governments often refuse to fund the arts.
 

12. Obsession with Crime and Punishment

      Under fascist regimes, the police are given almost limitless power to enforce laws. The people are often willing to overlook police abuses and even forego civil liberties in the name of patriotism. There is often a national police force with virtually unlimited power in fascist nations.
 

13. Rampant Cronyism and Corruption

      Fascist regimes almost always are governed by groups of friends and associates who appoint each other to government positions and use governmental power and authority to protect their friends from accountability. It is not uncommon in fascist regimes for national resources and even treasures to be appropriated or even outright stolen by government leaders.
 

14. Fraudulent Elections

      Sometimes elections in fascist nations are a complete sham. Other times elections are manipulated by smear campaigns against or even assassination of opposition candidates, use of legislation to control voting numbers or political district boundaries, and manipulation of the media. Fascist nations also typically use their judiciaries to manipulate or control elections.

[Satanic Mechanic]

Bush may have been joking, but often an innocent "joke" can unintentionally reveal more than intended.

Lawrence Britt did a study on the common characteristics of fascist societies, looking at life under Hitler, Mussolini, Franco, Pinochet, and Suharto, and was able to define 14 common threads shared by all. These 14 warning signs sound like a veritable checklist of US society under Bush. 

Don't forget Bubba!  Clinton did a hell of lot more illegal things than W.  Apply that checklist to him too.

SM

[SCEtoAUX]

As far as Bubba Clinton goes, I never voted for him, and he certainly doesn't get a pass from me. Prior to the current occupant of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, Clinton was the single WORST president we ever had as far as civil liberties went. Particularly his various internet censorship attempts and his "I didn't inhale" prosecution of the Drug War (more marijuana arrests under Clinton than under Nixon, Reagan, and Bush Sr. COMBINED).

But look at the items on that list, and tell me that Clinton even comes CLOSE to Dubya on more than 1 or 2 of those indicators. I might give you the compliant media, and destruction of organized labor, but the religious influence, scapegoating, "security" scaremongering, militarism, cronyism, election fraud, and general anti-intellectualism are far and away Bush's playground.

[DonPMitchell]

Sadly, it's been a long time since we actually had a good president.

I'm not a fan of Bill Clinton for various reasons, not the least of which was the kangaroo trial of Microsoft, but then I have a bias in that regard.  Probably his one real success was welfare reform, but I expected a lot more from a man of his intelligence and potential.

[sparkmaster]

I liked James Polk.

[Ottawan]

Isn't it strange that a topic titled "Canadian Election 2006" has become a place to complain about American Presidents

Perhaps we really are taking over the world

[DonPMitchell]

We are way off topic.  Um, so who is the new leader of Canada?

[LunarOrbit]

Stephen Harper... he's already gotten himself into trouble by luring a Librel MP over to his party and by giving an unelected senator a major role in his cabinet (which means the senator can spend taxpayer's money without having to answer for it in the House of Commons).