Social democrats will work with the reactionary right before reds. Fascist leaders of Italy and Germany were propelled by capitalist interests due to the social democratic nature of their countries. If Fascism means anything, it is all out government support for business and severe repression of anti-business, pro-labour forces. Part of its reason to exist is as a dictatorial force for the desires of capitalism. Capitalism tries to resolve its internal contradictions by shifting more of its costs onto the working populace. This leads to frustration when opposition of monied interests by way of democracy slows this. To resolve this, it collaborates with fascism.

At the time, they were celebrated and friends of the rich. Hit was close with the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, meeting with them often. Henry Ford and other industrialists met with, accepted awards from, and shared industry secrets with Hit. The Wall Street Journal, Fortune, New York Times, Chicago Tribune, etc called Musso the "saviour of Italy from anarchism and radicalism"

Some writers stress the irrational features of fascism, in doing so, they ignore the rational economic functions it performed. Much of politics is the rational manipulation of irrational symbols. This is true of fascist ideology whose emotive appeals serve a class control function. Leader worship encourages a love of the state, and the individual is important insofar as their alignment with the state. Fascism extolls conquest, and domination. It instructs people to not concern themselves with class divisions; to instead see themselves as one, rich and poor. This intentional ignorance maintains the economic status quo by cloaking class exploitation. This is done by atavistic appeals to the former 'People':for Hit this was the Ancient Volk, for Musso, the grandure of Rome. In this way, mysticism is used to oppose class politics. This is done to oppose the left agenda of articulating popular demands, awareness of social injustice and class struggle. Yet in a crafty denial we always find a hidden admission.

Fascist national chauvinism, racism , sexism, and patriarchal values serve a conservative class interest. Naz shit values racial supremacy , and eugenics to justify their place on their reordered social hierarchy. Yet homophobia and sexual inequality was not emphasized until it became convenient to do so. Their paramilitary SA was used as pseudo-revolutionary force to overcome trade unionists and reds popularity with their rhetorical condemnation of finance capital. Because of this, those lured into SA by talk of socialism would have to be dealt with. Hit used state to neutralize SA, with the excuse that its leaders were homosexual but in reality, they threatened to be a serious problem. executed 300+ for having any actual leftist beliefs. Following this, Himmler wrote up a bunch of homophobic rhetoric to justify mass murder of those deemed 'sexually deviant'. Women with reproductive rights made it harder for fascists to control the creation of children, so patriarchal ideology was promoted to protect the plutocracy. They were big on what is often referred to as 'family values' to control people.

Anti-semitism and racism was used to misdirect legitimate grievances with capitalism using scapegoats. The message of anti-semitism was tailored to the audience (unemployed were told jewish capitalist, superpatriots told an 'alien internationalist', debtor farmers told the usurers, middle class it was commie and union leader). Fascism employs the consciously rational use of irrational images . What differentiates fascism from ordinary right-wing patriarchal autrocracy is the cultivation of a revolutionary aura:
Offers beguiling mix of revolutionary-sounding mass appeals and reactionary class politics (ex: calling themselves 'national socialists')
Both germany and italy tried to steal the left's 'thunder' (work brigades, rallies, youth organizations, mass mobilizations, rallies, banners, slogans, talk of revolution)
Reduction of essence to form: by emulating the form of the left, they hope to blur the difference in actual class content

Western writers regularly lump fascism with communism. Yet fascism serves to resolve the contradictions of capitalism only for capitalists, not the populace. It gives only a reactionary solution to the general populace, forcing losses on them. As such, fascism is a capitalist solution to the class struggle consisting of a totalistic submersion and exploitation of democratic forces for the benefit and profit of higher financial circles. It is a false revolution, cultivating the appearance of popular politics and a revolutionary aura without offering genuine revolutionary class content. It propagates a "new order" while serving the same monied interests. Its leaders are guilty of deception, not confusion: they work hard to mislead the public but they themselves are not mislead.

Mainstream writers overlook how western capitalist states have collaberated with fascism. Neville Chamberlain was cozy with naz, and western capitalist Allies did little to eradicate fascism from italy and germany aside from nuremberg. They did not even do any trials in italy, against the wishes of the populace. Hell, the USA gave employment to many of these fascists via Operation Paperclip (lol naytoe). The italian partisan movement was quickly treated as suspect and unpatriotic, unsurprising given that many italian fascists were allowed to maintain their positions of power. Within a year hundreds of italian fascists were released from prison while hundreds of communists and leftist partisans were jailed! Disgustingly, the blackshirts were made out to be victims

Under the protection of the USA Occupation Authority, the caribinieri(cops), courts, military, security agencies, and bureaucracy remained largerly staffed by those who served the former fascist regimes or by their ideological recruits(see top polling party of Italy as of 2022). Perpetrators of the holocaust killed 6 million jews, 500,000 Romani, thousands of 'sexual deviants', several million Ukranians, Russians, Poles, and others, and got away with it because many of those meant to investigate it were complicit in these crimes.
In comparison, east germany fired 80% of the judges, teachers, and officials for naz collaboration, arrested thousands, executed 600 naz party leaders for war crimes, and would've executed more if they werent allowed to flee to the west via, among other methods, operation paperclip and the support of the pope.
Rockefeller's Chase Bank laundered german money in Vichy france to facilitate naz international trade during the war with complete impunity. Duponte, Ford, GM, and ITT owned factories continued to produce fuel tanks, planes in enemy countries. Instead of being convicted for treason, these companies were given millions by the US government for damages to their factories by Allied bombers, who were instructed not to bomb factories owned by US companies.

