Firstly, let me mention that I've not bothered with the usual convention of obliterating surnames in snapshot-grabbed Facebook postings, simply because the Wall on which these things were posted is publicly visible, so all posters chose to attach their names publicly to their words in view of the world. (To view it properly, click on it to see a larger version)
That said, my response to the above was as follows:
BThomas Joy, kudos to you at least for not blocking me as suggested.
I did consider when making my post, that I may be incorrectly assumed to a) be a Fascist, b) be calling you a Fascist, and / or c) both of the above.
In fact, none of the above are the case.
My purpose here is not disruption as the flock here have suggested, but rather merely to note that the stated “mark of the fascist” was somewhat inaccurate.
Allow me to illustrate with a clear example: In WWII, there were at least five main political systems going to war, depending on how you count them (I’m counting Fascism, Communism, Constitutional Monarchy, Constitutional Democratic Republic, and Imperial Despotism - your mileage may vary). All of them engaged in prolific propaganda and manipulation.
To this end, would you still consider “propaganda and manipulation” to be the “mark of the fascist”?
So, no, propaganda and manipulation is merely the mark of the political zealot of any kind, which is either a good or a bad thing depending on what the political zealot (or party) intends to do with the propaganda and manipulation, and the power that it brings.
For what it’s worth, I’m neither a Fascist, nor a Republican as a suggested. Nor am I a paid agent provocateur, though I’m almost flattered that my Socratic poking comes across professionally.
When Americans ask if I am a Democrat or a Repbulican, the simple answer is “No, I’m not”. In fact, the rest of the world’s politics aren’t so insanely polarised as America’s, and I can’t think of another country that has two main equal and opposite parties quite as bizarre as America’s.
To those of you who are *not* BThomas Joy, the reason I referred to you as “the flock” above (I’ll clarify as it may have different connotations for different people) is a nod to George Orwell’s “Animal Farm”. For those who haven’t read it, it is a satirical political commentary on Russia’s Communist Revolution and the events that followed it.
The animals, fed up with the yoke of oppression, take over the farm, and each different animal or group of animals represents one or more of the key players in the Communist Revolution or the Communist regime that was to follow it.
Sometimes, when there is a questioning dissenting voice, the sheep would (appearing from nowhere if they hadn’t been there previously) drown out the questioning dissenting voice with a rousing bleating chorus of one thing or another (generally some simplified political idea that they had been taught to repeat), such that the dissenting questioning voice could not be heard.
“Agh! It’s a troll! Block it! Delete it! Stamp it out! Don’t listen to it! It's vermin!” is rarely the way to practice the worldview that you claim to champion (I’d assume you to broadly consider yourselves something akin to Social Democrats, correct me if I’m wrong), in which ideology generally it is a popular idea that everyone should get to be heard.
PS, specifically to Kathryn, I should mention that reframing a person as "vermin" generally *is* a Fascist device. I don't think BThomas Joy is remotely Fascist, but that comment of yours rather suggested that you'd be goose-stepping with the "best" of them.
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