I just don’t think that pointing to the direction of travel and jumping to the conclusion is politically astute. It’s not an immediate threat and it turns the average person away from political involvement, not towards it.
All the things you pointed out have also been part of other authoritarian movements.
Capital-F Fascism will only come in Western nations after they experience a massive humiliation, not before. This precipitates the broad nationalist anger that’s required. The present course is taking us towards a different kind of totalitarianism, one that doesn’t really have a historical parallel.
Edit: I also think it’s a mistake to equate fascism with some kind of mystical “ultimate evil”. With modern technology, it’s quite possible for us to dream up a future that looks very different than fascism but is somehow even worse. Positioning every political struggle in terms of “fascism” or “anti-fascism” just makes this more likely, because it creates blind spots for new horrors.
All the things you pointed out have also been part of other authoritarian movements.
Capital-F Fascism will only come in Western nations after they experience a massive humiliation, not before. This precipitates the broad nationalist anger that’s required. The present course is taking us towards a different kind of totalitarianism, one that doesn’t really have a historical parallel.
Edit: I also think it’s a mistake to equate fascism with some kind of mystical “ultimate evil”. With modern technology, it’s quite possible for us to dream up a future that looks very different than fascism but is somehow even worse. Positioning every political struggle in terms of “fascism” or “anti-fascism” just makes this more likely, because it creates blind spots for new horrors.