p2pnet - rss feed: Fascists of America, Unite!
p2p news / p2pnet: The U.S. government has files a Motion to Dismiss against AT&T for collaborating with the National Security Agency to tap the phones and emails of milions of Americans. USA Today reported last week that Verizon Communications Inc and BellSouth Corp have also been collabortating with NSA and have alledgedly opened up their networks for wholesale data mining by the intelligence organization.
Not surprisingly, the US government (executive branch) says that to continue the case, "may well be in the disclosure of state secrets".
The motion states, "Only the United States is in a position to protect against the disclosure of information over which it has asserted the state secrets privilege, and the United States is the only entity properly positioned to explain why continued litigation of the matter threatens the national security".
So while one branch of the U.S. government tells another branch of the U.S. government that they did nothing wrong, but can’t provide any proof (’cause the proof is secret), it may be worth considering an article, written by Dr Lawrence Britt .
Britt studied the fascist regimes of Hitler (Germany), Mussolini (Italy), Franco (Spain), Suharto (Indonesia), and Pinochet (Chile) and found that all of them shared fourteen characteristics:
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 maledominated. Under fascist regimes, traditional gender roles are made more rigid. Divorce, abortion and homo-sexuality are suppressed and the state is represented as the ultimate guardian of the family institution.
6. Controlled Mass Media - Sometimes to 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 and letters is openly attacked.
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.
(Replace "fascist regimes" with RIAA, MPAA, CRIA, RIAA, etc, and see how it reads).
A hearing to decide on the Motion to Dismiss is scheduled for June 21 and will be heard by Judge Vaughn Walker.
Alex H, p2pnet - Sydney, Australia
[Alex is an operations manager for an ATM (automatic teller machine) supplier and he specialises in infrastructure development and maintenance, and logistics. He’s also an[other] active member of the Shareaza community. He also runs the Tech Loves Art blog on which you’ll find previous p2pnet posts as well as other good stuff.]
May 15th, 2006 at 4:15 pm
‘Replace “fascist regimes” with RIAA, MPAA, CRIA, RIAA, etc, and see how it reads).”
hmmm….why did p2pnet get sued?????????
May 15th, 2006 at 4:50 pm
that, and the phrase you quoted is completely inapplicable to the MPAA, RIAA, CRIA
so alex, did you even read the 14 points before calling the RIAA facists? how are they sexist? nationalistic? what religion do they subscribe to? who are they torturing/killing/imprisoning? where are their armed forces?
had you used the bush administration as your example, your article might have a point, but you shoehorned in the RIAA, and you just look foolish
May 15th, 2006 at 6:46 pm
Perhaps the quoted phrase is a bit of a stretch. However, these “associations” are the copyright “enforcement” arms of large, heavily consolidated media corporations. While they may not fit the 14 points exactly on their own, IMHO their actions, particularly those of the RIAA have that unmistakable stench of Facisim.
“6. Controlled Mass Media - Sometimes to 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.”
May 15th, 2006 at 6:55 pm
your point is irrelevant, as the RIAA is not controlled by the government, nor is it a government entity in itself. it is a self governed trade group, and oddly enough, in the case of the MPAA, an arm of the labor union for actors (SAG) (which breaks another of the facist rules)
the fact that anyone can make a press release about absolutely anything, call it “news” and have it picked up by a dozen news outlets is a testament to this fact. there is no censorship. if anything, there are infinitely more conflicting opinions on any subject available on any subject 24/7 than there were just a few years ago
May 15th, 2006 at 7:12 pm
Prediction. There will be another cataclysmic terrorist attack on U.S. soil and Bush will declare marshall law. Under marshall law there will be no presidential election and the U.S. will become a police state. Far fetched you say? Do your research.
May 15th, 2006 at 9:52 pm
Congratulations, you just characterized every government ever inasmuch as these things are definitional to government per se.
May 15th, 2006 at 10:14 pm
Right…
May 16th, 2006 at 12:25 am
The Feds prevent the citizen from seeking redress and Vista opens a pipeline to your computer a (Not Spying Again) truck could be dirven through and you poor Vistaphile water carriers have no way of knowing the when and how of it. In fact you think its just too kewl, after all you have nothing to worry about since you haven’t been labeled a terrorist, at least not yet. Ben Franklin said it best, He who gives up liberty for security, deserves niether (quote approximate).
May 16th, 2006 at 12:25 am
The Feds prevent the citizen from seeking redress and Vista opens a pipeline to your computer a (Not Spying Again) truck could be dirven through and you poor Vistaphile water carriers have no way of knowing the when and how of it. In fact you think its just too kewl, after all you have nothing to worry about since you haven’t been labeled a terrorist, at least not yet. Ben Franklin said it best, He who gives up liberty for security, deserves niether (quote approximate).
May 16th, 2006 at 12:38 am
I’m sorry if you read that as me implying the RIAA, CRIA, etc are fascists.
Having read the common traits of fascist states I was simply inviting you to compare those organizations with fascist regimes and see if there are any similarities (are there?).
I’m sorry if it wasn’t blatantly obvious to you that there are MORE similarities between the fascist regimes listed and the current Bush administration than there are between the trade orgainzations listed.