Atheistic Morality

[Szuchow]

... for civil society to exist fascists should be expunged from it.

How do you foresee that happening then? How does one "expunge" them?

I don't foresee that happening. In fact I think that society will be increasingly fascisized.

As for this theoretical expunging - stopping treating fascists as serious partners to discussions would be a good first step. No invitations to universities, tv shows, no interviews. Using the law as is was intended also would help. Fascists should be pushed to the fringe by use of both law and ostracism.

[mordant]

... for civil society to exist fascists should be expunged from it.

How do you foresee that happening then? How does one "expunge" them?

I don't foresee that happening. In fact I think that society will be increasingly fascisized.

As for this theoretical expunging - stopping treating fascists as serious partners to discussions would be a good first step. No invitations to universities, tv shows, no interviews. Using the law as is was intended also would help. Fascists should be pushed to the fringe by use of both law and ostracism.

I can be on board with that. I don't favor normalizing fascistic persons or enterprises, and they should be pushed to the fringe by withholding of social acceptance.

In fact, if there's a single thing that has emboldened them, arguably it's that such social pressure (which is very effective since fascists are human and all humans are hyper social) has been withheld. This has happened because they have gotten hold of the reigns of power, which in turn has happened because liberals allowed it. And are still allowing it.

Maybe the best expression of this concept for the US is, "Republicans play Game of Thrones every day, while Democrats play West Wing, which is why they keep losing".

There is in my view a fine line between refusing to accept fascism and proto-fascism, and demonizing the people who hold those views.

I do however get where you are coming from. I've read for example that the people who normalized, tolerated, ignored, and enabled fascism in Nazi Germany were reasonable, nice people next door; the people who opposed it were the ones willing to be not so nice. Still, post-war, we only hung the fascist ringleaders. For the regular volk, Germany installed a culture of "never again" which installed a long-standing aversion to toleration of fascist leanings that lasted a couple of generations and only today seems to be faltering.

I mean, what are you going to do, shoot the nice people next door because they were complicit by not speaking out?

It's not an easy question.

[Szuchow]

I can be on board with that. I don't favor normalizing fascistic persons or enterprises, and they should be pushed to the fringe by withholding of social acceptance.

Agreed.

In fact, if there's a single thing that has emboldened them, arguably it's that such social pressure (which is very effective since fascists are human and all humans are hyper social) has been withheld. This has happened because they have gotten hold of the reigns of power, which in turn has happened because liberals allowed it. And are still allowing it.

I would add that they were also emboldened by failure to use law against them, at least in Poland  where propagating fascism is - in theory - illegal. Number of politicians and public figure would be jailed if this wouldn't be some fucking banana republic. Even greater number would have theirs career ended - or never have them to begin with - but whatever else Poland is it certainly isn't an Rechtsstaat.

There is in my view a fine line between refusing to accept fascism and proto-fascism, and demonizing the people who hold those views.

Perhaps but as far as I am concerned fascists do not deserve even iota of respect.

I do however get where you are coming from. I've read for example that the people who normalized, tolerated, ignored, and enabled fascism in Nazi Germany were reasonable, nice people next door; the people who opposed it were the ones willing to be not so nice. Still, post-war, we only hung the fascist ringleaders. For the regular volk, Germany installed a culture of "never again" which installed a long-standing aversion to toleration of fascist leanings that lasted a couple of generations and only today seems to be faltering.

I mean, what are you going to do, shoot the nice people next door because they were complicit by not speaking out?

It's not an easy question.

This transformation wasn't that quick but in the end things did not turned bad I guess. 

As for "nice" people - shun them, show them contempt, throw the book at them without leniency if there are paragraphs applicable. Mostly though educate new generation so it wouldn't grew to be moronic bags of shit willing to support murderous ideology.