Wednesday, March 14, 2007
Book Report: American Fascists
Chris Hedges latest book, American Fascists: The Christian Right and the War on America, is a helluva book. I've been absolutely engrossed since I got it over the weekend, drawn into a compelling set of arguments that read with the potency of thriller fiction. The author makes seemingly hyperbolic statements-'the Christian Right has completely infiltrated the Republican Party'-then follows with a merciless hammering of facts-this percentage of republican senators received over 90% approval ratings from the top three Christian Right groups, this politician ran for office promising the death penalty for doctors who perform abortions, this senator is a creationist. The many deeds of the various actors on the Christian Right are laid out in a framework that demonstrates the deliberate parallels with other fanatical fascist groups in history. I believe that wherever one lies on the 'political spectrum', this book is a must read for concerned citizens.
Mr. Hedges is a Christian. Within his first chapter, 'Faith', he makes the dangerous choice to include a fair amount of his own beliefs and personal experience while criticizing the type of 'Christians' who are somehow not offended by the use of mass media by their leaders. This tactic often fails authors, (I'm thinking of Daniel Dennett's Breaking the Spell, where he indulges in so many attempts to beg the evag not to close the book and their mind -- I had to close the book, or at least skip ahead a few chapters) but Mr. Hedges is proud of his faith, and discusses the subject in a way that I haven't seen since Kierkegaard. I found his first chapter to be a fair balance between subjective personal experience and objective insight into the world of the Christian Right.
While the tone of American Fascists can often flirt with the inflammatory, Mr. Hedges' honest compassion for the individuals he sees as trapped in the clutches of this false religion easily moves this book up beyond the jeremiad. Dozens of men and women from within the movement that he criticizes are breathed into life by his written word. The tales of personal and economic tragedies are interwoven with an insight into how fascist manipulators consciously exploit the sense of hopelessness and desperation in people whom society has cast aside. He lets these individuals speak for themselves, rarely with a disparaging aside. For readers who have seen the film 'Jesus Camp,' or are familiar with this group; their shocking openness with others about their inner lives can be agonizing for those of us who disapprove of such a paradigm. One cannot help but feel terrible empathy for the poor souls caught up in the propaganda of the Christian Right.
I don’t believe books like this one come around all that often. The technical details of
propaganda - the how not the why- of how it was done in Germany, Serbia, China, of how
a small, radical, fanatical group seizes power; these details are not often found in a small,
well-written, mass distributed book. Mr. Hedges gives some excruciating insight into what goes on at a 'Conversion Conference,' where eager evagelikals have their own personal stories of finding Jesus honed and corrected by leaders to maximize their effectiveness at seducing converts. The techniques of 'Love Bombing,' where a lonely target is selected by recruitment leaders and then suddenly the recipient of extravagant attention by multiple cult members, a technique first used by Chinese Communists back in the day - The Christian Right has added it to their bag of tricks. Free societies have been overcome and destroyed by fascist groups on sundry occasions. The tactics they used are surprisingly similar. Any patriot who loves America will want to understand them better.
Since we began this article with the crude comparison between Mr. Hedges’ book and
thriller fiction, we must conclude with a point; the resonance of which can be felt on many
levels. Is there a pattern to fascist takeovers of democracy, and is the current leadership of
the Christian Right deliberately following that patten? Or is he a conspiracy nut, drawing
us into his titillating world where zombies with guns and bibles are about to destroy over
200 years of American Liberty? The Archetype of the Society on the Brink of Peril be
always seductive. Is his world a conspiracy theory fantasy or has he correctly described a
sub culture within our society that is shamelessly employing the organization and
propaganda models of fascists? Ultimately, Mr. Hedges attempts to reinforce his allegations with facts, quotes, a bibliography, and logic. We can engage his book on its intellectual merits, we are free to assess the peril to our beloved homeland at our own leisure. The fact that those he criticizes, that they are unswayed by facts, quotes, references, and logic, that they pride themselves on never questioning the statements of their Leaders; read this book.
Besides, every true radical's gonna want to own it just to know on their bookshelf resided a favored tome; the index of which held sixteen entries for ‘God’, located shortly after ‘Global Warming, denial of’, and just preceding ‘Goebbels, Joseph.’
Mr. Hedges is a Christian. Within his first chapter, 'Faith', he makes the dangerous choice to include a fair amount of his own beliefs and personal experience while criticizing the type of 'Christians' who are somehow not offended by the use of mass media by their leaders. This tactic often fails authors, (I'm thinking of Daniel Dennett's Breaking the Spell, where he indulges in so many attempts to beg the evag not to close the book and their mind -- I had to close the book, or at least skip ahead a few chapters) but Mr. Hedges is proud of his faith, and discusses the subject in a way that I haven't seen since Kierkegaard. I found his first chapter to be a fair balance between subjective personal experience and objective insight into the world of the Christian Right.
While the tone of American Fascists can often flirt with the inflammatory, Mr. Hedges' honest compassion for the individuals he sees as trapped in the clutches of this false religion easily moves this book up beyond the jeremiad. Dozens of men and women from within the movement that he criticizes are breathed into life by his written word. The tales of personal and economic tragedies are interwoven with an insight into how fascist manipulators consciously exploit the sense of hopelessness and desperation in people whom society has cast aside. He lets these individuals speak for themselves, rarely with a disparaging aside. For readers who have seen the film 'Jesus Camp,' or are familiar with this group; their shocking openness with others about their inner lives can be agonizing for those of us who disapprove of such a paradigm. One cannot help but feel terrible empathy for the poor souls caught up in the propaganda of the Christian Right.
I don’t believe books like this one come around all that often. The technical details of
propaganda - the how not the why- of how it was done in Germany, Serbia, China, of how
a small, radical, fanatical group seizes power; these details are not often found in a small,
well-written, mass distributed book. Mr. Hedges gives some excruciating insight into what goes on at a 'Conversion Conference,' where eager evagelikals have their own personal stories of finding Jesus honed and corrected by leaders to maximize their effectiveness at seducing converts. The techniques of 'Love Bombing,' where a lonely target is selected by recruitment leaders and then suddenly the recipient of extravagant attention by multiple cult members, a technique first used by Chinese Communists back in the day - The Christian Right has added it to their bag of tricks. Free societies have been overcome and destroyed by fascist groups on sundry occasions. The tactics they used are surprisingly similar. Any patriot who loves America will want to understand them better.
Since we began this article with the crude comparison between Mr. Hedges’ book and
thriller fiction, we must conclude with a point; the resonance of which can be felt on many
levels. Is there a pattern to fascist takeovers of democracy, and is the current leadership of
the Christian Right deliberately following that patten? Or is he a conspiracy nut, drawing
us into his titillating world where zombies with guns and bibles are about to destroy over
200 years of American Liberty? The Archetype of the Society on the Brink of Peril be
always seductive. Is his world a conspiracy theory fantasy or has he correctly described a
sub culture within our society that is shamelessly employing the organization and
propaganda models of fascists? Ultimately, Mr. Hedges attempts to reinforce his allegations with facts, quotes, a bibliography, and logic. We can engage his book on its intellectual merits, we are free to assess the peril to our beloved homeland at our own leisure. The fact that those he criticizes, that they are unswayed by facts, quotes, references, and logic, that they pride themselves on never questioning the statements of their Leaders; read this book.
Besides, every true radical's gonna want to own it just to know on their bookshelf resided a favored tome; the index of which held sixteen entries for ‘God’, located shortly after ‘Global Warming, denial of’, and just preceding ‘Goebbels, Joseph.’
