This is the second part of my letter dealing with the ideology of past fascist and semi-fascist regimes such as Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, Imperial Japan, Francoist Spain, Peronist Argentina and Vichy France. The first part of my letter was printed in the Feb. 28 edition of the Times-Union and listed 15 out of 43 sources of information that detail fascism and the actions of these various regimes. This part of my letter will focus on the various characteristics of pure fascist foreign policy. Before I begin it should be noted that each of these concepts by themselves have been practiced in one form or another for centuries before being molded together into a common belief system in the early 20th century by several infamous historical figures.
Common Characteristics of Pure Fascist Foreign Policy
1. Empire-Building - A fascist-ruled country is always seeking to turn other countries, usually starting with the weakest ones, into provinces, colonies or satellite states through the means of conquest in order to prove its strength, increase its wealth and power, and fulfill its self-proclaimed destiny.
2. Fanatically Pro-War - The fascist mentality in its love of violence considers war to be a moral virtue, which elevates war to the status of a national quasi-religion, making it an activity that an entire nation should be celebrating, mobilizing for and participating in. A fascist-ruled country, if its peculiar brand of diplomacy does not work, is always ready to get into a fight at the drop of a hat even for the sake of war itself.
3. Two-Faced Blackmailing Diplomacy - When a fascist-ruled country does resort to diplomacy it usually makes false claims to wanting peace and uses deception, double-dealing, intimidation and extortion to get its way in settling international disputes.
4. Xenophobia - Fascist politicians are always ready to inflame and exploit the irrational fear and hatred of foreigners and foreign cultures in their native countries in order to generate hostility toward other nations and increase their power over their own citizens.
5. Aggressive Unilateralism - A fascist-ruled country practices an extreme form of the order, totally withdrawing from participation in international institutions when it doesn't get its way, and always attempting to moneywrench peace and cooperation between other nations.
6. Axis Alliance - This term is based on the name given to the alliance between Germany and Japan and its satellite nation partners during World War II. This seems to be one of the few forms of international cooperation that fascist ruled countries will engage in; that is teaming up with other fascist countries to divide up the world. However, at some point in time they will eventually turn on each other if they take their survival of the fittest mentality to its logical conclusion.
Other characteristics of fascism will follow in a later letter to the editor.
