A history lesson playing out on too many American campuses
Col. Mike walker, USMC (retired)
All,
Calling people Nazis and fascists is popular sport of late. We should not take it lightly. A far-left American movement known as Antifa is now systematically attacking free speech (and especially conservative speech) across America’s university and college campuses.
The abbreviation “Antifa” -- like “Nazi” -- comes directly from interwar Germany: the Antifascist Action (Antifaschistische Aktion or Antifa) that was the German Communist Party’s equivalent of the Nationalist Socialist’s Brown Shirts/Storm Troopers (Sturmabteilung or SA). By 1930, the Nazi's and communists were the two largest German parties and worked TOGETHER to destroy democracy in Germany in preparation for the final showdown.
The communists waged divisive class warfare to establish one-party rule and state ownership of the economy. The Nazis and fascists sought to unify the nation through the persecution of “enemies of the state” while seeking one-party rule and governmental control over (not state ownership of) the economy.
The future, as the interwar radicals saw it, was an ultimate socialist struggle between communism and fascism. Americans have forgotten that.
By the way, fascism is not the opposite of communism. They are two peas from the same rotten socialist pod. The antithesis of radical socialism is libertarianism.
Here is some more history that we have forgotten to our own peril:
The two radical socialist movements (communism and nationalist socialism) of the 1920s and 1930s held in utter contempt liberal democracy. The communist and Nazi/fascist movements abhorred limited government, free market economies and personal liberties such as free speech. To them, all liberal democracies were failures and, to use Trotsky’s term, destined for the dustbin of history.
To understand just how alluring fascism was read this:
6 June 1919 Manifesto of the Italian Fascist Struggle
Italians! Here is the program of a genuinely Italian movement. It is revolutionary because it is anti-dogmatic, strongly innovative and against prejudice.
For the political problem:
We demand:
a) Universal suffrage polled on a regional basis, with proportional representation and voting and electoral office eligibility for women.
b) A minimum age for the voting electorate of 18 years; That for the office holders at 25 years.
c) The abolition of the Senate.
d) The convocation of a National Assembly for a three-years duration, for which its primary responsibility will be to form a constitution of the State.
e) The formation of a National Council of experts for labor, for industry, for transportation, for the public health, for communications, etc. Selections to be made from the collective professionals or of tradesmen with legislative powers, and elected directly to a General Commission with ministerial powers.
For the social problems:
We demand:
a) The quick enactment of a law of the State sanctions that an eight-hour workday for all workers.
b) A minimum wage.
c) The participation of workers' Representatives in the functions of industry commissions.
d) To show the same confidence in the labor unions (that evidence to be technically and morally worthy) as is given to industry executives or public servants.
e) The rapid and complete systemization of the railways and of all the transport industries.
f) A necessary modification of the insurance laws to invalidate the minimum retirement age; we propose to lower it from 65 to 55 years of age.
For the military problem:
We demand:
a) The institution of a national militia with a short period of service for training and exclusively defensive responsibilities.
b) The nationalization of all the arms and explosives factories.
c) A national policy intended to peacefully further the Italian national cultures in the world.
For the financial problem:
We demand:
a) A strong progressive tax on capital that will truly expropriate a portion of all wealth.
b) The seizure of all the possessions of the religious congregations and the abolition of all the bishoprics, which constitute an enormous liability on the Nation and on the privileges of the poor.
c) The revision of all military contracts and the seizure of 85 percent of the profits therein.
I may not be the sharpest mind but in my experience I have never met a Republican or a conservative who would ever sign on to a fascist agenda demanding control over both civil governance and the economy by an all-powerful national government. I would also go so far as to say that the only people I have ever met that endorse every aspect of the manifesto above are on the far-left.
In that sense, the future is back to the 1930s: Radical socialism still has two branches (fascism and communism) and both hold free-market, free speech, liberal democratic principles in utter contempt and will use violence to destroy them.
But a funny thing happened on the radical socialist road to a brave new world: Both nationalist socialism and communism failed badly and those plucky liberal democracies grew stronger and better than ever.
The ANTIFA failed then and will fail again -- even on America's college campuses.
Mike
