Ask Prof Wolff: Fascism, Keynesianism, and Military Spending

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A Patron of Democracy at Work asks: "As we see billions once more go to Ukraine, as we have seen trillions upon trillions go to wars since WWII, isn't it correct to say that Military-Keynesianism is fascism? Technocratic fascism? If so, why? And if not, why not? A Boeing factory in every state, not to mention other military contractors that pay off the coin-operated politicians signifies fascist to me."
This is Professor Richard Wolff's video response.
Submit your own question to be considered for a video response by Prof. Wolff on Patreon: / community .
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[@gr8macaw1]

I would have studied economics if prof Wolfe was my teacher. Another great post prof.

[@NoThatRyan]

Same

[@loyddussaultsr4181]

I'm 78 and as far as I'm concerned we are there when it comes to the corporations having an iron clad grip on our elected officials in both parties. Nothing passes that doesn't favor the corporations over the needs and wants of the people.

[@lefttoitall2982]

100% By its very definition: “Fascism should more properly be called corporatism because it is the merger of state and corporate power.” - Benito Mussolini

[@andreylebedenko1260]

Which is quite natural. If they will do otherwise capitals will simply flee the country. Nothing personal, just profit. They will move somewhere else leaving the country and people behind. And this is true power, which controls everything that follows. And in capitalist society -- everything follows. Those officials understand that better than anybody else.

[@Historia.Magistra.Vitae.]

@@lefttoitall2982 : Actually Musso lini never said that. Common misquote. Fas cism subjugated businesses under the direc tives set by the Sta te.

[@lefttoitall2982]

@@andreylebedenko1260 Natural only to a capitalist society. Not natural to a moral society. When "profit before people" is the "natural state of the socio-economic model," where homelessness, poverty, hunger, disease, etc., is the norm to enrich the few, it becomes very personal for the majority.

[@andreylebedenko1260]

@@lefttoitall2982 Well, this is how it has been since Adam Smith and his "The Wealth of Nations". You see, it is all about wealth. Not "The Moral of Nations", no. It was never meant to be anything but profit and wealth.

[@MrLouladakis]

Thank you dear professor I hope this evil passes soon it is unbearable!.

[@narancauk]

Hahahahahahaahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahhahaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

[@emhu2594]

False hope kills action.

[@pauljastrzebiec-milewski4410]

As always - BRILLIANT!!!

[@atendriyadasa6746]

HEADED TOWARD fascism?! Shit, we've been there since they killed JFK!

[@maestoso47]

Pre-fascism is also not bearable. Not sure when enough will be enough for the masses here in the USofA.

[@sdrc92126]

"Anyone looking for black shirts, mass parties, or men on horseback will miss the telltale clues of creeping fascism. In any First World country of advanced capitalism, the new fascism will be colored by national and cultural heritage, ethnic and religious composition, formal political structure, and geopolitical environment... In America, it would be supermodern and multi-ethnic-as American as Madison Avenue, executive luncheons, credit cards, and apple pie. It would be fascism with a smile. As a warning against its cosmetic facade, subtle manipulation, and velvet gloves, I call it friendly fascism. What scares me most is its subtle appeal. I am worried by those who fail to remember-or have never learned -that Big Business-Big Government partnerships, backed up by other elements, were the central facts behind the power structures of old fascism in the days of Mussolini, Hitler, and the Japanese empire builders.” -Czeslaw Milosz

[@dangerousdays2052]

Half of Americans actually want fascism. Yall are 1930s Germany right now.

[@tanujSE]

Thanks Professor Richard Wolff for such valuable information

[@marcc7743]

Merci pour votre travail.

[@deddalus01]

As usual, brilliant

[@user-wp8yx]

Bravo for taking on this issue. It needs to be talked about.

[@vlatkoteinovic101]

The roots of fascism can be found in European colonialism of Africa; concentration camps, mass killings etc. It is a bit insincere to talk about American fascism without mentioning its foreign policy. As far as the American corporate elite (who basically owns the state) can bribe an average American people will think that there is no fascism in USA. But how American troops treat indigenous people all around the world is something else. People could try to change the American political situation and immediately they would discover what fascism really is.

