Dinesh D'Souza Reveals the Forgotten Philosopher of Fascism and Why Historians Erased Him from History
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Dinesh D'Souza Reveals the Forgotten Philosopher of Fascism and Why Historians Erased Him from History
Dinesh D'Souza exposes Giovanni Gentile, the erased philosopher of fascism whose ideas reveal uncomfortable truths about modern political ideology. For decades, the left has labeled conservatives as fascists, but D'Souza argues this accusation ignores fascism's actual roots in socialism and state-controlled collectivism. By examining Gentile's philosophy and its implementation by Benito Mussolini, D'Souza demonstrates that fascism's core principles, subordinating individual liberty to centralized state power, align more closely with contemporary progressive policies than conservative values. This examination challenges the conventional narrative about fascism's place on the political spectrum and reveals why one of history's most influential philosophers remains deliberately forgotten.
For decades, the political left has wielded "fascist" as a favored accusation against those on the right. Every Republican president since the 1970s, and virtually every Republican, has faced this label. The charge rests on a foundational assumption: that fascism is a phenomenon of the political right. Both the left and some self-styled white supremacists and neo-Nazis embrace this categorization. But is this characterization accurate?
To answer this question requires examining fascism's underlying ideology and origins. These are not simple questions to answer. Everyone knows Adam Smith as the philosopher of capitalism. Karl Marx stands as the philosopher of Marxism. But who is the philosopher of fascism? The answer remains unknown to most people, not because he doesn't exist, but because historians—most of whom are on the political left—had to erase him from history to avoid confronting fascism's actual beliefs.
Meet Giovanni Gentile
Giovanni Gentile, born in 1875, was one of the world's most influential philosophers in the first half of the twentieth century. Yet his name has been systematically removed from historical discourse. Gentile articulated a vision of democracy that stood in stark opposition to liberal democracy. He believed there were two "diametrically opposed" types of democracy.
The first is liberal democracy, exemplified by the United States, which Gentile dismissed as individualistic—too centered on liberty and personal rights—and therefore selfish. The second, which Gentile championed as "true democracy," is one in which individuals willingly subordinate themselves to the state.
The Socialist Foundation of Fascism
Like his philosophical mentor, Karl Marx, Gentile wanted to create a community that resembles the family, a community where everyone is "all in this together." The attraction of this idea is evident in its enduring presence in political rhetoric. At the 1984 Democratic Party convention, New York Governor Mario Cuomo likened America to an extended family where, through the government, people all take care of each other. Three decades later, the 2012 Democratic Party convention adopted the slogan, "The government is the only thing we all belong to." They might as well have been quoting Gentile directly.
Gentile was a man of the left, a committed socialist. For Gentile, fascism represents a form of socialism—indeed, its most workable form. While Marxist socialism mobilizes people on the basis of class, fascism mobilizes people by appealing to their national identity as well as their class. Fascists are socialists with a national identity. The German Fascists of the 1930s were called Nazis—a contraction of the term "national socialist."
The Total State
For Gentile, all private action should be oriented to serve society. There is no distinction between the private interest and the public interest. Correctly understood, the two are identical. The administrative arm of society is the state itself. Consequently, to submit to society is to submit to the state—not just in economic matters, but in all matters. Since everything is political, the state gets to tell everyone how to think and what to do.
From Philosophy to Practice: Mussolini's Implementation
It was Benito Mussolini, the fascist dictator of Italy from 1922 to 1943, who transformed Gentile's words into action. In his Dottrina del Fascismo, one of the doctrinal statements of early fascism, Mussolini wrote, "All is in the state and nothing human exists or has value outside the state." He was merely paraphrasing Gentile's philosophy.
The Modern Parallel
The Italian philosopher is now lost in obscurity, but his philosophy could not be more relevant because it closely parallels that of the modern left. Gentile's work speaks directly to progressives who champion the centralized state. In America, the left has expanded state control over the private sector extensively, from healthcare to banking, from education to energy. This state-directed capitalism is precisely what German and Italian fascists implemented in the 1930s.
Why the Left Cannot Acknowledge Gentile
Leftists cannot acknowledge their man, Gentile, because doing so would undermine their attempt to bind conservatism to fascism. Conservatism advocates for small government so that individual liberty can flourish. The left, like Gentile, wants the opposite: to place the resources of the individual and industry in the service of a centralized state. To acknowledge Gentile is to acknowledge that fascism bears a deep kinship to the ideology of the modern left.
The left will keep Gentile where they have him: dead, buried, and forgotten. But we should remember, or the ghost of fascism will continue to haunt us.
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