Vlad Vexler: Trump’s Authoritarian Revolution - for the USA, World & Ukraine

Nov 7, 2024

The Lincoln Project: Warning Signs

Nov 4, 2024 | The Lincoln Project is a leading pro-democracy organization in the United States — dedicated to the preservation, protection, and defense of democracy. Our fight against Trumpism is only beginning. We must combat these forces everywhere and at all times — our democracy depends on it.

Authoritarian Labour's Attack on Free Speech in Pubs Strikes at the HEART of British Culture

Oct 18, 2024 | NCF (New Culture Forum) Founder & Director Peter Whittle addresses Labour's latest attack on British pubs.

Drunk on Authoritarianism

SP!KED: Starmer’s crackdown on pubs reveals the megalomania of the technocrats.

Sometimes I think we need to retire the phrase nanny state. It has its uses. It’s a good shorthand. People know what you mean when you say it. But it rather downplays the activities of the control freaks and megalomaniacs who are hell bent on dictating how we should all live our lives. It makes them sound almost quaint, and ultimately benevolent.

The truth is quite the opposite. You do not need to be the sort who hysterically compares sugar taxes to something out of North Korea to realise that the preoccupation of the 21st-century state with policing what we eat, drink and do in our private time speaks to a depth of authoritarianism that is not at all normal – and upstream from more potent flavours of authoritarianism.

Logically speaking, if we are not to be trusted to dine unchaperoned, why should we be allowed to think, speak, even vote, for ourselves? There’s a reason why the same people who want to punish you for what you stick in your gob also want to punish you for what comes out of it.

Well, those people now run the country, it seems. Not only has this new Labour government embraced lifestyle despotism with a remarkable zeal – with plans to ban smoking in beer gardens, ban junk-food ads and weigh people at their workplaces already being announced – it has clearly emboldened all the joyless nags and bores of the ‘public health’ blob, too.

Labour is now floating the idea of curtailing licensing hours. Public-health minister Andrew Gwynne – apparently displeased that only 50 pubs a month are closing down at the moment – told the Labour Party conference this week that it’s time to consider ‘tightening up on some of the hours of operation’. » | Tom Slater, Editor | Wednesday, September 25, 2024

Who wants to be weighed in the workplace?: ‘Health MoTs’ for middle-aged men are the latest harebrained scheme from Starmer’s nanny state. »

We need a smokers’ revolt: A smoking ban in pub gardens is the final, joyless straw. »

You can support SP!KED here.

Authoritarianism v. Democracy: Francis Fukuyama on the Year of Elections | Amanpour & Company

Sep 19, 2024 | Democracy has undergone a major stress test this year, with nearly half the world's voting population heading to the polls in a time of democratic backsliding and growing extremism. Francis Fukuyama, senior fellow at Stanford University's Freeman Spogli Institute, joined Walter Isaacson to speak about the danger of taking democracy for granted, and -- following his recent trip to Ukraine -- how he believes the war there might end. Originally aired on September 19, 2024

Starmer’s Killjoy State

Sep 18, 2024 | Banning smoking in beer gardens. Banning ‘junk food’ advertising. Weighing people at work. The UK’s new Labour government is putting the ‘nanny state’ on steroids. Worst of all, it’s already committed to bringing in the total prohibition of cigarettes – a move that will upend our liberties and fuel the black market. Here, Tom Slater explains why this obsession with policing our lifestyles has nothing to do with public health and everything to do with pushing ordinary people around. This is about the ruling classes forcing their own miserable ways on the rest of us, while blithely ignoring the disastrous consequences of their authoritarianism.

One can but despise Starmer. This man is the closest leader this country has ever had to the man history knows as Der Führer!

