Asymmetric Books and Literature

Liberal Fascism: The Secret History of the American Left, From Mussolini to the Politics of Meaning by Jonah Goldberg

I'm breaking records getting through Jonah Goldberg's new book, Liberal Fascism. It's very good, especially as history; a little too colored by modern arguments, perhaps, but very good nonetheless. I'll have a more thorough review once I'm finished, but I'd like to offer one semi-pro criticism:

Jonah weakens the glue with which he attaches fascism to the left by missing the main reason the left hates what they consider fascism. Yes, in tactics, liberals with their statist solutions to perceived problems resemble fascists much more than conservatives who generally feel that suffering is relieved a little at a time and through individual virtue.

But, liberals don't hate Nazis for their progressive tax rates, mandatory kindergarten, or forced vegetarianism. The left hates Nazis because Nazis wanted to rid the world of "inferiors," the very people the left likes, and subjugate the non-preferred (gays, Jews [it's OK to hate Jews if you're a poor Palestinian, though], Gypsies, non-whites, etc) instead of offer them affirmative action.

The left also shuns Mussolini, with his glorification of ancient Rome, a "strong" society.

They don't mind Communists because Communists (Castro, Che, Chavez, Ho Chi, Lenin, Sean Penn et al.) supposedly fought for the underdog. In other words, had Hitler just exterminated Sam Walton, jocks, and cheerleaders, the left would be wearing T-shirts of Hitler in a beret. Had Mussolini been Maya, liberal educators would give East LA school children Mussolini coloring books.

To make my point, let's use Goldberg's own examples:

Like Nazis, MECHA and Afro groups spend valuable brain cycles pondering race, including concepts such as "whiteness." Both Nazis and MECHis distinguish whites from other races, but the left isn't concerned so much in thought as in who's thinking. Thus, disadvantaged, powerless (Remember, think like a leftist.) racists can think any foolish thing they desire while white people must show proper deference to the "colored."

In another chapter, Goldberg points out that it was Germany's working class who supported Hitler. That's true, but Hitler didn't promise them dominion over the German elites; he promised all Germans power over their junior humanity.

Pan's Labyrinth
(In Pan's labyrinth, summary execution is fine if you're killing fascists.)

Finally, Goldberg recounts how the left turned on Mussolini after Mussolini decided to enter WWI. Well, Mussolini traded the goal of every worker being equal for every Italian being equal or, worse, that Italy be more powerful than other nations like Ethiopia. Of course they'd change their minds.

In summary, the left hates those who suggest that people or societies aren't equal and loves those who think that they are. What people actually do is much less important.

Goldberg may address this issue later on, but if he doesn't, he'd have misunderstood part of the left aversion to fascism.