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Good piece by #PaulMason, in #Prospect magazine.
"We are no longer dealing with fascism as a Führer-led hierarchy, as it was in Nazi Germany, but as a rhizomic structure: the roots communicate with other roots independently of the tree trunk, and the modern equivalent of Mein Kampf is created by its readers in real time. It leaves the local institutions of democracy—police forces and councils—facing a globally organised force they barely understand."
I am not a fan of the hierarchical focus on Nazi Germany, in part because it places an emphasis on a rat bastard who was, by all accounts, neurotic, deranged, and thoroughly incapable of long-term planning.
Rather, I would argue that the parallels here are apt and strong, with a part of the populace, already seeded by discontent and hopelessness for their future -- a strong parallel with post WWI Germany -- finding a figurehead around whom they could rally in order to blame The Other.
Likewise, relying upon the vaunted institutions of democracy to police a fascist state of affairs is sending a chicken to guard a foxhouse. It's not that the institutions of fascism are new or misunderstood. It's that they operate on principles which a democratic or diplomatic entity is typically ill-equipped to counter.
@david_colquhoun The police in some jurisdictions understand it better than I’m comfortable with.