<nettime> Greetings from Fascist Park, NJ digest [flagan, newmedia]

[nettime_nation <nettime@bbs.thing.net>]

Are Flagan <areflagan@transcodex.net>
     Re: <nettime> Fascism in the USA?
Newmedia@aol.com
     Greetings from a Dunderhead

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Date: Sat, 31 May 2003 14:56:30 -0400
Subject: Re: <nettime> Fascism in the USA?
From: Are Flagan <areflagan@transcodex.net>

Re: 5/30/03 6:49 PM, "Brian Holmes" <brian.holmes@wanadoo.fr>:

> 
> What does it mean for the average citizen to be a fascist?
>

Fascist or Methodist, Vanity Fair against the Weekly Standard (I trust Bill
Kristol and the PNAC is familiar enough), truth versus lies, none of this
really matters much anymore. Like the many decks of cards that have popped
up the last few weeks, featuring either wanted figures of the Iraqi regime,
US corporate robber barons or the blacklisted traitors (Robbins and Sarandon
et al), they all play the same game, without cutting through the carefully
structured rules of engagement, the hierarchical taxonomy of the inventory.

I'll refrain from embarking on another critique of a generalized "American"
society, but it is patently hopeless to call these "lies" retrospectively or
feign disbelief that these people messed with "intelligence." (Again,
Rumsfeld blatantly set up his own internal unit to get the "right" results,
much to the chagrin of some of the people that have made this their
honorable craft and living.) If anything, lying becomes, as it has, an
entrenched habit that sinks into the public subconscious without retraction
or simply continues to assert itself through the sole facility of a widely
broadcasted repetition. Why do you think the FCC -- just noted for its many
expenses-paid (by the very people they are supposed to oversee) trips to
various global hotspots -- is seeking to create bigger and more exclusive
umbrellas for corporate ownership right now? (Undoubtedly very important
news for new, and tactical, media. The vote is on June 2.)

After Enron, Global Crossing, Xerox, Citibank (yes, of course, Spitzer no
doubt has political ambitions) and all the other tricks of the American
trade, why assume that other practices of deception will not be dealt with
much as business as usual? Just read Leo Strauss, mentor of Dubya Co., on
the _necessity_ of deception to steer the ignorant to where they should be
going. Lies are indeed WHITE in present day America.

All this has been written about extensively and exhaustively. It's all over
the Web and sometimes on page 23 in print outlets (with some notable
exceptions).

The more intriguing news lately came, rather curiously, in the Eurovision
song contest, where Britain scored a big blank zero -- decided by a
Europe-wide jury vote -- for the first time in this rather dull affair's
48-year history. Normally a top contender, if not a catchy winner, the lack
of any support from anywhere was dismissed as pure political revenge to
console the sobbing and aspiring pop singer.

-af 

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

From: Newmedia@aol.com
Date: Sat, 31 May 2003 15:05:49 EDT
Subject: Greetings from a Dunderhead

Martha:

> i will object only in passing to the astounding historical 
> dunderheadness of Mark Stahlman

Hmmmm . . . nice 16th century vocabularly choice.  Historical indeed!!

But, unless you are making a clever reference to the THUNDER words in 
Finnegans Wake (or equating me with Duns Scotus, from whose detractors comes 
"dunce"), that's pretty irresponsible and empty-handed of you!!

Everything that I said is historically accurate and easily demonstrated -- if 
you are willing to drop your "obsolete" ideological defenses. No?

> Most americans whom i know personally are terrified.

That's odd.  I know quite a few of them myself and only a handful -- those 
who are invariably the most "conservative" -- even approach being "terrified."  

For whatever it's worth, I had dinner with the president of the ACLU the 
other night and she wasn't even close to being terrified.  And, she's pretty 
plugged in regarding personal liberties, as you might suspect.

Perhaps the people you know "personally" aren't particularly well informed?  

Or, maybe they are nostalgists of some sort who long for the good-ol'-days of 
M.A.D. and "Dr. Strangelove"?  The way that the 1950's John Birch Society 
theme of "communists" behind every headline has morphed into the equally 
reactionary theme that the "fascists" are on the march is truly amazing to behold.

In the mid-1960's, Alvin Toffler suggested that "Future Shock" was the 
"psychopathology" of the time -- an observation which he turned into a best-seller 
in 1970. Do you think that a book on the same topic would be nearly as 
successful today and who would comprise its modern audience?  Might it be the 
"PALEO-LEFT"?

Fear of the future is indeed a terrible thing, since, for obvious reasons, 
the future is invevitable.  Let me be among the first to welcome you to the 21st 
century; make of it what you will.

Best,

Mark Stahlman
New York City

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

#  distributed via <nettime>: no commercial use without permission
#  <nettime> is a moderated mailing list for net criticism,
#  collaborative text filtering and cultural politics of the nets
#  more info: majordomo@bbs.thing.net and "info nettime-l" in the msg body
#  archive: http://www.nettime.org contact: nettime@bbs.thing.net