Updated Mencken: “When Fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in the flag, carrying a Bible, and festooned with corporate logos and sponsorships on the ShockTroops’ uniforms.”
“Who needs the SS thing – they don’t make or sell anything and don’t pay for their sponsorship.”
Then Big Pharma should step up to the plate right now.
Corporations were invented when rich, powerful guys were losing too much of their investments to unforeseen events, like sea monsters and conquered people getting pissed off enough to take action.
Humans are human; getting and having more stuff produces the strongest reaction possible in the brain. And so it goes.
For me, this ProPublica investigative report has a narrower scope regarding the return of corporate contributions, organizational/individual behaviors, and involvement/support/rejection by members of the RAGA organization as regards J6 and planning or using state offices to further the ongoing Big Lie strategy. Early in the article they state that Microsoft and Coc-Cola are still “staying away” (as of print date of the article, I assume). I thought the article did a good job of exposing the PR campaigns and conveniences adopted by some in the RAGA membership. Other corporations’ ethical public or private behavior are not the subjects at hand. I didn’t get a “broad brush” influence.
You haven’t been paying attention to a certain presidential contender from Florida and his growing rodent extermination program
Yep, if people bounce to that beat, might as well be genuine existential threats. They may not have been all that real in the 20s and 30s, either, but they served the purpose… And don’t forget the Jews and immigrants. These have always been in style as manufactured threats.
History rhymes.
ETA: The dynamics are the same: Fabricate threats to the state. Then pose solutions that are fascistic, but cannot be labelled as such these days.
Anyone surprised?
Sorry, will have to gently disagree. The threat (in their minds) is that their hierarchy is breaking down - People with funny accents working beside them in their offices! Uppity wimmin running companies! POC running whole countries!
To the Trumpinistas, this is as bad as the threat from communism back in the '30s - the whole social order is falling apart! (and yes, the exclamation marks are needed, because they signal the adrenalin rush they experience with every “story” they see on Fox News).
We have to look at the telescope from their end, not just our own, to truly understand how backwards they have it, but these people are “shit scared”, as we say in Australia. Doesn’t make them right, but it helps to explain their truly out of the park behaviour…
I can’t disagree with you about their perceived threat; although, I do believe the rhetoric of left/right competition doesn’t fit well with the perceived danger they’re reacting against.
On the other hand, atavistic talk of class war does offer a more palatable rationale for conflict in the wider political arena than overt race baiting and male chauvinism.
And, strangely, with the level of economic inequality we have in this country, the class war (or reverse class war, a usage I believe comes from Paul Krugman) trope is actually suitable to the situation.
ETA: are we stumbling around models of what used to be called ‘false consciousness?’
This enrages me. I could not find a list of corporate donors to DAGA (I’d like to see if they are donating equally) but I think public corporations should not be allowed to give any money to political entities. Or they have to give the same amount to both sides.
Seems pretty clear in the case of J&J they were paying what in mob-speak is called “protection money” to buy immunity from prosecutions. UPS looks to be doing that too. If that’s the case, this as much on RAGA as it is on these companies
States as laboratories for fascism. Or hell, counties, city councils, school boards…it’s all fertile ground for the christo-fascists.
THE OLIGARCHY MUST DIE.
You with it, discobot.