Column by Paul Hein.
Exclusive to STR
Several decades ago I joined an organization of my fellow physicians called, appropriately, Iatros. It was an ideal group, having neither meetings, dues, nor by-laws. We were simply individuals with a common concern for the growing role of government in medical care, or, more specifically, medical financing. There was a monthly newsletter carrying articles by the members, to which I occasionally contributed.
We were invited, at some point, to attend a meeting to be held, in of all places, Helsinki, and to present a paper, if so inclined. I was.
In my remarks I pointed out that although fascism was considered defeated with the end of World War II, it was, in fact, still among us, and thriving. The definition of fascism is so-called free enterprise under government control---a sort of private/government joint endeavor. From the point of view of the Ruling Class, it is an ideal arrangement.
Under Communism or Socialism, with government ownership of all significant productive enterprises, any shortages or other failures of production can only be laid at the feet of the government. But in the fascist system, such problems were surely the fault of the private owners of the business, who had failed to properly conform themselves to government guidelines, which existed, of course, for the benefit of society as a whole, not selfish entrepreneurs. Their failure cried out for more and even better government “guidelines.” What a perfect system!
My remarks received a tepid response, and a few frankly hostile glares from some of the members, who, I suppose, considered that our Rulers, although sometimes mistaken, as in the matter of Medicare, were, in general, well-intended individuals with only the common good as their objective.
Well, that was decades ago. Today I am pleased to see increasingly frequent use of the word “fascism” in characterizing the political scene. The unholy alliance of government with the drug industry, the media, the universities, and, of course, the defense industry, makes avoidance of the term impossible--unless you are one of the Rulers.
They prefer to call our system of government “democracy,” a term derived from the Greek, and meaning mob role. We are told, however, that it means rule by the people which must be, of all systems of government, the most ideal and just. So much so, in fact, that our Rulers would like it imposed on all people, everywhere. It is, we are told, the form of government upon which this nation is based.
Except, of course, that it is not. The Founding Fathers explicitly rejected it.
“Real liberty is never found in despotism or in the extremes of democracy.” ~ Alexander Hamilton
“A simple democracy is the devil’s own government.” ~ Benjamin Rush
“The democracy will cease to exist when you take away from those who are willing to work and give to those who would not.” ~ Thomas Jefferson
“We have seen the tumults of democracy terminate, in France, as they have everywhere terminated, in despotism.” ~ Gouveneur Morris
“Remember, democracy never lasts long. It soon wastes, exhausts, and murders itself. There never was a democracy yet that did not commit suicide.” ~John Adams
One might argue that the Founders rejected the concept of democracy because they distrusted the people, and believed in rule by the Elite, which meant, among others, themselves.
Perhaps so, but rule by the people is impossible, regardless of what the Founders thought, because “rule by the people” must inevitably become “rule by SOME of the people.” If a matter is decided by 51% of the people, then “the people” are barely half of the people!
Some would say that the essence of democracy is the right of the people to vote. In many, if not most, elections, the voters are little more than half of those eligible to vote, and all those eligible to vote are not all of the people, although all of the people may be affected by the voting. And, of course, the voters can only vote on the issues presented to them, or, usually, for the candidates provided.
Moreover, what business can be run efficiently if its programs and methods are decided by vote? Does the corner filling station, or drug store, leave up to its customers to decide how it is to be run? Can we believe that the biggest business in the world is to be ruled by “the people”?
Finally, it could be said that voting enables the people to decide upon, or reject, a right-wing government, always associated with fascism, or a left wing government, synonymous with communism—never mind that either form of government is abhorrent and both “left” and “right” wings belong to the same predatory bird.
For my money, fascism is what we’ve got, and have had, for a long time. I believe that all modern governments have adopted it, for good reason. It certainly seems to work in reducing the people to slaves of the Ruling Class, and will endure until some form of revolution abolishes it.
