On Fascists and Clowns

“Fascists and clowns – they are ridiculous, but also frightening.”

– Willem Etsenmaker

Intelligence, Liberalism and Atheism

A higher intelligence has a definite correlation with a liberal political ideology and atheism, or so new statistical research informs us. According to psychologist Satoshi Kanazawa, human beings with an above average intelligence are more likely to adapt themselves to evolutionary innovations and act according to superior values.

“General intelligence, the ability to think and reason, endowed our ancestors with advantages in solving evolutionarily novel problems for which they did not have innate solutions,” argues Kanazawa. “As a result, more intelligent people are more likely to recognize and understand such novel entities and situations than less intelligent people, and some of these entities and situations are preferences, values, and lifestyles.”

Religion is a by-product of man’s tendency to constantly try to see patterns in the world around him, and to try to explain – however feebly – everything that world. “Humans are evolutionarily designed to be paranoid, and they believe in [a] god because they are paranoid,” states Kanazawa.

Now, this paranoid behaviour was fine for our ancient ancestors. In fact, it probably helped them to remain vigilant and alert to dangers that could pose a threat to themselves, their family and their tribe. – Hardly behaviour that one likes to associate with modern mankind.

“What is it you most dislike? Stupidity, especially in its nastiest forms of racism and superstition. […] The essence of the independent mind lies not in what it thinks, but in how it thinks.” ― Christopher Hitchens

Kanazawa concludes “so, more intelligent children are more likely to grow up to go against their natural evolutionary tendency to believe in god, and they become atheists.”

Data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (2010) supports Kanazawa’s hypothesis. Young adults who subjectively identify themselves as ‘very liberal’ have an average IQ of 106 during adolescence, while those who identify themselves as ‘very conservative’ have an average IQ of 95 during adolescence.

Similarly, young adults who identify themselves as ‘not at all religious’ have an average IQ of 103 during adolescence, while those who identify themselves as ‘very religious’ have an average IQ of 97 during adolescence.

Characteristics of Fascism

Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist extreme right-wing political ideology. Fascists seek to unify their nation based on commitment to an organic national community where its individuals are united together as one people through national identity. The unity of the nation is to be based upon suprapersonal connections of ancestry and culture through a totalitarian state that seeks the mass mobilization of the national community through discipline, indoctrination, physical training, and eugenics. Fascism also seeks to eradicate perceived foreign influences that are deemed to be causing degeneration of the nation or of not fitting into the national culture.

“Nationalism is an infantile thing. It is the measles of mankind.”
― Albert Einstein

In 2003, Dr. Lawrence Britt examined the fascist regimes of Hitler, Mussolini, Franco, and several Latin American regimes. He found 14 defining characteristics common to each:

1. Powerful and Continuing Nationalism – Fascist regimes tend to make constant use of patriotic mottos, slogans, symbols, songs, and other paraphernalia. Flags are seen everywhere, as are flag symbols on clothing and in public displays.

2. Disdain for the Recognition of Human Rights – Because of fear of enemies and the need for security, the people in fascist regimes are persuaded that human rights can be ignored in certain cases because of “need.” The people tend to look the other way or even approve of torture, summary executions, assassinations, long incarcerations of prisoners, etc.

3. Identification of Enemies/Scapegoats as a Unifying Cause – The people are rallied into a unifying patriotic frenzy over the need to eliminate a perceived common threat or foe: racial , ethnic or religious minorities; liberals; communists; socialists, terrorists, etc.

4. Supremacy of the Military – Even when there are widespread
domestic problems, the military is given a disproportionate amount of government funding, and the domestic agenda is neglected. Soldiers and military service are glamorized.

5. Rampant Sexism – The governments of fascist nations tend to be almost exclusively male-dominated. Under fascist regimes, traditional gender roles are made more rigid. Divorce, abortion and homosexuality are suppressed and the state is represented as the ultimate guardian of the family institution.

“Fascism should more appropriately be called Corporatism because it is a merger of state and corporate power” ― Benito Mussolini

6. Controlled Mass Media – Sometimes to media is directly controlled by the government, but in other cases, the media is indirectly controlled by government regulation, or sympathetic media spokespeople and executives. Censorship, especially in war time, is very common.