Death to the Nanny State! Death to Starmer's authoritarian regime! – © Mark Alexander

The World Is Shocked at British Censorship & Lack of Free Speech and Our Authoritarian Government

Aug 17, 2024 | On today's NCF Deprogrammed, NCF Director Peter Whittle, Senior Fellows Rafe Heydel-Mankoo and Dr. Philip Kiszely and Amy Gallagher of Stand Up to Woke discuss the shocking stifling of free speech in Britain and the reaction of Elon Musk. Also, millions of Britons are now economically inactive and a net drain on the state.

A pall has come over the nation since Keir Starmer has become prime minister. I am retired, so I have lived for rather a long time already. But for the very first time in my life, I am nervous about writing anything on this blog. I feel that people who write on the Internet are being watched. Starmer's Britain is a rather intimidating place. For the first time in my life, I am now beginning to understand how an average German must have felt in Hitler's Third Reich. Anyone who disagreed with what was going on must have felt frightened to open their mouths.

This blog has been going for a very long time. Certainly more than twenty years. Never before have I ever given much thought about expressing my views – until now!

I always sleep extremely well; however, last night was the exception. I tossed and turned for much of the night, asking myself whether I should close this blog. That is how bad things have got under Herr Starmer! Freedom of speech in this country is a thing of the past. It hasn't taken Starmer long to kill it, either!

We all know why this is happening. This is not rocket science.

My country has been ruined by weak and badly-informed politicians of all stripes and hues. The passing of our wonderful, late Queen Elizabeth II hasn't helped any either. She was such a steadying hand. She was the embodiment of wisdom and long political experience. She had dealt with such an array of past prime ministers.

I have yet to decide about this blog. But I am giving its closure serious consideration. I shall keep you apprised. Naturally, I shall be hoping for better days ahead. However, any turning point is a long way off. We have a hard-left, socialist government. The modus operandi of such governments is always to ban things and take people's freedoms away from them. – © Mark Alexander

The Republican Party Is Over | Robert Reich

Jul 16, 2024 | Once upon a time, the GOP stood for limited government. But now it stands only for Trump and his authoritarian neofascism. It demands total loyalty to him. The party’s demise is on full display at this week’s Republican National Convention.

If Americans re-elect Trump into office, they will deserve all they get. (Naturally, one will feel sorry for the sane, anti-Trumpers.) Unfortunately, however, Trump’s re-election into the White House will have dreadful and negative consequences not only for the US, but for the rest of us as well. – © Mark Alexander

‘We’re Facing Another Old Enemy’: Rushdie Warns against Global Authoritarianism

THE GUARDIAN: Speaking in Philadelphia on Wednesday, Rushdie says US Republicans are moving away from democratic values including free speech

Salman Rushdie, pictured here on 18 May 2023 in New York. Photograph: Timothy A Clary/AFP/Getty Images
Salman Rushdie has warned of the threat of authoritarianism globally and said the US Republican party is “seeking to undermine” democratic values, at a forum in Philadelphia to discuss the threats against free speech in the US and around the world.

Appearing by video at the National First Amendment Summit on Wednesday, Rushdie attributed the rise of Donald Trump and Brexit to a “golden age myth”.

Rushdie, who was attacked in New York a little over a year ago, spoke as book bans continue to proliferate through the US. Interviewed by Suzanne Nossel, the CEO of the freedom of expression organization PEN America, Rushdie was asked what the greatest threat to free speech is today.

“If you asked me 10 or 20 years ago, I would probably have said that the main problems facing freedom of expression emanate from religious extremism,” Rushdie said.

“I think now we’re facing another old enemy, which is authoritarianism. I think there’s a real rise in authoritarian movements around the world, populist authoritarian demagoguery.

“Coupled with that, [there is] a willingness amongst at least some part of the population to cease to value the democratic values enshrined in the first amendment. So I think the problem is, I would now say, political more than primarily religious.” » | Adam Gabbatt | Thursday, September 14, 2023

Former Moscow Rabbi Wants All Jews to Leave Putin's Russia | Conflict Zone

Moscow's former chief rabbi discusses anti-Semitism, morality and red line between democracy and authoritarianism in Vladimir Putin's Russia. Pinchas Goldschmidt spoke with Tim Sebastian from Berlin.

