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elleng

(130,156 posts)
Sat Oct 10, 2015, 05:26 PM Oct 2015

How do democracies become dictatorships? by Robert Reich.

How do democracies become dictatorships? History suggests 10 steps:

1. First, destroy labor unions, so people have no way to bargain for higher wages and no capacity for political organization.
2. Crack down on college students, so they won’t oppose you (hint: burden them with so much student debt they won’t dare rock the boat).
3. Undermine public education, so people are less able to think critically for themselves.
4. Cut deals with hugely rich business executives that if they back you you’ll cut their taxes, slash government spending on the poor, and eliminate regulations that impinge on their profits. (Better yet, be a hugely-rich business executive yourself.)
5. Make most people economically anxious, frustrated, angry, and insecure.
6. Convince them their problems stem from “them” – foreigners, immigrants, racial or ethnic minorities, intellectuals.
7. Make them cynical about democracy.
8. Convince them all they need is a strongman who will fix everything.
9. Fill the airwaves with your big lies.
10. Get elected.

What do you think?

https://www.facebook.com/RBReich?fref=nf

14 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
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How do democracies become dictatorships? by Robert Reich. (Original Post) elleng Oct 2015 OP
and the next step... Binkie The Clown Oct 2015 #1
His march to fascism list of accomplishments could be added to. Hortensis Oct 2015 #2
Tell the ignorati that they too would be rich, but the liberals are blocking job creation. /nt NCjack Oct 2015 #3
ALEC has that had that covered for some time. Hortensis Oct 2015 #6
that is what Rush Limbaugh did for years demigoddess Oct 2015 #9
Still #1 radio. Fox. Mark Levin. Breitbart. Thousands of others. Hortensis Oct 2015 #13
Message auto-removed Name removed Oct 2015 #12
Agree, Deck. Including with "even here." Not everyone here is a liberal. In fact, Hortensis Oct 2015 #14
Add... HooptieWagon Oct 2015 #4
K&R! haikugal Oct 2015 #5
By dictators signing commitments with no oversight of anyone... pipoman Oct 2015 #7
Add: Show support for the 'Job Creators' chknltl Oct 2015 #8
Count the votes LastLiberal in PalmSprings Oct 2015 #10
You left out the biggest one. JayhawkSD Oct 2015 #11

Hortensis

(58,785 posts)
2. His march to fascism list of accomplishments could be added to.
Sat Oct 10, 2015, 05:38 PM
Oct 2015

11. Turn the electorate on itself, dividing and conquering, so that it's unable to act in unity against a common enemy.
12. Trick people with natural fascistic tendencies into believing that fascism is a liberal phenomenon so they'll fight resistance to fascism.

Good post, Elleng. I always get a little sick feeling when I see that even people like Robert Reich believe it could happen here.


"Liberalism is the individual. Fascism is the state." Mussolini

Response to Hortensis (Reply #2)

Hortensis

(58,785 posts)
14. Agree, Deck. Including with "even here." Not everyone here is a liberal. In fact,
Sun Oct 11, 2015, 12:59 PM
Oct 2015

I just read that about 13% or so of Democrats identify themselves as conservative, with more than twice that identifying "moderate," whatever they mean by that. Bernie's likely pulled in more conservatives also.

Peace,
Armchair Hortensis.

 

HooptieWagon

(17,064 posts)
4. Add...
Sat Oct 10, 2015, 06:27 PM
Oct 2015

A domestic spy network, to spy on citizens.
Governmental secrecy, and cracking down on whistle-blowers exposing govt wrongs.
Militarized police force unaccountable for thuggish and illegal behavior.

chknltl

(10,558 posts)
8. Add: Show support for the 'Job Creators'
Sat Oct 10, 2015, 09:28 PM
Oct 2015

With the ravages of the world wide Great Depression hardly in their rearview mirror Benito Mussolini likely promissed the citizens of Italy a secure system of job creation. He replaced their government with a parliament of corporate representitives. With the 'job creators' running the show and WWII starting off there must have been tons of jobs for the citizenry. This is just speculation on my part but i suspect a great many citizens loved Mussolini for his economics.

Whenever i hear right wingers talk about defending the job creators i can't help but consider how they would have supported the originator of fascism back when he was promoting it.

10. Count the votes
Sun Oct 11, 2015, 12:13 AM
Oct 2015

Either by using unverifiable electronic voting machines or by depressing the vote via voter ID laws, gerrymandering, etc. Tell the electorate that you are doing all this so that "every vote matters."

Clearly not. (Bush v. Gore)

 

JayhawkSD

(3,163 posts)
11. You left out the biggest one.
Sun Oct 11, 2015, 11:22 AM
Oct 2015

Make the population afraid.

Number five sort of hints at it, but I'm not talking about "anxious, frustrated, angry" or "insecure." Those things can stem from not having a job or being in debt.

I'm talking about constantly hyping the fear that a Muslim terrorist is going to fly an airplane into your house, or plant a bomb on the train you are riding, or simply walk up to you in the street and gun you down with an AK-47. And, since the "Muslim extremist plot" is not materializing, the FBI now hyperventilates about the liklihood of thousands of home grown "lone wolf" attackers from within.

It's interesting that that one was omitted and that no so far has thought to add it. It has become a staple of political discourse. "My first responsibility is to keep this nation safe," the president declaims. Safe from what? From "national security threats" posed by "extremists."

Safe from the threat to us that is posed by Iran's nuclear weapon. Safe from Russia's expansionist imperialist plan for European domination. Safe from North Korean intercontinental ballistic missiles with nuclear warheads. Safe from invasion by the Islamic State after they finish conquering Africa.

Nothing, absolutely nothing will make us give up our civil rights. Nothing, that is, except the "fear of the ticking time bomb" that might be under my bed and the need to spy on citizens in order to find it before it goes off.

Nothing will move this nation to condone the inhumane horror of the infliction of torture. Nothing, that is, except the "fear of the ticking time bomb" that might be in my kitchen and the need to waterboard some poor schmuck in order to find it before it goes off.

And that very statement, "My first responsibility is to keep this nation safe," is the beginning of the statement that he needs dictatorial powers in order to do it.

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