7. Obsession with National Security – Fear is used as a motivational tool by the government over the masses.

8. Religion and Government are Intertwined – Governments in fascist nations tend to use the most common religion in the nation as a tool to manipulate public opinion. Religious rhetoric and terminology is common from government leaders, even when the major tenets of the religion are diametrically opposed to the government’s policies or actions.

9. Corporate Power is Protected – The industrial and business aristocracy of a fascist nation often are the ones who put the government leaders into power, creating a mutually beneficial business/government relationship and power elite.

10. Labour Power is Suppressed – Because the organizing power of labor is the only real threat to a fascist government, labor unions are either eliminated entirely, or are severely suppressed.

“Fascism is capitalism plus murder.” ― Upton Sinclair

11. Disdain for Intellectuals and the Arts – Fascist nations tend to promote and tolerate open hostility to higher education, and academia. It is not uncommon for professors and other academics to be censored or even arrested. Free expression in the arts and letters is openly attacked.

12. Obsession with Crime and Punishment – Under fascist regimes, the police are given almost limitless power to enforce laws. The people are often willing to overlook police abuses and even forego civil liberties in the name of patriotism. There is often a national police force with virtually unlimited power in fascist nations.

13. Rampant Cronyism and Corruption – Fascist regimes almost always are governed by groups of friends and associates who appoint each other to government positions and use governmental power and authority to protect their friends from accountability. It is not uncommon in fascist regimes for national resources and even treasures to be appropriated or even outright stolen by government leaders.

14. Fraudulent Elections – Sometimes elections in fascist nations are a complete sham. Other times elections are manipulated by smear campaigns against or even assassination of opposition candidates, use of legislation to control voting numbers or political district boundaries, and manipulation of the media. Fascist nations also typically use their judiciaries to manipulate or control elections.

“No school can supply an anti-liberal education, or a fascist education, as these terms are contradictory. Liberalism and education are one.”
― George Seldes

Political Spectrum

A complex political spectrum or matrix is a visualisation system used for classifying political ideologies. The spectrum is essentially a graph with a horizontal and vertical axis that cross in the middle, creating four opposing fields.

The horizontal axis represents the economic freedom scale. Collectivist views are generally considered left-wing ideas and are therefore listed on the left-hand side of the spectrum; economically libertarian views are generally considered right-wing ideas and are therefore listed on the right-hand side of the spectrum.

The vertical axis represents the socio-political scale. Progressive (generally less authoritarian) views are listed on the top half of the spectrum; conservative (generally more authoritarian) views are listed on the bottom half of the spectrum.

The purpose of the spectrum is to show how radical one ideology is compared to the next. The further away from the centre of the graph, the more extreme the views of the respective ideology.

The absolute top left and right corners of the spectrum are the extreme branches of communism and fascism respectively. The absolute bottom left and right corners of the spectrum are the extreme branches of anarchy and conservative liberalism respectively. Those with an intermediate outlook are classified as centrists or moderates.

The spectrum proves that no progressive government is necessarily left-wing, and no conservative government is necessarily right-wing. The matrix also makes clear that, despite popular perceptions, the opposite of fascism is not communism but anarchism (i.e. liberal socialism), and that the opposite of communism (i.e. an entirely state-planned economy) is neo-liberalism (i.e. extreme deregulated economy).

Finally, there are several ideologies which are hard to place in the conventional left-right/progressive-conservative matrix; these ideologies are called syncretic, but are more commonly known as third way politics.

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Styles of Government

Listed and described below are 27 styles of government which are common in countries around the world. They are primarily differentiated into three categories: governments with libertarian, neutral, or authoritarian views on personal freedoms. They are further subcategorised by their views on political and economical rights. The particular style of government is then labelled by a neutral, left-wing, and right-wing view.

Libertarian views on personal freedom

Anarchy

• Description: Citizens live in a state of perpetual fear, as a complete breakdown of social order has led to the rise of order through gangs.
• Classification: Utopian Capitalism.Libertarian views on personal, political, and economical freedoms.
  • Neutral: Anarchism
  • Left-wing: Post-Revolution Embryonic Society
  • Right-wing: Lawless Wasteland

Civil Rights Lovefest

• Description: Libertarian rule, with less emphasis on the economy and more on civil and political rights. Citizens hold their civil and political rights very dear, although the wealthy and those in business tend to be viewed with suspicion.
• Classification: EverydayLiberalism.Libertarian views on personal and political freedoms, neutral views on economical freedom.
  • Neutral: Anarcho-socialism
  • Left-wing: Brave Progressives
  • Right-wing: Nation-Hating Hippies
    