Tucker Carlson Under Fire for Fawning over Authoritarian Leader, Touting Hungary as Model for US

May 24, 2022 • The most influential conservative gathering on the right, CPAC, was recently held in Budapest, Hungary. Fox News host Tucker Carlson, who has fawned over Hungary’s authoritarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in past interviews, addressed the gathering, telling attendees the country’s ethno-nationalist regime offers a “better way” for America. MSNBC’s Ari Melber reports on the GOP’s embrace of “foreign exceptionalism” and the party’s decision to abandon policy.

Will Ukraine War Spark a Decline in Support for Authoritarianism? | The Bottom Line

Mar 25, 2022 • When Francis Fukuyama wrote the book The End of History and the Last Man after the Soviet Union was dissolved 30 years ago, he argued that the West’s version of liberal democracy had triumphed over all other ideologies.

Since then, an increasing number of countries are becoming more authoritarian or illiberal democracies.

Fukuyama tells host Steve Clemons that the Ukraine war is a turning point for Western-style democracy, and institutions such as NATO are getting a boost in popularity. People will eventually turn their backs on authoritarian, populist and nationalist ideologies and leaders, in his estimation, and relearn how to tolerate differences.

The Psychology of an Isolated Russia | The New Yorker

Mar 11, 2022 • David Remnick and the historian Steve Kotkin discuss Vladimir Putin and how authoritarian regimes are pushed into misguided foreign wars.

The War in Ukraine Holds a Warning for the World Order

THE NEW YORK TIMES: The multinational response shows that liberalism has some life left. But the challenges posed by waning U.S. power and rising authoritarianism remain formidable.

The liberal world order has been on life support for a while. President Biden, in his inaugural address, called democracy “fragile.” President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia said two years ago that “the liberal idea” had “outlived its purpose,” while China’s leader, Xi Jinping, has extolled the strength of an all-powerful state and, as he put it last March, “self-confidence in our system.”

The multinational response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has shown that the demise of the global postwar rules-based order may not be inevitable. A month ago, no one predicted that Germany would reverse decades of military hesitancy and pour 100 billion euros into its defense budget, or that Switzerland would freeze the assets of Russian oligarchs, or that YouTube, World Cup soccer and global energy companies would all cut ties to Russia.

But the reappearance of war in Europe is also an omen. With toddlers sheltering in subway tunnels, and nuclear power plants under threat, it is a global air raid siren — a warning that the American-led system of internationalism needs to get itself back into gear, for the war at hand and for the struggle against authoritarianism to come. » | Damien Cave | Friday, March 4, 2022

The UK Is Becoming an Authoritarian State under Home Secretary, Priti Patel

Jul 26, 2021 • The Home Secretary is a bully. She has been accused of bullying in three separate government departments and was found guilty of bullying by a Cabinet Committee resulting in compensation payments of £395,000.

She has persistently broken the ministerial code throughout her ministerial career. Whilst at the Foreign Office working under Boris Johnson who was then Foreign Secretary, she visited Israel claiming to be on holiday and held at least twelve meetings with senior Israeli government officials including the prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. Neither the British ambassador in Israel nor the prime minister Theresa May knew about these meetings.

She again broke the ministerial code by writing at least twice on behalf of a friend in order to secure a PPE contract for £102.6 million for masks which were supplied at double the benchmark price.

She is pushing through legislation which will give the Home Secretary, or the police, the power to stop any demonstrations at will if judged to be making too much noise or causing annoyance. Those who resist will be liable to imprisonment for up to ten years.

Other legislation will make whistleblowing a criminal offence as will publishing articles considered critical of the government. This will included the government having the power to control the movements and association of certain named individuals without reference to the courts.

She seeks to punish any asylum seeker arriving in the UK without permission with up to four years in prison. She also seeks to extend laws which currently apply to paid people-smugglers to everyone so that offering any assistance to asylum seekers, even saving them from drowning, will become a crime punishable with a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.

