Michelle Malkin: Fascist? Too Harsh a Term?
Written earlier today, while at work:
Michelle Malkin is a fascist. Well, at least in one regard. Her book, In Defense of Internment, is primarily based on the premise that the US is in peril if it prioritizes "political correctness" over national security and sovereignty. Malkin is utterly wrong on this point. First, there's a world of difference between PC and, oh, I don't know, liberty? And equality under the law? The inalienable rights of human rights aren't a matter of, as Malkin suggests, "hurt feelings."
Does this make her a fascist? Well, I don't know that she's necessarily a nationalist who favors an expansionist one-party dictatorship, but the values she says should be prioritized are in line with fascism, and in that regard, the term fits. Conservatives, at least, those who claim to champion the Constitution and to understand the primacy of liberty, associate with her writings at their intellectual peril.
I worry though - "fascist" as an epithet is horribly over- and misused, and here I go, using it here. The term is in danger of losing its meaning, and here I go, perpetuating it... but for the life of me, I know of no other way to classify someone who puts "safety" ahead of freedom, thereby ensuring we have neither (as Franklin famously said), and who argues that the internment of innocent Japanese-Americans in WWII was justified.
(Oh - and regarding her treatment by Chris Matthews. She has insane views, but it's only going to make her look good to act as boarish as Matthews a few nights ago. I heard the audio from her visit to the show, and it's pretty much as she recounts at her blog.)
Michelle Malkin is a fascist. Well, at least in one regard. Her book, In Defense of Internment, is primarily based on the premise that the US is in peril if it prioritizes "political correctness" over national security and sovereignty. Malkin is utterly wrong on this point. First, there's a world of difference between PC and, oh, I don't know, liberty? And equality under the law? The inalienable rights of human rights aren't a matter of, as Malkin suggests, "hurt feelings."
Does this make her a fascist? Well, I don't know that she's necessarily a nationalist who favors an expansionist one-party dictatorship, but the values she says should be prioritized are in line with fascism, and in that regard, the term fits. Conservatives, at least, those who claim to champion the Constitution and to understand the primacy of liberty, associate with her writings at their intellectual peril.
I worry though - "fascist" as an epithet is horribly over- and misused, and here I go, using it here. The term is in danger of losing its meaning, and here I go, perpetuating it... but for the life of me, I know of no other way to classify someone who puts "safety" ahead of freedom, thereby ensuring we have neither (as Franklin famously said), and who argues that the internment of innocent Japanese-Americans in WWII was justified.
(Oh - and regarding her treatment by Chris Matthews. She has insane views, but it's only going to make her look good to act as boarish as Matthews a few nights ago. I heard the audio from her visit to the show, and it's pretty much as she recounts at her blog.)
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