Left-wing Utopia

• Description: The democratic government grants broad civil rights but keeps a tight leash on business. Citizens are free to do what they want with their own bodies, and vote for whoever they like in elections; if they go into business, however, they are regulated to within an inch of their lives.
• Classification: Utopian Socialism. Libertarian views on personal and political freedoms, authoritarian views on economical freedom.
  • Neutral: Egalitarian democracy
  • Left-wing: Utopia
  • Right-wing: Drugged-Out Hippies
    

Capitalizt

• Description: It’s all about business. Civil rights are generous. Citizens enjoy some of the most opulent lifestyles in the region, unless they are unemployed or working-class, in which case they are variously starving to death or crippled by easily preventable diseases.
• Classification: Liberated Capitalism. Libertarian views on personal and economical freedoms, neutral views on political freedom.
  • Neutral: Anarcho-capitalism
  • Left-wing: Self-Congratulatory Merchant Bankers
    
  • Right-wing: Freedom-Loving Libertarians
    

Left-Leaning College State

• Description: What would happen if college students ruled the world. Civil rights are the main priority, followed by political rights. Citizens enjoy extensive civil freedoms, particularly in social issues, while business tends to be more regulated.
• Classification: Bureaucratic Liberalism. Libertarian views on personal freedom, neutral views on economical and political freedoms.
  • Neutral: Liberalism
  • Left-wing: Paradise
  • Right-wing: Deluded Tax and Spend Hypocrites
    

Scandinavian Liberal Paradise

• Description: High taxes, tons of civil freedom, but a weak economy. Citizens enjoy extensive civil rights and enjoy a level of social equality free from the usual accompanying government corruption.
• Classification: Liberated Socialism.Libertarian views on personalfreedom, authoritarian views on economical freedom, and neutral views on political freedom.
  • Neutral: Egalitarianism
  • Left-wing: Normal
    
  • Right-wing: Gay Marriage State
    

Benevolent Dictatorship

• Description: A dictatorship ruled by someone who pays no attention to the people and allows them to do whatever they want, except challenge the government. Citizens enjoy great individual freedoms in everything except elections, which, where they exist at all, are populist shams for a dictatorship government that has no intention of ever giving up power.
• Classification: Capitalist Paternalism. Libertarian views on personal and economical freedoms, authoritarian views on political freedom.
  • Neutral: Feudalism
  • Left-wing: Temporary Liberal State of Emergency
  • Right-wing: Temporary Conservative State of Emergency

Libertarian Police State

• Description: The state does nothing to impede on your private life, yet will require you to register everything down to your shoes with a bureau of some sort. Citizens are proud of their wide-ranging civil freedoms, and those who aren’t tend to be dragged off the streets by men in dark suits and hustled into cars with tinted windows.
• Classification: EverydayPaternalism. Libertarian views on personal freedom, neutral views on economical freedom, and authoritarian views on political freedom.
  • Neutral: Benevolent monarchy
  • Left-wing: Slightly Overzealous Peoples Democracy
  • Right-wing: Government-Enforced Political Correctness Society

Iron Fist Socialists

• Description: The state is omnipresent, and will provide everything for its people except political freedom. Citizens are ruled with an iron fist by the socialist government, which grants its people the freedom to do whatever they like so long as it doesn’t involve getting richer than anybody else or challenging the government.
• Classification: LiberatedAutocracy.Libertarian views on personal freedom, authoritarian views on economical and political freedoms.
  • Neutral: Communist dictatorship
  • Left-wing: Equality and Tolerance Society
  • Right-wing: Inevitably Bloody Result of Liberal Ideals Mugged By Reality

neutral views on personal freedom

Corporate Bordello

• Description: Free market, free elections, not-so-free merchandise. Civil rights are moderate; political rights are generous. Citizens are effectively ruled by a group of massive corporations, who run for political office and provide their well-off citizens with world-class goods and services. Their poorer citizens, however, are mostly starving to death while being urged to go out and get real jobs. The populace has reasonably extensive civil rights, although these are mostly aimed at allowing them to buy whatever they like.
• Classification: Everyday Capitalism.Neutral views on personal freedom, libertarian views on political and economical freedoms.
  • Neutral: Capitalist democracy
  • Left-wing: Blood-Sucking Capitalist Leeches
  • Right-wing: Patriotic Business Zone
    