She is ruthlessly pursuing a course which will lead to the UK to becoming a fascist state where any dissent will be illegal.

Why Are Autocrats Popular? - Assault on Democracy | DW Documentary

Nov 6, 2021 • A wave of authoritarianism is churning from East to West and assailing civil society. Autocrats are threatening democracy, while their regimes portray NGOs as Trojan horses for foreign interference.

The resurgence of authoritarianism is impacting countries across the globe, no matter what their form of government. "In the Crosshairs of the State" documents this worldwide phenomenon using the examples of India, Russia, and Poland and shows how civil society is being repressed, and what impact this can have on the future of democracy.

When populists and autocrats wield power, the first victims are civil liberties. However, regimes aren’t stopping at attacking and imprisoning activists - they go as far as criminalizing entire groups and freezing their funds. These governments are increasingly targeting NGOs and other players in civil society that demand democracy and assert human rights or protest about social grievances and environmental destruction. The methods of choice are defamation campaigns, repression, and criminalization.

In the past few years, certain countries have passed over 60 laws specifically aiming to systematically impede NGOs’ work or completely put an end to it. The root causes are wide-ranging, but it all boils down to rulers’ desire to remain in power and protect their economic interests. Beyond authoritarian wielders of power, democratic governments are increasingly clamping down on independent and critical players, too.

Are we experiencing a full-on global assault on civil society? What happens when the driving force of democracy - the people themselves - is silenced? How can we counter this development? Film director Sebastian Weis investigates these question, relating the situations in India, Russia, and Poland chapter by chapter, with each country representing an overarching issue. India faces environmental destruction, Russians are seeing human rights be eroded, and in Poland women’s rights are under attack.

Opinion: Tucker Carlson Has a New Hero

Justin T. Gellerson for The New York Times
THE NEW YORK TIMES: Tucker Carlson is only the latest — and most famous — American conservative to find inspiration in the autocratic government of Hungary under Viktor Orban. The Fox News personality is hosting his show, one of the most popular on cable news, from the capital in Budapest and on Saturday will deliver a speech, advertised as “The World According to Tucker Carlson,” to a conference of far-right activists.

To critics, Orban’s Hungary is corrupt, repressive and authoritarian, a place where democracy is little more than window-dressing and the state exists to plunder the public on behalf of a tiny ruling elite. To Carlson, it’s a model for the United States, a showcase for anti-immigrant policies and reactionary cultural politics.

“If you care about Western civilization and democracy and families and the ferocious assault on all three of those things by the leaders of our global institutions,” he told his audience on Monday, “you should know what is happening here right now.”

Carlson is not alone. “Orban’s fans in the West include notable writers at major conservative and right-leaning publications like National Review, the American Conservative and the New York Post,” Zack Beauchamp wrote in a piece for Vox last year. » | Jamelle Bouie, Opinion Columnist | Friday, August 6, 2021

Related video here.

Tammy Duckworth: Tucker Carlson Doesn’t Know What Patriotism Is »

The Truth Behind Tucker Carlson's Disturbing Trip to Hungary

Aug 6, 2021 • Right-wing FOX News host Tucker Carlson is broadcasting from Hungary and praising that nation's hardline policies. We discuss what's really going on with Democratic Strategist Don Calloway and fmr. adviser to Republican presidents Mark McKinnon.

Merkley: Trump Has Brought Authoritarian Tactics to the Streets of Our Country | Deadline | MSNBC

Senator from Oregon Jeff Merkley speaks with Nicolle Wallace about the presence of federal law enforcement in Portland and Trump’s announcement that agents will be deployed to more cities. Aired on 07/22/2020.

USA – Authoritarianism: We Thought We Were Free (2014)

America used to be the land of the free and the home of the brave - but over time - we've become a shell of our former self. What's driving this change - and is there any way to stop it?