History Courses For Dr. Christopher C. Lovett
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History Courses For Dr. Christopher C. Lovett |
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Updated as of 2 October 05 Today in History: On October 2, 1780, Major John André, a British spy associated with Benedict Arnold, was executed on this day in history. Quote of the Day: "In my view we are much worse off now than when we went into Iraq. This is not a partisan position. I voted for these guys." A senior figure at a military-sponsored think tank as told to James Fallows in "Bush's Lost Year" in The Atlantic Monthly (Oct. 2004) Take the Ann Coulter Quiz Where are you politically? Take the Neocon Quiz and find out. "History is Far too Important to be left to History Professors" Teaching isn't such a novel idea
Bibliography:
History of Disease Contemporary Terrorist Organizations Map of Islamic Terrorist Cells in the U.S.A.
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The Coming of the FascistsAge of Total WarFall 2007Background• Generally fascism is seen as lacking rationale thought.• Instead it has a nihilistic, authoritarian, and violent bent.• But like all other movements, fascism had an ideology too.• Yet, it rarely followed that ideological bent.• Like Stalin was not a true representative of Communism.Fascism as a Negation of the Enlightenment• Fascists despised the liberal ideal as embodied in limited government, individual rights, and Laissez-faire economics.• It emerged from Rousseau’s “General Will” as well as Hegel’s reliance on history.• Relied on the national reawakening found in the Romantic Movement.• And the emotional nationalism found in the mid to late nineteenth century.Some Theories: Fascism as Extreme Conservatism• Fascism is a form of extreme conservatism.• Capitalism creates serious discontent among sections of society.• People turn to Fascism to ward off the possibility of “revolution.”• When governments can no longer make the needed reforms.• Fascism raises its ugly head.Fascism as Totalitarianism• Fascists emphasis that society must be organized according to Totalitarian guidelines.• This can only happen when the nation is totally controlled by the state.• Parliaments are tolerated if they can be controlled.• Put repression is evident by censorship, repression, and excessive police control.• Yet it is a right-wing phenomena since it grossly defends private property.Fascism as a Mass Movement• To accomplish their ideals, Fascists needed a mass movement.• Mass followings that mobilize the national will.• This includes youth moments, women’s movements, co-opting labor organizations.• Emphasizing the young.• The role of the “leader.”• And the Cult of violence.What is Fascism?An Introduction• The first self-styled Fascist movement started in Italy in 1919.• Soon many other European states witnessed their own home-grown movements.• But they all took somewhat different forms.• Depending on the national situation each experienced.Great Britain• Parties tended to use social imperialism to rally the public.• This was seen in the issue of “One Nation” of the Tories and “Free Trade” with the Liberals.• Anti-Semitism emerged with the coming of immigrants from Eastern Europe/Russia.• Between 1900-14 a new wave of radicalism emerged challenging the traditional parties.• World War I consolidated the new party system.• Germany now became the new boogie man.• The Depression altered British feelings even further.The French Myth• Before World War I there was a wave of national populism.• Followed by a wave of anti-Semitism.• This was seen in the Dreyfus affair.• Leading to the creation of Action-Francaise (AF).• The man responsible was Charles Maurras.• Plus a hatred for the Third Republic.• During the War, France was unified by the invasion.• Even with the French victory, France was never the same.• Especially a split between Right and left.Germany Lost the War• Which magnified all else.• Particularly the problems since the Second Reich.• Especially anti-Semitism.• Fear of Socialism.• An emerging youth movement.• As well as the Versailles diktat.• And armed insurrections throughout Germany.• Would Germany survive?Italy Before 1919• Even with a united Italy in 1870, Italy was seriously divided.• Italy was divided between the industrial north and agricultural south.• Even a common tongue did not unify Italy.• Politics was seen as a base sport run by cliques.• A gap existed between classes.• Even the Pope realized something had to be done to bridge the gap.• Pope Leo XIII issued the papal encyclical Renum Novanum.• Socialism served as last hope for Italy.• The war changed all that.His Checkered Past• Mussolini was born to a working class family in 1883.• And like his father was a socialist.• At first he qualified as a school teacher in 1901.• A year later he went to Switzerland and expelled as a vagrant.• Returning to Italy to do his military service, but always a troublemaker.His Record on Wars• He opposed Italy’s war concerning Tripoli in 1911.• Yet broke with the Socialists over Italy’s entrance into World War I.• In November 1914 he founded the paper Il Popolo d’Italia (The Italian People).• Pressing for Italy’s entry into the war and was wounded during grenade practice in 1917.• After the War ended, he founded a political movement that swept Italy.The Beginning• Fasci means bundle.• In an Italian political context it “means” union or league.• It was used since 1914.• By a group of revolutionary syndicalists which supported Italy’s entrance into World War I.• On March 23, 1919, a nationalistic journalist named Benito Mussolini organized the Fasci di Combattimento.Postwar Italian Situation• World War I had created untold problems for Italy.• Italy underwent rapid change with a sudden rise in industrial workers.• Gaps existed between landlords and agricultural workers.• Inflation created untold hardships.• Rise in unemployment.• Fear of Communism.• These social problems created a political crisis in Italy.• Creating the impression that the government had lost control.Abandoning the Appearance of Neutrality• The Government pressed employers and landlords to make concessions.• Losing support from the business community.• Consequently the landed and business sectors lost faith in the government.• The Fascists gained little support in the early elections in 1919.Mussolini Enters Parliament• Enters parliament in 1921 as a right-wing member.• He used the Fascist fighting squads to terrorize the left – both socialists and communists alike.• He allowed the Fighting organizations to be used as strike breakers.• Winning favor from the Italian capitalists and landowners.When the Governments Failed…• When successive governments failed – Gioletti, Bonomi, and Facta – Mussolini threatened to march on Rome with his “Black Shirts.”• Bragging and threatening along the way on Oct. 28, 1922.• How did the King respond?• He invited him to Rome.• Reaching power through bluster.Why did Fascism Succeed?• Fascism grew out of the failure of Laissez-Capitalism.• It was also a fear among the middle class of the survivability of economic order.• He also played up the loathing and hatred of the peace settlement to gain support.• It also saved Italy by presenting a “third way” between weak liberalism and a communist revolution.• The way for Mussolini was here.• Even Churchill thought well of Il Duce!Who Supported the Fascist?The Fascist System• Mussolini’s new way was totally different.• Blending Corporatism, Totalitarianism, and Nationalism.• With militant anti-communism at the core.• The goal was to blend all facets of the sate together regardless of class under the banner of capitalism.• But a new capitalist order.The Fascist Qualification• All vital industries were under state control.• With the promise of a better economic order.• But at what price?• The Liberals then supported Mussolini’s system.• Including censorship, termination of all political parties, followed the evolution of the police state.• Which was totally ruthless.• As seen in the murder of Socialist leader, Giacomo Matteotti in 1924.Mussolini’s Role in the Government• He served as Premier.• Held seven departmental posts all at the same time.• He also chief of the Fascist Party.• Chief of the armed forces as well as the militia.• He kept potential rivals from power.• He used propaganda to give the impression that Fascism was the wave of the future.• Perception is everything.
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