[@kwakkers68]

White Americans are rooted in European heritage. So perhaps it is little wonder its politics, and its crimes have been so repugnant. Following the chain links of history back, most, if not all of the world's woes point back to Europeans. Of course, there have been some great, ethical Europeans too. But I doubt if this is any balance to the numbers who Imperialism has killed, the vast numbers starved, impoverished, imprisoned, denied political agency. Of all the sick ****s who could have 'discovered' America, it would have to be the bloody Europeans! And we should perhaps have some nuance in our condemnation - some of the Europeans have been much worse than others - the English, the French, the Belgians, the Spanish, the Italians.. have been much worse than others. Mirrored today, by those nation-states which aid the Empire in its modern day crimes - e.g. Iraq, Syria, Yemen....

[@donklee3514]

Prof Wolff, I have to correct you on this. Keynesian economics suggests that government spending could be used to "flatten out the business cycle". Yes, it states that you can increase spending in bad times, but it also states that you should decrease spending in good times. What you just described is Milton Friedman's bastardized version; Reaganomics. Increase spending and keep increasing spending while decreasing social spending and infrastructure spending when necessary to perpetuate the rouge/grift. Reagan and his military industrial complex successfully keep pushing the duration of war profiteering out into the future. The problems with Reaganomics are numerous, but increasing the ability to finance perpetual wars is perhaps one of the biggest problems. Reaganomics used a combination of deficit spending and supply side economic theory to place the financial burden on the working class creating a slave class by indenturing our children and eventually great great great grand children. The victor gets to write history. What better way to deflect criticism than to blame Keynesian economics for Reaganomics. I think you got roped in by a leading question. Or should I say a misleading question. Keynesian economics gets blamed by the right for ALL government deficit spending. The way you are stating it is a half truth. The whole truth is that without decreasing spending during the booms we are not using Keynesian economic theory at all. Give Reaganomics credit where credit is due.

[@eye0807]

Thanks

[@politicallil7060]

Seems like we already there

[@newhorizonscdc8871]

Very clear!! TY🛵

[@haroldquesnel8275]

1. I receive your emails, and read and share them. 2. I set up 3 different FB groups where I share your videos. 3. I will order your books on Amazon next month. I would like to attend meetings, etc but I'm up here in Montreal.

[@ivansidorov840]

👍👍👍👍👍

[@publicutility]

Who said, " you can't fit a cigarette paper between government and business" The us wrote the manual of fascism.

[@andresamplonius315]

Seria interesante abordar las relaciones entre capitalismo, imperialismo y fascismo. Asi como refutar la falacia de neoliberales y "libertarios" que afirman que el nazismo era "socialismo". Un trabajo acerca del tema es el del belga Pauwels: "Hitler y los empresarios".

[@L98fiero]

The current system has nothing to do with democracy, search for 'Testing Theories of American Politics: Elites, Interest Groups, and Average Citizens', it's a study by Princeton university that shows the government in the US and I'd suggest most Western/capitalist countries is essentially the same. There are also videos that condense it and make it easier to understand like 'Study: Congress literally doesn’t care what you think'. Corporatism, plutocracy, kakistocracy, fascism, neo-feudalism, all just variations on a theme.

[@narancauk]

''If we do not fight it Totalitarism can triumph in any country in any system''-----------------George Orwell

[@kwakkers68]

Orwell is condemned by many as a False Prophet - for his reporting of Socialists and Communists to 'the State'.

[@narancauk]

@@kwakkers68 ''Reporting to the state''????

[@narancauk]

@@kwakkers68 Definition of prophet is a man who correctly or less correctly interprets the word of God from religious books.. Not the man who see lottery numbers or which horse is going to win

[@kwakkers68]

@@narancauk Look it up, there will be some info on this history on the Internet

[@narancauk]

@@kwakkers68 Look up what? Could you be just a little bit specific .Hahahahahahahahahahahhahahahahahahahahahaha

[@eddiekulp1241]

Fascism was Italy in 20's to 40's . We don't have a Mussolini unless Biden changes for the worst

[@gabrielferrer2400]

Just an idea for this channel. I hope you guys cover the recent tech layoffs to get their sympathy to your cause.

[@stoa7302]

Corporatism is the melding of government and business in Fascism.

[@slorter10]

What do you mean heading towards??

[@SopaSoupa]

I think it is...

[@RandoOnline_]

Yes it is.

[@miguelaphan58]

...todo está conectado,..en el caso de usa ..son tres caras , de la misma moneda .

