We Interrupt This Regularly Scheduled Programme...

...to talk about fascism. Yes, fascism. Why, you may ask? (Ha, ha; no, I'm pretty sure you know why.)

I was hoping to check out (at the usual age) before the dreadful day arrived, because frankly I am a coward but no; here we are. We've watched this time come barrelling down the pike for many years, as everyone said no, no, It Can't Happen Here. After all, we fought a mighty big war against it! As it turns out, there are plenty of people who like fascism just fine when it is them doing it to other people and not other people doing it to them.

By the way, I'm seeing lots of people - politically motivated and presumably attention-paying people - commenting about how what the Trump administration is doing is "Crazy", "Disorganized" or "Impulsive". NO IT IS NOT.

It is the bog-standard method of transitioning a democracy to a fascist regime.

There are a lot of people out there with smarter things to say about all this than me; I hope I can be helpful by collating a useful conglomeration of history, information, ways to think about things, and things to do. Most of this is reasonably short and "easy" reading.

This is a very preliminary list. I will add more as I find it; please leave your suggestions for reading material in the comments. I hope to put up another post in a week or so with more concrete action suggestions.

For an Overview on Fascism/Authoritarianism in General:

Umberto Eco Makes a List of the Fourteen Common Features of Fascism.

Ur-Fascism (Umberto Eco again). 

The Authoritarians. Bob Altemeyer. Book is free pdf file at site. It's long (it's a book) but READ IT.

Systems of Survival: A Dialogue on the Moral Foundations of Commerce & Politics. Jane Jacobs You will actually have to buy the book somehow (or check it out from the library if you can) if you want to read this, but I highly recommend it. It makes terrific companion reading to the The Authoritarians. Altemeyer is more about the psychology of authoritarians; Jane Jacobs talks about the moral structures (and therefore the social and political structures arising from 2 modes of interacting with the world, and what happens when those 2 modes are not upheld as they should be).

For Information About the American Situation Specifically:

Everything You Need to Know About Steve Bannon, Breitbart, & Russia. Daily Kos.

Is Donald Trump a Fascist? (Spoiler: yes. From fucking Newsweek no kidding.)

I was trained for the culture wars...  Kieran Darkwater

Now What?

How to Survive an Authoritarian Government. Larwunia at ExtraNewsfeed.

The Complete 4-Page Guide to Surviving an Authoritarian Regime. from your Eastern European friends. 

Autocracy: Rules for Survival. Masha Gessen at New York Review of Books.

Here's What You Can Do to Beat Trump. Student Activism, but pretty universally applicable. 

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