They Don't Want Your Freedom...

This linked Guardian story is is one of the more important things to read today (if you're American, that is): Naomi Wolf's distillation of our continuing descent into fascism.

Think "fascism" is an alarmist word? It's not, even if I am a shrill, uncivil lefty who says it a lot. The things Wolf describes have been clear for years—bloody obvious, even, to most of the world—but seems to have largely escaped the notice of our incurious, navel-gazing, anti-science, anti-reason and ahistorical culture and sanitized media. Note first that this piece was only published across the pond. Then, try this on for size:

[Princeton] Professor [Emeritus] Walter F Murphy ... is one of the foremost constitutional scholars in the nation and author of the classic Constitutional Democracy. Murphy is also a decorated former marine, and he is not even especially politically liberal. But on March 1 this year, he was denied a boarding pass at Newark, "because I was on the Terrorist Watch list".

"Have you been in any peace marches? We ban a lot of people from flying because of that," asked the airline employee.

"I explained," said Murphy, "that I had not so marched but had, in September 2006, given a lecture at Princeton, televised and put on the web, highly critical of George Bush for his many violations of the constitution."

"That'll do it," the man said.

Sometimes when I look at the government and then the First Amendment, I get that doesn't-add-up feeling. (Mom suggested vinegar and water; I suggest rainwater and grain alcohol.)

What's that? This Nixonian perfidy isn't perfidious enough? What else do you need? Abu Ghraib? Guantanamo? Vaya con dios, habeas corpus y posse comitatus? No? Oh, I know! How about:

Brownshirts? Groups of angry young Republican men, dressed in identical shirts and trousers, menaced poll workers counting the votes in Florida in 2000. 

Remember that? I guess it wasn't big deal, since it only changed the results of the whole fucking thing. But wait, there's more!: 

Ideological purges! Bush supporters in state legislatures in several states put pressure on regents at state universities to penalise or fire academics who have been critical of the administration. 

And how about literal attacks on the press?: The Committee to Protect Journalists has documented multiple accounts of the US military in Iraq firing upon or threatening to fire upon unembedded (meaning independent) reporters and camera operators from organisations ranging from al-Jazeera to the BBC. While westerners may question the accounts by al-Jazeera, they should pay attention to the accounts of reporters such as the BBC's Kate Adie. In some cases reporters have been wounded or killed, including ITN's Terry Lloyd in 2003. Both CBS and the Associated Press in Iraq had staff members seized by the US military and taken to violent prisons; the news organisations were unable to see the evidence against their staffers. 

The lack of obvious shock troops outside your door keeping you unconvinced that our handbasket is accelerating? Well, don't forget about the power of innovation and technology! That's right! Our modern, post-literate society, tribalist, apathetic, and a bit too trusting of machines, doesn't need all those messy deployments, beatings and executions going on, interrupting the economy. No! We need a new way, one that harnesses the wonder-twin powers of self-absorption and hate to get the people to help oppress themselves! It all starts, as others have noticed, with three little words: "We're number one!"

Much like Hitler's Nazi Germany, the U.S. exhibits an orgy of nationalism with a plethora of flags and the common pride of claiming to be Number One in the world. .... The U.S. does not have to use the instruments of fascism—mass arrests, death camps etc. to obtain the blind obedience of its citizens. The power of national pride, to the point of constantly claiming their preeminence, creates a social cohesion at the mercy of government.

For like talking up the Yankees at Fenway, some things are Just Aren't Done cuz Folks don't like it ...  And because we're not just Number One, we're Different From All The Rest, and hence It (that is, fascism) Can't Happen Here, QED or something. And as It does happen, They all say It can't possibly be It, It's really This Other Thing Over Here, say, Security. In the immortal words of Dilbert, "Gah!"

Oh, hey, we've passed some arbitrary numerical benchmark! And look! Bunnies! And before you go, check out this not-mine brandy-gosh-darn-new blog.