[@markaycox7009]

Does anyone know if Prof. Wolfe has yet to apologize, or at least comment on his prior stance on Covid vaccinations and boosters? Has he followed up, as things are different now? Thanks.

[@sdrc92126]

Isn't pharmceutical companies creating mandates fascism?

[@merovingian688]

The definitely got a lot of Americans who have distrust of our government. We have only politicians to blame for this insanity

[@TracieSmithpomeranian]

True...

[@dmoneytron]

The government just forced rail workers to go back to work, indirectly causing a toxic explosion from a train derailment in Ohio. However because the good professor is a bit farther down the government repression list we are still not in fascism.

[@anonuser6867]

First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out-because I was not a socialist. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out-because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out-because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me-and there was no one left to speak for me. -Martin Niemöller

[@NotAPacifist825]

Agreed. We are there and have been for a while.

[@kevinschmidt2210]

You should know by now that academics and scientists never talk in absolutes. There is never a yes/no, or right/wrong answer. There are always shades of gray. Even when proven, their facts are still called theories.

[@donklee3514]

@@anonuser6867 First they came for the intellectuals. (Einstein and friends exit stage left) Then the trade unionists....... Nazi Party = National Socialist German Workers' Party They represented the workers in a Right To Work State kind of way.

[@fatcat8dog]

He smart

[@Многоанализипарализи]

The most correct description of fascism belongs to Georgi Dimitrov.

[@CyberdarkHellKaiser]

Didn't we just threaten the railroad union with violence if they striked

[@manishgrg639]

Decline of murica is inevitable

[@beastmode8203]

Keep telling yourself that lie.

[@Shadowman4710]

@@beastmode8203 He's not wrong. Empires always collapse. That's what they do.

[@john.premose]

@@beastmode8203 cry about it, wah

[@beastmode8203]

@@john.premose why do i need to cry? You have to be on crack to think that we would lose.

[@john.premose]

@@beastmode8203 nice example of hubris

[@egnielson]

I am a leftist to preface this. Is there some reason you don’t mention the dollar gap and how defense spending works?

[@nutbagus]

Thank You Great Show, ? If The Railroad Workers Were Allowed to Strike Could that have helped prevent Ohio train wreck?

[@donklee3514]

If the railroad robber barons were as regulated as their workers, yes this negligence could have been avoided. The robber barons chose profit over safety. Exactly the way the railway workers have described the situation. They could have invested in cars with modern breaking systems, but chose instead to increase the value of their stocks with stock buy backs. They chose profit over safety. What is really disturbing is that Exon Valdez like strategies will be used to prevent/delay making the victims whole again. The financial burden of having to buy out, at today's market value, all the residents and relocate them with comparable properties away from the long term health consequences of their negligence. That ground water is never going to be the same.

[@madprole5361]

US inspired and perfected fascism.

[@genericx2347]

Faceism fascism . smile for the camera

[@andreylebedenko1260]

Yes, indeed, fascism is a kind of union of government and capital. However, it is very unique union, and definitely not the only one possible. The tidiest and the ugliest one, yes, but it emerges not just because capital and government want to unite. It emerges because they have no other choice, they have to unite in order to survive. Why? Because socialism threatens them because the working class is so united and so active that the whole society is on the brink of social revolution. And fascism is the only measure capitalists left to disorient workers, to force them back into obedience. Fascism fakes revolution, fascism fakes social theory by its demagogic "third way", it demands the unification of all classes against some kind of external (or internal) threat. That's why fascism -- is war.

[@john.premose]

The same way religionists will put aside their differences if they sense a threat which endangers all of them. So you see Catholics and Baptists, who would normally be mortal enemies, unite temporarily in times such as now.

[@sentientnatalie]

Fascism's economic system remains capitalism, and capitalism has never been able to sustain itself without war, required for economic expansion, war is, so that "line go up".

[@Historia.Magistra.Vitae.]

@Andrey Lebedenko : You have no clue what you are talking about. There is no union bet ween the government and capital. Fasc ism was a social ist ideology which opposed liberal capitalism, but also international soci alism, hence the concept of a “third way,” their cen tralized economic policies obeyed collecti vist and socia list principles, openly opposing capitalism and the free mar ket, favoring nation alism and autarchy.

[@Historia.Magistra.Vitae.]

