Here’s a fun little factoid to gnaw on: “Fascism” is derived from the Italian word fascio, which means a “bundle of sticks” — the same exact meaning of a very well-known gay slur.
Turns out the etymological origins of “fascism” and “[censored gay slur]” are one and the same. Which means, linguistically, calling a fascist a [censored gay slur] would be redundant.
(Keep this factoid in your shirt pocket: Next time someone calls Trump a “fascist,” you have carte blanche to TOTALLY confuse the hell outa ‘em.)
The truth, of course, is that words are malleable, shapeshifting beasts. Words are used to represent ideas, and as cultural norms, conditions, and situations evolve, so does our language.
Besides, all words are made-up. Just ask Thor:
And if you’d prefer a more-human, less-Asgardian take, here’s the late, great George Carlin:
Even today, there’s no agreement over what the heck a “fascist” is or isn’t, something ABC News acknowledged in its pre-election hit-piece, “What is fascism? A look at the term being hurled at Donald Trump”:
“We’re not just debating whether or not Trump fits that definition; we are not agreeing on what that definition is,” Sheri Berman, a political science professor at Barnard College, Columbia University, told ABC News in an interview.
There is no scholarly consensus on the term, according to both Berman and Mark Bray, a political scientist from Rutgers University. This is, in part, because fascists historically have not been tied to “rational consistency,” Bray said, pointing to Italian dictator Benito Mussolini and Nazi Germany dictator Adolf Hitler whose policy positions changed on a variety of occasions. [emphasis added]
Famed historian Sir Ian Kershaw, arguably the world’s foremost expert on Hitler and Nazi Germany, once wrote, “Trying to define fascism is like trying to nail jelly to the wall.” That’s frustrating for historians, but it’s been a godsend for feeble-minded political hacks.
The word’s undefinable nature makes it Mana from Heaven as a partisan attack.
Hardly a day goes by without the Democrats weaponizing it against Trump. A Google News search of “Trump” and “Fascist” generates about 4,700 results — a monstrously large number, but utterly dwarfed by the 10.5 million results(!) under Google Search.
Fascism began in Italy during World War I. Its public face was Benito Mussolini, the founder and leader of the National Fascist Party. Adolf Hitler admired Mussolini and modeled much after him, but Germany and Italy were still very different. Originally, under Mussolini’s “fascist” regime, Italian Jews were granted safety, security, and equal status under the law.
Mussolini’s interpretation of “fascism” seemed more connected to the recreation of the Roman Empire than anything antisemitic. At least, at first.
But today, there’s something foreboding about the word fascism, something that feels especially evil. It’s foreign-sounding — that’s probably part of it — but its historic connection to the Axis Powers of World War II is what gives it legs.
Basically, it’s a way to call someone a Nazi without calling them a Nazi.
Don’t believe me? Take note of the fact that Kamala Harris repeatedly called Trump a “fascist,” yet steadfastly avoided the (other) N-word in her 2024 political attacks. That’s how this leftwing PR smear-campaign works: The people on the top of the ticket are too polite (and/or unwilling to alienate Red State voters) to call Trump a Nazi, so they call him a “fascist” instead — while all the people beneath ‘em remind the voters that he’s “literally Hitler.”
It’s a two-pronged messaging approach that meets in the middle.
Welcome to the classic battle between denotative and connotative meanings. (Sorry, you Webster word-nerds: The connotative meaning is ALWAYS gonna win. It doesn’t really matter how the dictionary defines “fascism”; what matters is how the word is used in public discourse.)
But all this ambiguity comes with a cost: In their zeal to bash Donald Trump as a fascist, they’ve inadvertently shined a light on their own fascism.
Yesterday, Salon released another one of its dopey anti-Trump hit-pieces, claiming (among other things):
Threatening one’s predecessor and other members of the opposition party with deportation, prison or worse for non-existent crimes is a defining feature of authoritarian and fascist regimes.
A “defining feature,” eh?
Gee, you mean it was “fascist” of the Biden administration to not just threaten its predecessor, Donald Trump, with non-existent crimes, based on novel legal interpretations — but to actually charge him, try him, and attempt to lock him up?
Or was it “fascist” to raid his property with armed agents? (Who were authorized, by the way, to use “deadly force.”)
Or, after Trump survived an assassin’s bullet to his head (and other assassination attempts) when Biden was in charge of his Secret Service protection, was it “fascist” to blame TRUMP for “inciting political violence”?
Or was it “fascist” to use the IRS to selectively target the political opponents of the Democratic Party?
Or was it “fascist” to pressure the Tech Giants to censor conservative voices?
Or was it “fascist” to circumvent the First Amendment and deplatform Democratic Party critics?
Or was it “fascist” to use intelligence agencies to sabotage your political enemies?
Or was it “fascist” to hide the extent of President Biden’s poor health and senility, and then try to install his handpicked successor?
Or was it “fascist” to call the MAGA movement a “threat to the brick and mortar of our democratic institutions” and claim Donald Trump is an “existential threat” to America? (Wink, wink, you guys know what to do.)
Don’t look to the mainstream media for any answers. On April 25, 2022, The Washington Post ran the story “Calling Democrats like Biden fascists has always been false.” (Got that? Biden is no fascist!)
Less than two years later, The Washington Post ran a follow-up story, “The thin veneer over Trump’s fascist rhetoric.”
Determining who’s a fascist, it seems, is awfully selective. Some might even say it’s entirely made-up!
Just ask Thor.
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