LNP’s nasty agenda

THE LNP regime is depicted by 14 defining characteristics common to each fascist regime:

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.

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”.

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.

4. Supremacy of the military. Even when there are widespread domestic problems, the military is given a disproportionate amount of government funding.

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

6. Controlled mass media. Sometimes media is directly controlled by the government, but in other cases, the media is indirectly controlled by government regulation.

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, 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 busi- ness aristocracy of a fascist nation often are the ones who put the government leaders into power.

10. Labour power is suppressed. Because the organising power of labour is the only real threat to a fascist government, labour unions are either eliminated entirely, or are severely suppressed.

11. Disdain for intellectuals and the arts. Fascist nations tend to promote and tolerate open hostility towards higher education and academia.

12. Obsession with crime and punishment. Under fascist regimes, the police are given almost limitless power to enforce laws.

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.

14. Fraudulent elections. Sometimes elections in fascist nations are a complete sham. Other times elections are manipulated by smear campaigns against opposition candidates, use of legislation to control voting numbers or political district boundaries, and manipulation of the media.

JOHN GLADWELL,

Black River.