Wollt ihr den Totalen Krieg, Amerika?
Via Andrew Sullivan, Glenn Beck amends previous claims that America is headed towards some hybrid of Soviet communism and squishy Eurosocialism. We are, he now understands, fast becoming a fascist country. ThinkProgress does the yeoman's work of cutting together the best bits:
One caveat, says Beck: "Like it or not, fascism is on the rise" though we are not hurdling towards a Hitlerian future— this despite breathlessly sermonizing ("where have we seen this before?") in front of a montage of Nuremberg rally B-roll. Isn't it curious, Beck observes, that the 1916 "mercury dime" featured the fasces on its reverse side—a Roman symbol of power, adopted in America as a symbol of progressive republicanism. Well no, it isn't interesting at all when one considers that it wasn't until 1919 that Benito Mussolini founded the Italian fascist party and adopted the fasces as its symbol. Besides this error of chronology, that an organization, party, or government agency employs the Roman fasces in a logo isn't evidence of a fascist impulse. If this were the case, Beck would need to expose the Swedish police force as a Scandinavian sturmabteilung. Or expose the Lincoln Memorial as a monument to Franco.
Towards the end of his fascism-is-near screed, Beck reaches out to those on the left that warned of fascism during the Bush years (Call him Naomi!). It is necessary, he advises, to band together those "left and right" who understand the threat. "The people who said fascism is coming under Bush and the people who are saying. You are both right. Fascism is coming!"
Bonus video: Fox News host Shep Smith wonders who, exactly, is surrounding us?
