this post was submitted on 21 Nov 2025
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Huh? I think you're confusing authoritarianism and fascism, you may not like either - but they are different things.
I'm not. Fascism is a variant of authoritarianism, and describes very well how the USSR, China, and other successful so-called communisms have operated.
"Fascism is characterized by support for a dictatorial leader, centralized autocracy, militarism, forcible suppression of opposition, belief in a natural social hierarchy, subordination of individual interests for the perceived interest of the nation or race, and strong regimentation of society and the economy." -Wikipedia
I believe in left wing ideology, it's just only ever seemed to emerge successfully from non-violent system-internal populism. Changing of hearts and minds in other words. Never through violence. Which makes sense, because proper humanitarian leftism is obviously antithetical to ends justify the means approaches to societal problem solving.
This is incorrect. Not only is your characterization of fascism oversimplified, it doesn't actually apply to actually existing socialism (AES).
AES states have not had dictators. In all socialist states, the governmental structure has been collectivized and democratic. Holding government positions for a longer period of time than capitalist democracies doesn't make a country a dictatorship.
Socialist states, with their more collectivized control, have had more evenly spread decisionmaling power than capitalist states.
Millitarism is correct, all lasting socialist states have had a necessity to build up at minimum defensive armies. The USSR was invaded by over a dozen countries at its inception.
Forcible suppression of opposition is technically correct, but fascism has always suppressed the working classes while socialist states have suppressed the capitalist class and landlords, fascists, etc. This erasure of class distinctions from the definition of fascism is a factor of wikipedia's liberal bias.
The belief in class systems technically counts as a social hierarchy, but the key difference is that socialist states work towards abolishing class, while fascist states uphold class and uphold racial supremacy.
Subordination of the individual to the many technically applies, but for fascism it refers to submission to a capitalist dictatorship for private profits whereas for socialism it refers to working class unity to meet the needs of all.
Socialism is a collectivized form of economic management, fascism's strong state control was in the interest of crushing working class organization and merging the state with corporate interests.
Fundamentally ahistorical. All meaningful working class victories have arrived through either direct violence, ie revolution, or the threat of violence, ie mass protests and civil unrest.
Thanks for laying it out Cowbee. I got as far as thinking "The key difference is that the authority in a Socialist state is derived from a robust democracy" before deciding it wasn't worth it lmao
No worries! 🫡