roachboy

well, comrades there are a couple problems with now the thread is set up. i almost put something up about this yesterday but figured that'd kill it. so i'll do it now.

on the fascism thing: the only reason this:

limbaugh-worthy non-definition was possible is that there is no working notion of fascism in the op. the problem with that is obvious (well, to me): there are 3 questions (at least)

1. political positions are relational. this is a sociological question--you can make a grid of the range of political options---but it's an analytic construction---you can map terms/labels onto the grid and you can use it to talk about relative ideological power--so if the apparatus particular to conservativeland and its willing resonating chamber in the amurican "freepress" has been able to shift the way folk label political position to the right significantly, it follows that the apparatus has ALOT of ideological power because all (or most) other groups define themselves in the same terms--even against the right. the point here is that the grid shifts.

personally, i think that the conservative media tactic (compulsion?) of projection has worked pretty well for them--you project qualities onto others to disable naming--if you disable naming, you disable orientation--and so and so a function emerges for this

sublimbaugh bit of nonsense.

2. if the grid that folk rely on to say what their positions are moves around, and if a term like "fascism" is--without speculating as to why--an element within that grid (as a term of abuse even) and you want to make it do something other than be a term of abuse within that grid, then you kinda have to say how you mean the term.

3. the op does offer a de facto definition--but it's limited and strange--it reduces fascism to illegal surveillance. how does that work?

the rhetorical effect of the move is evident enough (if you support this, you're a fascist)...but in a strange way.

so what to do?

__________________
a gramophone its corrugated trumpet silver handle
spinning dog. such faithfulness it hear

it make you sick.

-kamau brathwaite