@@sentientnatalie _"Fasci sm's econo mic system remains capita lism,"_ Wrong. Fasc ism had nothing to do with capital ism whatsoever. Their eco nomy was based on soci alism.

[@Historia.Magistra.Vitae.]

@@sentientnatalie _"capi talism has never been able to sust ain its elf without w ar, "_ Capita lism does not benefit from wa rs in genral, only ar ms de alers do.

[@oviss5946]

You are very smart, and nobody w real power wants you ideas unfortunately.😢

[@lennysandroff8168]

Then it is fascism you will live under. Cynicism is a blank check for failure. "We will never have a complete definition of fascism, because it is in constant motion, showing a new face to fit any particular set of problems that arise to threaten the predomi- nance of the traditionalist, capitalist ruling class. But if one were forced for the sake of clarity to define it in a word simple enough for all to understand, that word would be “reform." We can make our definition more precise by adding the word “economic." “Economic reform” comes very close to a working definition of fascist motive forces. Such a definition may serve to clarify things even though it leaves a great deal unexplained. Each economic reform that perpetuates ruling-class hegemony has to be dis- guised as a positive gain for the up-thrusting masses. Disguise enters as a third stage of the emergence and development of the fascist state. The modern industrial fascist state has found it essential to disguise the opulence of its ruling-class leisure existence by providing the lower classes with a mass consumer’s flea market of its own. To allow a sizable portion of the “new state" to participate in this flea market, the ruling class has established currency controls and minimum wage laws that mask the true nature of modern fascism. Reform (the closed economy) is only a new way for capitalism to protect and develop fascism!" -George L. Jackson-Blood In My Eye; Classes At War (archive.org/stream/GeorgeJacksonBloodInMyEye_201512/George%20Jackson%20-%20Blood-in-My-Eye_djvu.txt)

[@irelandishsac13]

Well, we are officially a fascist country now. 😭

[@alexhidel3732]

We are headed toward a theocracy, and make believe Jesus our leader.

[@tongsllc]

Heading? 🤣Hahaha!

[@penguinuprighter6231]

Heading? You are already there.

[@marywest6844]

You can keep trying to give the horses water Professor, but the water is now all poisoned like everything else. The idiots chose not to drink what was original, clean, pure, and unprofitable.

[@jason8077]

the “right” of political lobbying is constitutionally protected in the US😂 what i think is that it is constitutional bs

[@jgalt308]

If the constitution were actually available, you might have a point. FDR got rid of it, in 1939... and the "people" traded essential liberty for the temporary delusion of safety, and lost both. Isolated observations do not produce any understanding...nor can they withstand factual analysis...but thanks for sharing.

[@john.premose]

@@jgalt308 lol I love you people who dream about living in a world of poverty and misery which you have absolutely no comprehension of, because you were shielded from living in that world by people who actually lived through it and knew what it was like. And now, you sit in your comfortable and plentiful and safe life, which was made possible by people who were far wiser than you, and tell them all about what they did wrong. Ha ha ha. I would love, I mean love, to see you live back in the 1910s and 20s, as a worker with zero safety net. I would love to see your soft, weak little tears.

[@jgalt308]

WARNING!!!!!! we have heard from the "willfully ignorant, functionally illiterates" so described, who insisted on confirming the description, while having no relevant response or argument to what has been written. hhhhmmm...I must be missing something...since the common refrain is "victims, victims everywhere." Yet, if that irrelevant rhetoric were to be believed...then one has to wonder where is the paradise that was the supposed result of all that "effort"?

[@john.premose]

@@jgalt308 I assume you're crying something, but youtube chose not to even let me see it. Haha

[@jgalt308]

Actually, google controls youtube, and since I am notified of most of the "willfully ignorant, functionally illiterate" nonsense, including yours, although only the most recent is currently visible...you wouldn't have any basis for that assumption. So you are either lying and don't have an actual response, a pattern you have already demonstrated. Or democracy at work is protecting you from continuing to make an ass of u and mption. In either case...your babbling was and remains irrelevant.

[@dannywindham3295]

Thank you Professor wolf for not saying tax dollars or borrowing from corporations funds the federal government. Perhaps you finally learned mmt thank you

[@numbersix8919]

Not quite there yet.

[@anonuser6867]

Quite there yet, quite some time ago.

