05-31-2019, 02:33 AM
The best way to deal with totalitarians either of the Left or Right is to make them irrelevant.
Communists typically take over in countries with no democratic heritage and a grossly unrepresentative form of government (absolute monarchy, military junta, colonial bosses, feudal elite) that shows no concern for the welfare of the people, typically in the early stage of industrialization in a country that has concentrated its manufacturing base (and its unhappy proletariat) in a few cities -- and puts an inordinate amount of its economic emphasis on heavy industry, resource extraction, or export-based agriculture. In such countries the economy works solely for elites, efforts to improve living conditions are futile, and the government typically suppresses moderate reformers while creating openings for small, conspiratorial elites that fit the Commie pattern. Practically all countries that have not done so will go through the stage of early industrialization -- but they can develop democracy early, and they can rely upon cottage industries that produce stuff that workers and peasants need such as shoes and crockery.
Fascists usually take over in countries just getting out or the early stage of industrial development in which workers start challenging the low pay and bad working conditions -- but employers want to keep labor costs low, so they turn to fascists. Big business exploits the resentments of the lower-middle class, people with 'solid' grade-school education that gets people low-paying white-collar jobs that do not gain in income as do blue-collar jobs; fascists exploit this sentiment. Most fascist causes exploit ethnic and religious bigotry as well as class resentments -- and hurt feelings of national pride. It's up to political leaders to show some moral compass that fascists invariably lack, promoting human brotherhood, and fostering rational thought.
You are right that the totalitarians either lack empathy (more precisely, they show it selectively)... and conceding anything to them is the equivalent of feeding your friends to the crocodile so that you will be the last eaten. Reject salami tactics that cut off one group after another group of helpless people.
Communists typically take over in countries with no democratic heritage and a grossly unrepresentative form of government (absolute monarchy, military junta, colonial bosses, feudal elite) that shows no concern for the welfare of the people, typically in the early stage of industrialization in a country that has concentrated its manufacturing base (and its unhappy proletariat) in a few cities -- and puts an inordinate amount of its economic emphasis on heavy industry, resource extraction, or export-based agriculture. In such countries the economy works solely for elites, efforts to improve living conditions are futile, and the government typically suppresses moderate reformers while creating openings for small, conspiratorial elites that fit the Commie pattern. Practically all countries that have not done so will go through the stage of early industrialization -- but they can develop democracy early, and they can rely upon cottage industries that produce stuff that workers and peasants need such as shoes and crockery.
Fascists usually take over in countries just getting out or the early stage of industrial development in which workers start challenging the low pay and bad working conditions -- but employers want to keep labor costs low, so they turn to fascists. Big business exploits the resentments of the lower-middle class, people with 'solid' grade-school education that gets people low-paying white-collar jobs that do not gain in income as do blue-collar jobs; fascists exploit this sentiment. Most fascist causes exploit ethnic and religious bigotry as well as class resentments -- and hurt feelings of national pride. It's up to political leaders to show some moral compass that fascists invariably lack, promoting human brotherhood, and fostering rational thought.
You are right that the totalitarians either lack empathy (more precisely, they show it selectively)... and conceding anything to them is the equivalent of feeding your friends to the crocodile so that you will be the last eaten. Reject salami tactics that cut off one group after another group of helpless people.
The ideal subject of totalitarian rule is not the convinced Nazi or the dedicated Communist but instead the people for whom the distinction between fact and fiction, true and false, no longer exists -- Hannah Arendt.