THE DEMOCRATIC DERANGEMENT REACHES NEW HEIGHTS (OR DEPTHS)

A Kind of Fascism Is Replacing Our Democracy (Sheldon S. Wolin, July 18, 2003, Long Island NY Newsday)

No administration before George W. Bush's ever claimed such sweeping powers for an enterprise as vaguely defined as the "war against terrorism" and the "axis of evil." Nor has one begun to consume such an enormous amount of the nation's resources for a mission whose end would be difficult to recognize even if achieved.

Like previous forms of totalitarianism, the Bush administration boasts a reckless unilateralism that believes the United States can demand unquestioning support, on terms it dictates; ignores treaties and violates international law at will; invades other countries without provocation; and incarcerates persons indefinitely without charging them with a crime or allowing access to counsel.

The drive toward total power can take different forms, as Mussolini's Italy, Hitler's Germany and Stalin's Soviet Union suggest.

The American system is evolving its own form: "inverted totalitarianism." [...]

Americans are now facing a grim situation with no easy solution. Perhaps the just-passed anniversary of the Declaration of Independence might remind us that "whenever any form of Government becomes destructive ..." it must be challenged.

An impressive two-fer, not only making President Bush out to be a fascist but also calling for a revolution. Posted by Orrin Judd at July 22, 2003 7:32 PM