[@beastmode8203]

Tankies

[@SouthCom1917]

😭😭😭 Everyone I don't like is a tankie 😭😭😭

[@nicoles3166]

brother if you think he is a tankie than you have no understanding of the word… marxists leninists would describe him as a social democrat

[@beastmode8203]

@@nicoles3166 he's a Marxist, he's a leftist that makes him a tankie and your tankie too.

[@nicoles3166]

@@beastmode8203 you're god damn right I’m a tankie! mao and stalin did more than any american leader but you can cry about it if you want

[@nicoles3166]

@@beastmode8203 unlike the united states who has never funded any genocidal maniacs. read up on your own history pal.

[@jayboegs6268]

Your take on the debt is embarrassing.

[@fxgreek5490]

Have U Heard of Controlled opposition?

[@anonuser6867]

It goes by the name of Prof Wolff here.

[@Raidersfan-gn7zo]

Keynesian economics needs to work in the favor of the people and democracy, not with the military. That would be better than laissez-faire capitalism!

[@sdrc92126]

Keynes was a proponent of eugenics. He served as director of the British Eugenics Society from 1937 to 1944. As late as 1946, shortly before his death, Keynes declared eugenics to be "the most important, significant and, I would add, genuine branch of sociology which exists."

[@donklee3514]

@@sdrc92126 A bit of a red herring argument don't you think? It is an interesting fact, but it has no real bearing on Keynesian theory. Keynes proposed a balanced approach to economic policy that the investment community hated. At least half of the theory anyway. Wall Street loves its business cycles.They liked the idea of the government stimulating business. Especially, on the down side. When they screwed up. That's good for business, but affecting activity on the up side? Keynes proposed fixing the business cycle by pulling the bottom up in bad times and pulling the top down in good times. Ostensibly by similar amounts. In theory it would have worked, but it has never been implemented. I'll bet he took a lot of crap from the country club set by suggesting that the government places limits on Wall Street's speculative spread between boom busts. If you're making gambling earnings off the spread, then the government is limiting their income potential. Substantially. The idea of the government regulating boom busts needed to be killed. In rides Reagan on his horse wearing a cowboy hat ready to save the day. Now, we have a government that privatizes profit(a function of risk) and socializes the risk thru government. They bastardized Keynesian economics with an absolute; "The government will never reduce spending." And off into the sun set he road spending like a drunken sailor. A self fulfilling prophecy.

[@sdrc92126]

@@donklee3514 Correct. Just an interesting piece of information. Seems like he was interested in getting rid of certain people through whatever means. I'm sure economics could be similarly employed. The federal reserve admitted a few years ago that they were responsible for the widening wealth gap.

[@Googlag]

Does the professor know what the USA is called in Russia ? A large captilistic aircraft carrier.Your borders are thousands of kilometers away from Eurasia and Africa. Your military spending is not like defensive measures. Little-minded citizens and politicians really think that military budgets will save them in a nuclear apocalypse? Seriously? Look at the Soviet film about the nuclear disaster on KZbin - Письма мертвого человека (1986)

[@beastmode8203]

Fuck China and Russia 🖕🏼😉🇺🇸

[@andresamplonius315]

Como Carlos Marx descubrió, el capitalismo es un sistema alienante, asi que no nos puede sorprender el que haya tanta ceguera en todo el mundo y en el "Occidente colectivo" mas que en el resto. Me interesa ver esa película, mas resulta un poco complicado ubicarla en KZbin, por lo de los caracteres cirilicos. Me podria alcanzar el titulo en ingles?

[@Googlag]

@@andresamplonius315 Dead Man's Letters/Письма мертвого человека (1986) Lopushansky, English Subtitles

[@Googlag]

@@andresamplonius315 I don't know what people mean by the word collective West. The West in terms of what? Decision-making? So it seems like every country has its own governments. What is the collectivity? When are capitalists from Europe banned from having business relations with capitalists from the Russian Federation? Meanwhile , the US itself is buying metals and hydrocarbons through the Asian market . Yes collectivity).

[@woodensurfer]

From what I learnt, fascism is characterized by extreme nationalism (often flavored with racism) and belief in capitalism to fervent obsession against socialism and even more rabidly against communism.