Indeed, the US has worked hard to keep italian fascism alive Between 1945-1975 US agencies gave $75,000,000 to right wing organizations in italy, including those with ties to the neofascist Movimentio Sociali Italiano (whose sucessor party is the highest polling in italy as of 2022). In 1975, Kissinger met with MSI leader Giorgio Almerante in Washington to discuss what 'alternatives' could be pursued should the italian communists win the election and control the government. No wonder, given that hundreds of naz war criminals lived in anonymity or employed by US intelligence agencies during the cold war, with Some serving on Nixon, Reagan, and Bush's presidential campaign committee. In italy from 1969-1974, high ranking military and civilian intelligence agencies part of P2 (a secret lodge of upper class reactionaries, pro-fascist vatican officials, and top military brass), and GLADIO (naytoe anticommunist mercenary force) embarked on a concerted campaign of terror and sabotage known as the 'strategy of tension'. Other participants included: the neo-fascist group Ordina Nuovo, NAyTOe officials, caribinieri, mafia bosses, 30 generals, 8 admirals, and freemasons like Lisio Geli (fascist war criminal recruited by US intelligence in 1944). They were aided and abbetted by the international security apparatus, including the 'SEE'IA. This fact explains why the SEEIA refused to cooperate in an italian parliamentary commission investigating the 'Strategy of Tension'. Conspirators of the Strategy of Tension carried out kidnappings, assassinations, and bombing massacres. The most well known one being 'I Stragi', an explosion in a Bologna train station in august 1980 which killed 85 people and injured 200. As the judicial investigation concluded, the Strategy of Tension was the consequence of a larger campaign by state security forces against the democratic parliamentary left with the objective to 1. Combat by any means necessary, the electoral gains of the italian communist party. 2. create enough fear and terror in the population to undermine the multiparty social democracy and replace it with an authoritarian presidental republic

In the 80s, scores of people in germany, belgium, and western europe were murdered by neofascists in the interest of state security agencies. This went mostly unreported in US corporate media. Like the strategy of tension, this was designed to create popular fear and uncertainty to undermine existing social democracy. Authorities in western europe, the US, canada, etc have done little to expose neonaz networks. As whiffs of fascis mdevelop into an undeniable strench we are reminded that hitl's progeny are with us, they have dangerous links with each other, and within the securrity agencies of various western capitalist nations. In 1994, the italian national election was won by the national alliance, a broadened version of the neo-fascist MSI in coalition with the league of northern separatists, and forza italia--a quasi-fascist movement headed by industrialist and media tycoon Berlusconi. The national alliance played on resentments regarding unemployment, taxes, and immigration, called for a single tax for rich and poor alike, school vouchers, a stripping away of social benefits, and the privatization of most services. This is the result of italian neo-fascists learning from US reactionaries [and imo, vice versa], how to achieve fascist class goals within the confines of quasi-democratic forms. That is, using upbeat reaganesque optimism, replacing jackboot militarists with media-hyped crowdpleasers, convincing people government is the enemy (especially its social service sector, while strengthening the repressive capacities of the state), instigating racist hostility [and maintain the class and socioeconomic differences] between the resident population and immigrants, preach the mythical virtues of the free market, and pursue tax and spending measures that redistribute income upwards. Conservatives in the west use diluted fascist mass appeal strategies, propagating populist-sounding mass appeals to the ordinary middle class american, while quietly pressing for measures serving the interests of the wealthiest people and corporations. when the right offers a 'new revolution' or 'new order', it is for the same monied interests, leading down to the same road of reaction and oppression. [Within capitalism, attempted changes can only restructure the hierarchies maintained by capitalist-serving instituions]

US Foreign Policy: Counterrevolution. They invaded China to stop the Boxer Rebellion, they invaded Hawaii, Cuba, Guam, Puerto Rico, Honduras. Cost of Counterrevolution US, Canadian, really most schooling of countries constituting 'the west' taught little of US's counterrevolutionary invasions, instead mythologizing the most convenient moments in the respective country's history to justify its founding and continued existence. Communism is always depicted as evil incarnate which the US must be everywhere to counter, justifying their fighting of revolutions all over indochina. The US dropped more tonnes of explosives in Vietnam than EVERY COUNTRY IN WW2 COMBINED THROUGHOUT ALL OF WW2. They assasinated 24k Vietnamese dissidents.
In pursuit of Counterrevolution/'freedom' US Forces and US supported forces KILLED 2 MILLION North Koreans in a 3 year war. 3 Million Vietnamese, 500k over Laos and Cambodia, over 1.5 million in Angola, over 1 million in Mozambique, 500k in Afghanistan, 500k to 1 million in Indonesia, 200k in East Timor, 100k in Nicaragua, 100k in Guatemala + 40k 'disappeared', 700k in Iraq, 60k in El Salvador, 30k in the Dirty War of Argentina, 35k in Taiwan, 20k in Chile, and many thousands in Haiti, Panama, Grenada, Brazil, South Africa, the Western Sahara, Zahir, and Turkey.

