Fascism: What exactly is it and how do you recognize it?

[kelley]

Splitting hairs over what motivates humans (or what differentiates them from other animals) is but boiling the frog a bit more slowly.

Or, quoting another metaphor, "All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others."

[dada]

Cats are more equal than others. Big cats, strays, ordinary house cat.

Cats with short legs and funny facings are the most equal. More equal than all the rests. Biggest thing on Internet.

[kelley]

Why one philosopher believes dogs are the bridge between humanity and nature

Mark Alizart argues that dogs are the bridge between nature and us — and, like us, possess a "will to be"


https://www.salon.com/2019/11/10/why-on ... nd-nature/


"My understanding is that we might have to become more like dogs in order to survive all this turmoil, and to change the world. Meaning, we have to free ourselves from what we were talking about earlier on, which is all these stupid hierarchies, and this construction of masculinity, and toxic masculinity, which dogs break up. That's what we have to liberate ourselves from. And dogs can help us to do that. And in that way I would say, yes, we ask of you to become more like dogs. To be as gentle, delicate and understanding as dogs."

[dada]

Even a man who is pure in heart and says his prayers by night may become a wolf when the wolfbane blooms and the autumn moon is bright

But then, Arthur is taught how to see through the eyes of animals. Part of Merlin's lesson-plan. Arthur isn't learning to be wizard, though, but philosopher-king. How is it that Merlin can prepare him for that?

[dada]

Philosopher-king isn't an expert in all philosophies, or even in one, not any. Doesn't become philosopher-king by crystallizing a syncretic fusion of philosophies. But when it comes to the philosophy of philosophies, the philospher-king's humor is unparallelled, the expert in the field. Why it used to be called the royal art.

Philosopher-queen, now, that is really something else. But that's another matter. In fact, I'm not at all sure if she is entirely matter, or even a little bit.

first edit was a rephrasing of the last sentence at the behest of the philosopher-queen. second edit was to change 'unmatched' to 'unparallelled.' Pairing the American spelling of humor with the British spelling of unparallelled is not an oversight, it just felt right.

[kelley]

On Recognition, or Why Dogs Make Great Philosophers
Taylor Adkins

https://fractalontology.wordpress.com/2 ... losophers/

"The dog’s virtue is precisely in his recognition of the face of the Other in relation to that of the Same. As a crucial result, philosophy and justice come to reinforce each other on this basic principle: that the love of knowledge is the exaltation of the Same, and for philosophy to express its domination, the unlike must be rendered unto justice, which is to say that it must be made into the Same. Consequently, the Other and the Stranger are always on the other side of justice, justice always seems to slope off asymptotically upon verging with the unlike. As Laruelle would remind us, though, we are all Strangers in-the-last-instance, which means that the criterion of Sameness and Difference will not help us here if we are to think a completely human notion of justice."

Thinking in notions which aren't human may also mean thinking not as feline, or equine, or anserine, but as canine.

Or possibly, on the side of justice.

Bluebell.

Jessie.

Pitcher.

[Gnomad]

Lagomorphs, the tiny of the earth.

[kelley]

An introduction to Gilbert Simondon's influential and underrecognized "Two Lessons on Animal and Man":

"Gilbert Simondon (1924 – 1989) was arguably one of the most original and innovative thinkers in contemporary French philosophy. A student of Maurice Merleau-Ponty, Simondon’s work has has had an influence on a wide variety disciplines ranging from philosophy and anthropology, to media and cybernetics. As Aislinn O’Donnell describes: ‘On one page, he may describe an electrical field, on another, detail the genesis of the crystal, and on another, reflect on anxiety, anguish and spirituality.' "

Part One:
https://bluelabyrinths.com/2015/04/13/t ... antiquity/


Part Two:
https://bluelabyrinths.com/2015/04/20/t ... tesianism/

[kelley]

Not so fast there, Rover.

A wolf is not a dog is not a wolf.

https://dogtime.com/dog-health/general/ ... not-a-wolf

"If there is one phrase I would like to erase from the world of dog ownership, it is 'You must be the alpha.' Dog owners across the country have been spouting this line for years, citing the fact dogs and wolves share common ancestors and must be managed accordingly. Well, based on that logic, I should be picking the lice out of my niece’s hair and eating it, because, after all, humans and chimpanzees share a common ancestor.

Let’s get serious though. Dogs are not wolves and haven’t been for a very long time. Dominance theory, in which dog owners do things like roll over and pin their pets to the ground as punishment for bad behavior, is a bit outdated, although its late arrival to popular television seems to have given it a fresh start."

I'll add this observation.

Wolf populations periodically fluctuate between stability and extinction.

Dogs, not so much. If the pandemic is any indication, they flourish under adverse conditions. From experience, there must now be at least one dog for every adult human in my small corner of Brooklyn.

Exaggerating of course, but still.

[JackRiddler]

Dogs, not so much. If the pandemic is any indication, they flourish under adverse conditions. From experience, there must now be at least one dog for every adult human in my small corner of Brooklyn.

Oh fucking a, ain't it the truth. Stuck in the land of dog people, are we?

By the way, is almost everyone left on R.I. secretly in the NYNJ agglomerate, majority Brooklyn, possibly next door?

[kelley]

Twenty-plus years or so is a long time. I'm glad RI is still here. There have been flashes of its OG glory on display during these difficult times. This is fantastic.

Keep on, JR.

[Grizzly]

Haven't read one post on this thread, however....

FUCK THIS GUY: https://rumble.com/vdganl-james-clapper-interrogation-part-5.html

[JackRiddler]

.

What is it? The Super Bowl show sure was, in many ways. As it often is. We can call that establishment fascism, or patriotic fascism, or come up with some other name. It's real. It's horrific. It's the biggest current threat to the world. Nevertheless there is something in addition we can call movement fascism, and the Trump years have seen its most extensive expression in the U.S., probably since the 1930s. It's real, it's distinct, and if it came to a full development, if it seized the state as Trump promised for a second term, if the rolling attempt had succeeded, it would make everything immeasurably worse. I am grateful to Paul Street for gathering all the arguments I've been representing here concerning the latter in such a thorough fashion. It should not be trivialized. He has some comments on Covid I would differ with. I also question a couple of his citation choices, except that he is doing a survey of different views, including of pathetic liberals. But otherwise, I am genuinely grateful for his doing all this work. I won't quote it in full, since it has a lot of formatting and links...

The Anatomy of Fascism Denial
By Paul Street
February 7, 2021
https://www.counterpunch.org/2021/02/07 ... ial/print/


All hesitation to acknowledge that the United States had a serious brush with fascism under Donald Trump should have disappeared with the Trump-instigated Attack on the U.S. Capital last January 6th. “Donald Trump…is indeed a fascist – an authoritarian willing to use violence to achieve his racial nationalist goals. So are many of his supporters. If you had any doubts,” Paul Krugman wrote one day after the coup attempt, the January 6th incident (sparked by the Big fascist Trump Lie that the 2020 election was stolen) “should have ended them.”

In truth, the doubts should never have existed in the first place...

[Spiro C. Thiery]

^^

.
https://www.counterpunch.org/2021/02/07 ... ial/print/

But for COVID-19, Herr Donald would be settling in to a second disastrous term with a giant mass of white Amerikaners behind him after his many fans in the police and military had bloodily suppressed a national rebellion against his theft of an election much closer than the one that took place last fall. Think about that.

Any idea what this is a reference to?

[Grizzly]

Re: Paul Street

Thank God,for team Blue, and the DNC hero's whom saved us from all that!