[@sdrc92126]

Fascism is not an ideology, nor is it a political party. It does not belong to the right or left, nor to one region of the globe. Fascism is a commitment to obtain and retain power using whatever means necessary, even violence. --Madeleine Albright With a fascist the problem is never how best to present the truth to the public but how best to use the news to deceive the public into giving the fascist and his group more money or more power. --Wallace "Anyone looking for black shirts, mass parties, or men on horseback will miss the telltale clues of creeping fascism. In any First World country of advanced capitalism, the new fascism will be colored by national and cultural heritage, ethnic and religious composition, formal political structure, and geopolitical environment... In America, it would be supermodern and multi-ethnic-as American as Madison Avenue, executive luncheons, credit cards, and apple pie. It would be fascism with a smile. As a warning against its cosmetic facade, subtle manipulation, and velvet gloves, I call it friendly fascism. What scares me most is its subtle appeal. I am worried by those who fail to remember-or have never learned -that Big Business-Big Government partnerships, backed up by other elements, were the central facts behind the power structures of old fascism in the days of Mussolini, Hitler, and the Japanese empire builders.” -Czeslaw Milosz

[@Historia.Magistra.Vitae.]

_"and belief in capit alism to fervent obsession against soci alism"_ Wrong. Fas cism opposed capital ism and was a socia list ideology.

[@Historia.Magistra.Vitae.]

@@sdrc92126 _"Fas cism is not an ideology, nor is it a political party. "_ Wrong. It was a very specific soci alist ideology and hegel ian philosophy formul ated by Gio vanni Gen tile and Muss olini. Madel eine has no clue what sh e is talking about, nor does anyone you tried to quote.

[@woodensurfer]

@@Historia.Magistra.Vitae. Can you give some citations? I believe I am correct. Fascism was characterized by nationalism and anti-communism.

[@Historia.Magistra.Vitae.]

@@woodensurfer _"Can you give some citations?"_ _"The Fas cist, on the other hand, conceives philosophy as a philosophy of practice (”praxis”). That concept was the product of certain Ma rxist and Sorel lian inspirations (many Fas cists and the Duce, himself, received their first intellectual education in the school of M arx and Sorel)-as well as the influence of contemporary Italian idealistic doctrines from which Fas cist mentality drew substance and achieved maturity.“_ _"It is necessary to distinguish between socia lism and socia lism-in fact, between idea and idea of the same socia list conception, in order to distinguish among them those that are inimical to Fasci sm. It is well known that Sore llian syndical ism, out of which the thought and the political method of Fas cism emerged-conceived itself the genuine interpretation of Ma rxist commu nism. The dynamic conception of history, in which force as violence functions as an essential, is of unquestioned Mar xist origin. Those notions flowed into other currents of contemporary thought, that have themselves, via alternative routes, arrived at a vindication of the form of State-implacable, but absolutely rational-that finds historic necessity in the very spiritual dynamism through which it realizes itself.“_ - Giovanni Gentile, Che cosa è il fascismo: Discorsi e polemiche (“What is Fasc ism?”), Florence: Vallecchi, (1925) pp. 42-45, 47-48, 49-51, 56,Origins and Doctrine of Fa scism, A. James Gregor, translator and editor, Transaction Publishers, 2003, p. 59

[@kallashnykov]

The US is a fascist state, and until western leftists understand the ties between fascism, capitalism and imperialism, they can't offer a proper critique. Fascism is capitalism in decay resetting the profit rate, capitalism is what western imperialists use to colonize the world. Fascism was never antagonistic towards monarchism for that matter, many fascist states were born from monarchism. The US has all the proper definitions of a fascist superpower, on top of all the historical knowledge of nazis being importef in the west and in western organizations that further contributed to that. The US government is basically completely undemocratic, and exists to further the interests of the bourgeoisie and of capital globally. The US military complex is completely intertwined with all top officials in the US for decades.

[@sdrc92126]

It's not fascists vssocialists (or communists), it's fascism and socialism vs anarchists..Both fascist andsocialist require totalitarian governments.

[@kallashnykov]

@@sdrc92126 Lol when you read political theory on Wikipedia and your knowledge of history stops at whatever happened yesterday.

[@sdrc92126]

@@kallashnykov Are you going to point out something I got wrong? I'm happy to learn. I've read Mussolini's _Doctrine of Fascism_ ,Hitler's _Mein Kampf_ and currently on Shirer's _Rise and Fall of the Third Reich_. Hitler's _25 Points of National Socialism_ is very similar to Marx's _10 Planks of Commmunism_

[@kallashnykov]

@@sdrc92126 Wow I bet you're a whyte that never had a struggle in your life cause otherwise how else would you have the same opinion as the CIA and spew that bs liberal horseshoe theory crap. You didn't say anything wrong, you just said nothing. Go read a history book, read some research, read some Michael Parenti.

