The Anabaptist Jacques
Crusader
In 1995, Umberto eco gave a speech at Columbia Univesity commemorating the 50th anniversary of the defeat of fascism.
In the speech, he listed 14 indicators of what he called “Eternal Fascism” or Ur-Fascism”, that is, fascist traits which are common to all forms of fascism. Eco said that fascism in the future would be different from the past on specific points and issues, but these general points are common to all forms of fascism.
I have shortened the description of each point. The italics are his, and I have put his words in quotation marks.
When I read this for the first time about twelve years ago I realized that Scientology by its nature was fascist.
See if any of these points look like Scientology to you.
As Eco put it “But all you need is one of them to be present, and a Fascist nebula will begin to coagulate.”
1. “The first characteristic of Ur-Fascism is cult of tradition.” Traditionalism, he explains, is an idea older than fascism, but the cult of tradition combines religious ideas that contradict each other but all are said to reveal original truth. He then explains “Consequently, there can be no advancement of learning. The truth has already been announced once and for all, and all we can do is continue interpreting its obscure message.”
2. “Traditionalism implies the rejection of modernism.” He goes on to explain that ideas like democracy and equality and freedom “and the Age of Reason were seen as the beginning of modern depravity. In this sense, Ur-Fascism can be defined as irrationalism.”
3. “Irrationalism also depends on the cult of action for action‘s sake. Thinking is a form of emasculation. Therefore culture is suspect insofar as it is identified with critical attitudes. …suspicion of intellectual life has always been a symptom of Ur-Fascism. The official Fascist intellectuals were mainly committed to accusing modern culture and the liberal intelligentsia of having abandoned traditional values.”
4. No form of [Ur-Fascism] can accept criticism. The critical spirit makes distinctions, and distinguishing is a sign of modernity. In modern culture, the scientific community sees dissent as a tool with which to promote the advancement of learning. For Ur-Fascism, dissent is betrayal.”
5. “Dissent is moreover a sign of diversity. Ur-Fascism grows and seeks a consensus by exploiting and exacerbating the natural fear of difference.”
6. “Ur-Fascism springs from individual or social frustration.” He goes on to say that it will “appeal to the frustrated middle classes.”
7. “At the root of Ur-Fascist psychology lies the obsession with conspiracies, preferable international ones. The disciples must feel they are under siege.”
8. The disciples must feel humiliated by the enemy’s vaunted wealth and power. But the disciples must none the less feel they can defeat the enemy. Thus, the enemy is at once too strong and too weak. Fascist regimes are doomed to lose their wars, because they are constitutionally incapable of making an objective assessment of the enemy’s strength.”
9. “For Ur-Fascism there is no struggle for life but, rather, a ‘life for struggle.’ Pacifism is therefore collusion with the enemy.”
10. Scorn for the weak. Ur-Fascism cannot do without preaching a ‘popular elitism.’ Every individual belongs to the best people in the world, party members are the best citizens, and every citizen can (or ought to be) become a party member. The leader, who is well aware that his power has not been attained by delegation but was taken by force, also knows his power is based on the weakness of the masses, who are so weak as to need and deserve a ‘dominator.’ Since the group is organized hierarchically (along military lines), each subordinate leader looks down on his inferiors, and each of his inferiors looks down in turn on his own underlings.”
11.“From this point of view, everyone is trained to be a hero.” He talks here about the idea of giving your life to the cause.”
12. “The Ur-Fascists transfer his will to power onto sexual questions. This is the origin of machismo (which implies contempt for women and an intolerant condemnation of non-conformist sexual habits, from chastity to homosexuality).”
13. “Ur-Fascism is based on ‘qualitative populism.’ In a democracy the citizens enjoy individual rights…For Ur-Fascists individuals have no rights.”
14. “Ur-Fascism uses newspeak. ‘Newspeak’ was invented by Orwell in 1984. All the Nazi and scholastic texts were based on por vocabulary and elementary syntax, the aim being to limit the instruments available to complex and critical reasoning.”
