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Even though her message is frightening, Naomi Wolf wants to assure people that there can be a light at the end of the tunnel. The YouTube video to your right is a terrific speech by Wolf (at Kane Hall on the University of Washington campus) about her provocative new book "The End of America" which talks about the parallels between the Bush Administration's tactics and those of fascist dictatorships of the last century.
The same language, images, manipulation that would-be despots have used in the past to break down existing democracies are being employed now. From Italy in the 1920s, Germany in the 1930s, and on and on, Wolf finds that all these despots do that same things. Mussolini created the blueprint, Hitler followed suit, Stalin studied Hitler and these methods just get passed down to the next generation of dictators throughout the world. Wolf has summarized their method is ten points:
1. Invoke a terrifying internal and external enemy
2. Create a gulag
3. Develop a thug caste
4. Set up an internal surveillance system
5. Harass citizens' groups
6. Engage in arbitrary detention and release
7. Target key individuals
8. Control the press
9. Dissent equals treason
10. Suspend the rule of law
Wolf argues that all of these methods are underway in the United States right now. We ran a piece by Wolf just a couple weeks ago where she talked about number three, the thug caste, and Blackwater. In this video she provides ample evidence of all the other ten as well.
She says she wrote this book to inspire young people in particular to combat this trend, and to restore democracy asap. The arguments she marks are compelling, thoroughly researched and impossible to dispute. So what can we do? What is the light at the end of the tunnel? You'll have to skip ahead to about the 5:37 mark to find out.
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