New York Times Democracy

• Description: Liberal democracy, with elections heavily influenced by the media. Citizens enjoy a sensible mix of personal and economic freedoms, while the political process is open and the people’s right to vote held sacrosanct.
• Classification: ResponsibleLiberalism. Neutral views on personal and economical freedoms, libertarian view on political freedom.
  • Neutral: Democracy
  • Left-wing: Corporate-Dominated Sham Democracy
  • Right-wing: New York Crimes So-Called Democracy
    

Liberal Democratic Socialists

• Description: There is a centralized economy, but it is more democratic than Democratic Socialists. Citizens love a good election, and the government gives them plenty of them. Universities tend to be full of students debating the merits of various civil and political rights, while businesses are tightly regulated and the wealthy viewed with suspicion.
• Classification: Everyday Socialism.Neutral views on personal freedom, authoritarian views on economical freedom, libertarian view on political freedom.
  • Neutral: Socialist democracy
  • Left-wing: Open-Minded Education State
  • Right-wing: Ivory Tower Reality Disconnect Zone

Capitalist Paradise

• Description: No restrictions whatsoever are placed on trade; civil rights and political rights are not repressed but take a back seat to the economy. Citizens are either ruled by a sleek, efficient government or a conglomerate of multinational corporations; it’s difficult to tell which.
• Classification: Bureaucratic Capitalism.Neutral views on personal and political freedoms, libertarian views on economical freedom.
  • Neutral: Capitalism
  • Left-wing: Corporate Slave State
  • Right-wing: Decent Hardworking Self-Starters
    

Inoffensive Centrist Democracy

• Description: Where the people have a good mix of political and civil rights as well as security. Citizens have some civil rights, but not too many, enjoy the freedom to spend their money however they like, to a point, and take part in free and open elections, although not too often.
• Classification: Responsible Conservatism. Neutral views on personal, political, and economical freedoms.
  • Neutral: Republic
  • Left-wing: Fascists
  • Right-wing: Communists
    

Democratic Socialists

• Description: Political Freedoms in this state would be regarded as average, while the government is omnipresent and has much say in the economy, with citizens having few economic rights. Citizens are fiercely patriotic and enjoy great social equality; they tend to view other, more capitalist countries as somewhat immoral and corrupt.
• Classification: Bureaucratic Socialism. Neutral views on personal and political freedoms, authoritarian views on economical freedom.
  • Neutral: Socialism
  • Left-wing: Ordinary Caring Intelligent World Citizens
  • Right-wing: Hell
    

Compulsory Consumerist State

• Description: Like Capitalist Paradise, except that the government does not allow dissent. Citizens are rabid consumers, partly through choice and partly because the government tells them to and dissenters tend to vanish from their homes at night.
• Classification: Responsible Plutocracy. Neutral views on personal freedom, authoritarian views on political freedom, libertarian views on economical freedom.
  • Neutral: Corporatism
  • Left-wing: Consumerist Wage Drones
  • Right-wing: Aspirational Worker State
    

Father/Mother Knows Best State

• Description: The government allows moderate freedoms, but has the final say (like a parent). Citizens are ruled by a mostly-benevolent dictator, who grants the populace the freedom to live their own lives but watches carefully for anyone to slip up.
• Classification: Responsible Paternalism. Neutral views on personal and economical freedoms, authoritarian views on political freedom.
  • Neutral: Monarchy
  • Left-wing: Suspiciously Conservative Democracy
  • Right-wing: Suspiciously Liberal Dictatorship
    

Corrupt Dictatorship

• Description: A state in which the government has lowered political and economic rights and adopted a moderate civil rights policy. Citizens are ruled with an iron fist by the dictatorship government, which ensures that no-one outside the party gets too rich. In their personal lives, however, citizens are relatively unoppressed; it remains to be seen whether this is because the government genuinely cares about its people, or if it hasn’t gotten around to stamping out civil rights yet.
• Classification: Everyday Autocracy. Neutral views on personal freedoms, authoritarian views on political and economical freedoms.
  • Neutral: Authoritarian communism
  • Left-wing: Well-Meaning Dictatorship
  • Right-wing: Corrupt Liberal Dictatorship

authoritarian views on personal freedom

Free-Market Paradise

• Description: People are free to vote and make money but have few civil rights. Citizens enjoy frequent elections, which are uniformly corrupted by big-spending corporations buying politicians who best suit their interests.
• Classification: Rigid Capitalism. Authoritarian views on personal freedom, libertarian views on economical and political freedoms.
  • Neutral: Right-wing democracy
  • Left-wing: Randroids
  • Right-wing: Paradise
    