[@sdrc92126]

@@kallashnykov You got that right. I'll take your bet though. I said that fascism and sociaism are the same. I'm sure you missed that part.They're both totalitarian, it does not matter what they're called.

[@anonuser6867]

Were the fascists not fascists until they reached 100% repression stage? I would not hold that viewpoint. They were certainly fascist earlier, they just had not achieved full power over the populations yet. In fact, they were fascists when they had zero power. Just because you made this video is certainly not proof of non-fascism. It appears you defend our systems more than I would like to hear you do. Thumbs down from me, only because of your conclusion. Take heed of the following Mr. Wolff. First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out-because I was not a socialist. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out-because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out-because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me-and there was no one left to speak for me. -Martin Niemöller

[@NotAPacifist825]

💯

[@clemalford9768]

In full blown fascism they kill you if you rebel or protest. In the less full blown fascism they do it insidiously by starving you to death, make you homeless, jobless, penniless, marginalise and cancel you, accuse you of false crimes and throw you or you and your family in jail.

[@selwynr]

No, Wolff has spent his entire life critiquing capitalism. What you just watched was absolutely not a defense of it.

[@kenhubbard7355]

YOUR ALREADY THERE AND HAVE BEEN 4 A LONG , LONG time

[@bluewater454]

Wolff still doesn’t define fascism accurately in this discussion, but it was nice to see this talk lacking the hysterical hyperbole that I usually hear from marxists when it comes to the fascist boogeyman, which hasn’t existed in reality for almost a hundred years.

[@john.premose]

Oh really, so how do you define it? And rightwingers have no right to talk about hysteria. You're still soiling yourselves about the revolutions that happened 100 years ago, as you should be lol

[@earlviney5212]

TAX THE RICH !!

[@bluewater454]

@@john.premose Some of those Marxist revolutions that happened almost a hundred years ago are still ongoing. So, the right doesn’t have to resort to any hyperbole when describing your ideology. It is alive and well in western culture. It is a present day threat, and the goals of Marxists are still the same now as they were a hundred years ago. As for the definition of fascism, I will allow the fascists to speak for themselves, like I do for the definitions capitalism and socialism. Musolinis definition of fascism was that it is a left-wing collectivistic ideology in opposition to socialism, liberalism, democracy and individualism. You can read his description of fascism in his _Political and Social Doctrine of Fascism_ Regardless of whether you see fascism as a right or left wing ideology, it is a state centric, collectivist ideology.

[@bluewater454]

@@earlviney5212 You are a little behind the times. The rich are already taxed. Don’t get out much?

[@Historia.Magistra.Vitae.]

@@bluewater454 _"in op position to socia lism,"_ Clarification; in opposition to Mar xist socia lism, not socia lism in general. Fasc ism itself was a soc ialist ideology in fact. _"Such a concep tion of life ma kes Fasc ism the resolute negation of the doctrine underlying so-called scie ntific and Mar xian social ism, the doctrine of historic materialism which would explain the history of mankind in terms of the class struggle and by changes in the processes and instruments of production, to the exclusion of all else."_

[@TC-eo5eb]

So Wolff's solution to the problem is socialism. The top 5 socialist countries on the planet are China (People's Republic of China), North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea), Cuba (Republic of Cuba), Vietnam (Socialist Republic of Vietnam) and Laos (Lao People's Democratic Republic). I haven't heard of any illegal immigrants sneaking across the borders of any of those countries. Being a Marxist must be frustrating. To paraphrase Winston Churchill, Capitalism is the worst economic system there is, except for all the others.

[@andreylebedenko1260]

The US keeps on vetoing any attempts to remove sanctions from Cuba. Why? If socialism is so bad and unstable, why not lift them?

[@TC-eo5eb]

@@andreylebedenko1260 Cuba has an authoritarian regime where political opposition is not permitted. Censorship of information (including limits to Internet access) is extensive, and independent journalism is repressed in Cuba; Reporters Without Borders has characterized Cuba as one of the worst countries in the world for press freedom. U.S. sanctions are not the problem. Hundreds of Cubans die every year attempting to reach the U.S. and no one from the U.S. attempts to flee to Cuba. Now remind us why Wolff wants socialism.