The US justifies this as necessary to fight the communist foe, the 'tyranny of the red menace', yet it is never spelled out what Communism actually does socioeconomically. There is no talk of the nationalization of land owned by exploitative landlords, the initiation of mass education, housing, healthcare, jobs. The advancement of living standards of hundreds of millions. No matter that these revolutions enjoyed popular support in their countries and were willing to maintain neutral relations with 'The West', they are still targeted for counterrevolution. Indeed, the real sin of revolution was that they championed the labouring class against the wealthy few, advocated changes in the distribution of class power and the way that wealth was produced and used, the implementation of less individualistic advancement at the expense of the many.
Those who fight back against state repression are often labelled [honestly by definition of the state] as those who enact terror. Peaceful reforms infringing upon profit accumulation and threaten class privilege are as unacceptable as the social upheaval of revolution. Reforms advancing conditions of life for the general public are not as materially intractable or dependent on capital resources as we are led to believe. There is no great mystery to building a health clinic, carrying out programs for food rationing, land distribution, literacy, jobs, housing. There need only be the political will and mobilization of popular class power.
What is needed is not IMF loans but political organization, democratic opportunity, freedom from US sponsored state terror. Aid programs financing are used to undermine local markets, drive small farmers off land, build transportation and offices for outside investors and open the targeted country up to multinational corporate penetration. [To draw on the next book I'll post notes from: You need only look at the infrastructure built by colonizers, it is always structured for the convenience of extraction. All roads leading to the ports (How Europe Underdeveloped Africa - Walter Rodney).]

Revolutionaries branded as enemies of 'stability'. That is, a society where privileged social relations are securely entrenched. When popular forces mobilize against this, it causes 'instability'. So the US commitment to democratic nonviolentchange is a commitment to violent defence of unjust, undemocratic global capitalism. National security uses violence, coercion against social reform in the name of stability counterterry, democracy, and the free market
People ask: but isn't the US the lesser evil compared to the revolutionaries? Recall George Bush quoting Martin Luther King to Nelson Mandela, scolding him for taking up armed struggle against the repressive aparthe. government. Indeed, the US condemns only those who act against the unjust status quo, not those who preserve it.

'Pure socialism' compares the ideal vs the imperfect reality, imagining what socialism would be like where there is no strong statue structure or security forces required. None of the value produced by workers appropriated to defend from invasion or internal sabotage.
It is grounded in nothing, there in no material reality it is built around the conditions of and therefore could function within.

This chapter discusses what went wrong, what was expected by the citizens of post-collapse countries and what they had to say.
Slackers and pilferers had demoralizing effect on those who wanted to work. Why work hard when there is not much to buy. Prices held artificially low, people expected to discard self-interested modes of behaviour.
Wanting it All Nobody ever talks about what was lost. Needs of hunger. The numerous social benefits so lacking in much of the world. People take for grantd what they had in human services while hungering for consumer goods dangling in their imagination. the human capacity for discontent Once needs satisfied, wants grow, and wants become needs. Desire for greater affluence (material wants too), wanted better and more. The want to be richer.
East Germany wanted bigger apartments, travel, new appliances. When the GDR ambassador was asked by Michael Parenti why they designed junky 2 cylinder cars, said:
"The goal is to develop good public transportation and discourage costly private vehicles. But when asked to choose between rational, efficient, logically sound, ecologically sane mass transportation sysystem or an automobile with instant mobility, special status, privacy, personal empowerment, East Germans went for the latter."

He added ruefully: "We thought building a good society would create good people."
Medical care, etc taken for granted in Cuba, people want what they can't have. With the US blockade and the fall of the Soviet Union, [a beacon had gone out] many youth began to believe the US to be the land of opportunity. Some youth "we're tired of slogans, [the revolution] was alright for our parents, but the revolution is history"
In a society of ever rising and unrealistic expectations, many grow tired and want to change. Even in the best of societies, much labour has instrumental value but is not inherently satifying.
Some disheartened in the face of struggle. Revolution loses its lustre, routineization of charisma. Ordinary people cannot sustain everday life at the level of intense dedication to beautiful but abstract ideals. Why struggle for a better world if it cannot be obtained, and if it can now, then forget about revolutionary sacrifice.
Reactionism to the Surface