[FoRK] Right-wing propaganda equating fascism with the left

[J. Andrew Rogers]

On Jan 29, 2008, at 7:22 PM, Jeff Bone wrote:
>
> Speaking of asses and the Republic(ans) --- what, weren't we? ---  
> has anybody had a chance to read _Liberal Fascism: The Secret  
> History of the American Left, From Mussolini to the Politics of  
> Meaning_ by Jonah Goldberg?  This is becoming the right-wingnuts  
> equivalent of The God Delusion --- a book that becomes a rallying  
> point.  Over the last couple of weeks it's been talked up on every  
> right-wing media outlet I sample.


The problem is that your analysis is openly and obviously knee-jerk  
and dogmatic rather than thoughtful.  Tyler Cowen seems to do a more  
credible analysis, and while he does not think highly of the book he  
does contradict a number of your assertions on pretty reasonable  
grounds.

http://www.marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2008/01/liberal-fascism.html

I have no intention of wasting any time reading the book myself though.


More generally, why is it always "us versus them"?  Both sides of  
these arguments deny unpleasant truths as falsehoods.  In my calculus,  
that makes both sides the same kind of low-rent demagogue who are best  
ignored for the fools that they are.  And a small minority that people  
actually give credence to like Noam Chomsky or James Dobson are very  
reliable contra-indicators of cluefulness, being dead wrong about  
almost everything they have ever opined on.

Taking small sips of the nutter Kool-Aid won't kill you but it still  
is not healthy.  Even if Jonah Goldberg is an idiot, he can still be  
correct on some points.  Indeed, most idiots usually are, even if by  
accident.

J. Andrew Rogers