The Anabaptist Jacques
In the speech, he listed 14 indicators of what he called “Eternal Fascism” or Ur-Fascism”, that is, fascist traits which are common to all forms of fascism. Eco said that fascism in the future would be different from the past on specific points and issues, but these general points are common to all forms of fascism.
I have shortened the description of each point. The italics are his, and I have put his words in quotation marks.
When I read this for the first time about twelve years ago I realized that Scientology by its nature was fascist.
See if any of these points look like Scientology to you.
As Eco put it “But all you need is one of them to be present, and a Fascist nebula will begin to coagulate.”
1. “The first characteristic of Ur-Fascism is cult of tradition.” Traditionalism, he explains, is an idea older than fascism, but the cult of tradition combines religious ideas that contradict each other but all are said to reveal original truth. He then explains “Consequently, there can be no advancement of learning. The truth has already been announced once and for all, and all we can do is continue interpreting its obscure message.”
2. “Traditionalism implies the rejection of modernism.” He goes on to explain that ideas like democracy and equality and freedom “and the Age of Reason were seen as the beginning of modern depravity. In this sense, Ur-Fascism can be defined as irrationalism.”
3. “Irrationalism also depends on the cult of action for action‘s sake. Thinking is a form of emasculation. Therefore culture is suspect insofar as it is identified with critical attitudes. …suspicion of intellectual life has always been a symptom of Ur-Fascism. The official Fascist intellectuals were mainly committed to accusing modern culture and the liberal intelligentsia of having abandoned traditional values.”
4. No form of [Ur-Fascism] can accept criticism. The critical spirit makes distinctions, and distinguishing is a sign of modernity. In modern culture, the scientific community sees dissent as a tool with which to promote the advancement of learning. For Ur-Fascism, dissent is betrayal.”
5. “Dissent is moreover a sign of diversity. Ur-Fascism grows and seeks a consensus by exploiting and exacerbating the natural fear of difference.”
6. “Ur-Fascism springs from individual or social frustration.” He goes on to say that it will “appeal to the frustrated middle classes.”
7. “At the root of Ur-Fascist psychology lies the obsession with conspiracies, preferable international ones. The disciples must feel they are under siege.”
8. The disciples must feel humiliated by the enemy’s vaunted wealth and power. But the disciples must none the less feel they can defeat the enemy. Thus, the enemy is at once too strong and too weak. Fascist regimes are doomed to lose their wars, because they are constitutionally incapable of making an objective assessment of the enemy’s strength.”
9. “For Ur-Fascism there is no struggle for life but, rather, a ‘life for struggle.’ Pacifism is therefore collusion with the enemy.”
10. Scorn for the weak. Ur-Fascism cannot do without preaching a ‘popular elitism.’ Every individual belongs to the best people in the world, party members are the best citizens, and every citizen can (or ought to be) become a party member. The leader, who is well aware that his power has not been attained by delegation but was taken by force, also knows his power is based on the weakness of the masses, who are so weak as to need and deserve a ‘dominator.’ Since the group is organized hierarchically (along military lines), each subordinate leader looks down on his inferiors, and each of his inferiors looks down in turn on his own underlings.”
11.“From this point of view, everyone is trained to be a hero.” He talks here about the idea of giving your life to the cause.”
12. “The Ur-Fascists transfer his will to power onto sexual questions. This is the origin of machismo (which implies contempt for women and an intolerant condemnation of non-conformist sexual habits, from chastity to homosexuality).”
13. “Ur-Fascism is based on ‘qualitative populism.’ In a democracy the citizens enjoy individual rights…For Ur-Fascists individuals have no rights.”
14. “Ur-Fascism uses newspeak. ‘Newspeak’ was invented by Orwell in 1984. All the Nazi and scholastic texts were based on por vocabulary and elementary syntax, the aim being to limit the instruments available to complex and critical reasoning.”
The Anabaptist Jacques
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