A Response To Katha Pollitt, Member Of The Famed Journolist

Been out of town for the last week and now I'm able to get back into the normal daily grind of blogging.

Catching up on some of the Daily Caller's releases of the Journlist email archives when I noticed this from Katha Pollitt:

Katha Pollitt

Aug 7, 2009, 12:20pm

Fascism was a historical phenomenon. That’s why I don’t like the way the word is used today. Fascists wanted a big all-powerful state that would both reach down into people’s lives at the most intimate level and support the( racially pure) masses economically through jobs, public works, and so on. That doesn’t have much relation to what american rightwingers want. They want a tiny defunded state that would use its diminished power and authority mostly for war, border patrol, prisons, repression of dirty effing hippies etc. but would leave ordinary citizens to sink or swim. Unlike the German or Italian fascists, today’s US rightwingers have nothing concrete to offer people. Just the pleasures of racism and selfishness and fear.

With the exception of the last line, she almost gets conservatism.

The war line is a bit much. A strong national defense is preferred in a world with other nations who at their morning prayers shout "Death to the US!" and trying to develop nuclear weapons.

The hippies argument I half to agree with. Not so much as what conservatism is but what any normal, rational person ought to do.

As for the "ordinary citizens to sink or swim." Well, not to put too fine a point on it but yeah. Duh. It's personal responsibility and liberty. It gives Americans the chance to succeed and, strangely enough, the chance to fail. Which is a form of success depending on how they pick themselves back up.

Anyway, is it just me or is the irony alarm going off when she's talking about a government who is all reaching into the lives of the population? If I may take a little bit of liberty with her quote "Fascists wanted a big all-powerful state that would both reach down into people’s lives at the most intimate level and support the( racially pure) masses economically through jobs, public works, and so on". It's a little bit closer to what this administration is looking to do. Case in point, making it a law for everyone to buy an FM radio.

I'm not even going to get into what Obamacare will entail.

But for an idealoge like Katha Pollitt, she can't quite square that circle.