Conservative Democracy

• Description: People are free to vote, and usually use it to outlaw civil rights. Citizens are known throughout the region for their efficiency and work ethic, as well as their general suspicion of leisure.
• Classification: Democratic Conservatism. Authoritarian views on personal freedom, libertarian views on political freedom, and neutral views on economical freedom.
  • Neutral: Religious democracy
  • Left-wing: Conservative Hell
  • Right-wing: Conservative Paradise

Tyranny by Majority

• Description: Pure democracy without minority rights. Citizens enjoy great social freedoms and frequent elections, where the majority of the populace regularly votes to increase its benefits at the expense of various hapless minorities.
• Classification: Rigid Socialism. Authoritarian views on personal and economical freedoms, libertarian views on political freedom.
  • Neutral: Populism
  • Left-wing: Tyranny By Bourgeois
  • Right-wing: Thieves
    

Right-wing Utopia

• Description: A conservative state where little change is desired or put into action. Religion will usually play the role of the media. Citizens are free to succeed or fail in life on their own merits; the successful tend to enjoy an opulent (but moralistic) lifestyle, while the failures can be seen crowding out most jails.
• Classification: Capitalist Conservatism. Authoritarian views on personal freedom, neutral views on political freedom, and libertarian views on economical freedom.
  • Neutral: Right-wing republic
  • Left-wing: Corrupt Thieving Uneducated Fascist Fundamentalists
  • Right-wing: Utopia

Moralistic Democracy

• Description: The people have a say in the government, but choose to ban almost everything. Citizens are highly moralistic and fiercely conservative, in the sense that they tend to believe most things should be outlawed. People who have good jobs and work quietly at them are lauded; others are viewed with suspicion.
• Classification: Everyday Conservatism. Authoritarian views on personal freedom, neutral views on political and economical freedoms.
  • Neutral: Theocracy
  • Left-wing: Narrow-Minded Backwoodsy Bigots
  • Right-wing: Ordinary Decent Hardworking People
    

Authoritarian Democracy

• Description: Citizens have little freedom except some say in the government. Citizens are prohibited from doing almost everything except voting, which they do timidly and conservatively.
• Classification: Socialist Conservatism. Authoritarian views on personal and economical freedoms, neutral views on political freedom.
  • Neutral: Semi-Populism
  • Left-wing: Mouth-Breathing Creationists
  • Right-wing: Slightly Oppressive But A Little Discipline Never Hurt Anyone State

Corporate Police State

• Description: The government = big businesses. Individuals have few rights and have to buy from the top corporations. Citizens are ruled with an iron fist by the corrupt, dictatorship government, which oppresses anyone who isn’t on the board of a Fortune 500 company. Large corporations tend to be above the law, and use their financial clout to gain ever-increasing government benefits at the expense of the poor and unemployed.
• Classification: Everyday Plutocracy. Authoritarian views on personal and political freedoms, libertarian views on economical freedom.
  • Neutral: Authoritarian corporatism
  • Left-wing: Halliburton
  • Right-wing: Entrepreneurial Freedom Zone
    

Iron Fist Consumerists

• Description: This is an oppressive state that focuses on the economy. Supply and Demand are the two commandments. Citizens are kept under strict control by the oppressive government, which measures its success by the nation’s GDP and refers to individual citizens as “human resources.”
• Classification: Regulated Plutocracy. Authoritarian views on personal and political freedoms, neutral views on economical freedom.
  • Neutral: Fascism
  • Left-wing: Imperialist Pig Dog Oppressors
    
  • Right-wing: Champions of Commerce
    

Psychotic Dictatorship

• Description: Corrupt, authoritarian state where everyone is considered the leader’s toy. Citizens are ruled without fear or favour by a psychotic dictator, who outlaws just about everything and refers to the populace as “my little playthings.”
• Classification: Rigid Autocracy. Authoritarian views on personal, political, and economical freedoms.
  • Neutral: Dictatorship
  • Left-wing: Fascist Dictatorship
  • Right-wing: Communist Dictatorship
    

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