Against logic there is no armor like ignorance

My short and simple message is VOTE!

(Oh, and keep reading!)

An analysis of seven fascist regimes by scholar and secular humanist Laurence Britt reveals fourteen common patterns of national behavior. Do some of these look familiar to you?

1. Powerful and continuing expressions of nationalism.
2. Disdain for the importance of human rights.
3. Identification of enemies/scapegoats as a unifying cause.
4. The supremacy of the military/avid militarism.
5. Rampant sexism.
6. A controlled mass media.
7. Obsession with national security.
8. Religion and ruling elite tied together.
9. Power of corporations protected.
10. Power of labor suppressed or eliminated.
11. Disdain and suppression of intellectuals and the arts.
12. Obsession with crime and punishment.
13. Rampant cronyism and corruption.
14. Fraudulent elections.

Source: http://www.secularhumanism.org/index.php?section=library&page=britt_23_2

Chip Berlet of Political Research Associates thinks that Britt’s thesis is a “a ripoff from a much better article by Umberto Eco” which can be found here.

Whether or not Britt “crafted a description of fascism that only highlights those points that will support the thesis” as Berlet purports, most of his points are still frightening reminders of the status quo in the US.