Political Theory

Re: Guess who wrote this...

LeeO — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 21:37:34 GMT

He's saying that fascism denies that democracy works. Just like anarcho-capitalism denies that democracy works.

According to Paul Gottfried, Italian fascism wasn't all that bad before Mussolini got into bed with Hitler.

Re: Guess who wrote this...

ThatOldGuy — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 21:03:16 GMT

Looking it up on Wikipedia, it seems like Mussolini is talking about fascism, not democracy, in the first quote.

Re: Guess who wrote this...

LeeO — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 20:58:03 GMT

TronCat Wins!

It's from his essay The Doctrine of Fascism published in 1932. A few pages later Mussolini writes:

"If the nineteenth was the century of the individual (Liberalism means individualism) it may be expected that this one may be the century of 'collectivism' and therefore the century of the State."

As Rothbard put it, let's repeal the 20th century!

Re: Guess who wrote this...

TronCat — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 20:39:26 GMT

Mussolini.

Re: Guess who wrote this...

SkepticalMetal — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 20:20:16 GMT

I'm going to go with this guy.

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Re: Guess who wrote this...

Anenome — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 20:14:48 GMT

Hmm, clearly 18th+ century style. I'd venture to say Hamilton, Jefferson, or perhaps Paine. In a more off-the-wall guess, I'd venture Herbert Spencer.

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***Edit: Knowing who it is now, the end being argued for, for such a critique, is quite different than our preference, even if the reasoning is fairly sound. And I was fooled by a multitude of semi-colons :P

Re: Guess who wrote this...

Autolykos — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 19:47:47 GMT

Going along with what The Texas Trigger said, it sounds to me like Hitler in Mein Kampf.

Re: Guess who wrote this...

LeeO — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 19:44:55 GMT

I am going to guess either Marx or Hitler, maybe even Mussolini or Stalin? No, I bet it was F4M!

Well done - it's one of those five.

Re: Guess who wrote this...

The Texas Trigger — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 19:37:21 GMT

Just judging from the forum title, I am going to guess that its someone we wouldn't normally expect to say such a thing but perhaps might given the right context. There are many evil men in history who also hated democracy in much the same way that Krugman hated TARP and the Banking Bailouts ("It just isn't enough!). I am going to guess either Marx or Hitler, maybe even Mussolini or Stalin? No, I bet it was F4M!

Re: Guess who wrote this...

Mens Rea — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 19:37:17 GMT

H. L. Mencken?

Re: Guess who wrote this...

No2statism — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 19:31:29 GMT

I didn't read/try to interpret the whole thing (I skimmed it) but I'm guessing someone more libertarian than Jefferson, maybe Rothbard.

Guess who wrote this...

LeeO — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 19:20:59 GMT

...fantastic critique of democracy:

"[this political doctrine] denies that the majority, through the mere fact of being a majority, can rule human societies; it denies that this majority can govern by means of a periodical consultation; it affirms the irremediable, fruitful and beneficent inequality of men, who cannot be leveled by such a mechanical and extrinsic fact as universal suffrage. . . . Democracy is a regime without a king, but with very many kings, perhaps more exclusive, tyrannical and violent than one king even though a tyrant. . . ."

Don't cheat and look it up.