[@andreylebedenko1260]

@@TC-eo5eb The US sanctions were imposed back in 1958. Since then the small country not only managed to defend itself against multiple military aggressions of various kinds but develop its society in many aspects further than the US did (e.g. child and maternity mortality). It has very well-developed social care and public medical care systems. It even helped other -- capitalist -- countries fight against COVID (e.g. Italy). However, the US did not impose any sanctions against, say, Chile of Pinochet (in fact, the US supported him), or South Korea during the mass massacre on Jeju island. On contrary, US president Ronald Reagan spoke highly of Pinochet's success in ridding the country of communists and even offered him asylum. Therefore it is highly unlikely that those sanctions against Cuba have anything to do with freedoms or journalism, but everything with communist ideology, which the USA fights against on all possible fronts. Obviously, under sanctions, any economy will suffer regardless of its type. The very fact that Cuba still develops after 60+ years -- is a clear example of the progressiveness of socialism.

[@TC-eo5eb]

@@andreylebedenko1260 I challenge you to go to Little Havana in Miami and ask any person of Cuban decent to compare their life in Cuba to the life they have now. They will set you straight about what life is like in socialism.

[@andreylebedenko1260]

@@TC-eo5eb No need to do that. I was born in the USSR, in a rather small city in its south. I lived and worked there for many years and I can compare before and after. The fact that the US can extract a lot of labour from people of underdeveloped nations and accumulate it on their soil doesn't make capitalism any better. In fact, those countries -- capital countries -- are poor exactly because the US and other countries of the capital centre are rich.

[@biikikumar7437]

Biden is a ray of hope for Americans embrace the guy with open arms...he will set things right...

[@Historia.Magistra.Vitae.]

You peop le have no clue what fas cism means. Stop us ing words that you do not under stand.

[@maxgatica5736]

Como siempre Richard a el punto MUCHAS GRACIAS

[@FrancisMetal]

"when government does stuff..."

[@troyheald77]

AAA+++Bedford, Texas======Thank You========

[@19snowy19]

Headed? We're already fkn there!

[@jamesrichardson1326]

Isn't the intertwining of money and government occurring here in the USA?

[@WanderingExistence]

"Every line of serious work that I have written since 1936 has been written, directly or indirectly, against totalitarianism and for democratic socialism, as I understand it. It seems to me nonsense, in a period like our own, to think that one can avoid writing of such subjects. Everyone writes of them in one guise or another. It is simply a question of which side one takes and what approach one follows. And the more one is conscious of one's political bias, the more chance one has of acting politically without sacrificing one's aesthetic and intellectual integrity." - George Orwell

[@cheri238]

💯 correct

[@craigwilson1144]

Yes, imagine if we had Keynesianism that intervened to save the planet. The U.S. could create 10 million high paying technological jobs in renewable energy away from our dependency on fossil fuels, but the defense department strongly objects to government spending on alternative energy because access to oil and LNG are essential in operating the U.S. unipolar empire.

[@donklee3514]

I don't get solar energy. How do you get the sun to shine on only the ones that have paid?

[@clarestucki5151]

The "instability of capitalism" has little or nothing to do with capitalism directly. The depressions, recessions, pandemics, financial crises etc. are for the most part always a reflection of things that the gov't does stupidly or that the gov't fails to do responsibly or sensibly.

[@john.premose]

Oh of course. It couldn't possibly be capitalism's fault. Just like in religion, "God" gets all the credit for everything good, but when bad things happen there's always a million excuses why it couldn't possibly be "God's" fault. Capitalism has just taken over that mentality and become the real religion of the world.

[@sentientnatalie]

"Fascism is capitalism in decay." - Lenin He was right then, he is right now.

[@earlviney5212]

TAX THE RICH !!

[@clarestucki5151]

@@earlviney5212 By all means, "tax the rich". The rest of us don't produce enough to have anything TO tax!!!

[@Historia.Magistra.Vitae.]

@@sentientnatalie _"He was right then, he is right now."_ Wrong. Len in was bu tthu rt because Mus solini didn't follow h im and his version of mar xism. Fasci sm had nothing to do with capit alism whatsoever. In fact, they opposed it, since fas cism was a socia list ideology.