Euroscepticism and the Rising Threat From the Left and Right: The Concept of Millennial Fascism

209 Pages·2017·1.642 MB·English

by  Prebble Q. Ramswell

i
Euroscepticism and
the Rising Threat from
the Left and Right

Euroscepticism and
the Rising Threat from
the Left and Right
The Concept of Millennial Fascism
Prebble Q. Ramswell
LEXINGTON BOOKS
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Contents
Acknowledgments vii
1 New Threat, New Era 1
2 The Evolution of Fascism 7
3 Euroscepticism and Its Instrumental Role 15
4 The Case for Millennial Fascism 25
5 Examination of the Threat: Qualification and
Determination of Millennial Fascist Groups (MFGs) 39
6 The Rise of MFGs: Theoretical Justification and Selection
of Causal Conditions 97
7 The Rise of MFGs: Analysis of Causal Conditions 105
8 The Elements Leading to the Rise of MFGs: Analysis
and Discussion of Results 143
9 The Rising Threat of Millennial Fascism and the
Ensuing Implications 153
Bibliography 161
Index 191
About the Author 199
v

Acknowledgments
This book is dedicated to my motherchange, Al-Rue McLaughlin, who always
told me I could do anything I wanted to do; and my father, Joe McLaughlin,
who gave me his gift (and curse) of not being able to read or write a single
sentence without correcting it, as well as his intrigue for fascism. One of
my greatest sadnesses is that you are no longer here to share these moments
with me. I love you and miss you terribly, though your guidance and support
remain with me always.
Briar: Thank you for understanding mommy was doing lots and lots of
“homework.” You heard too many “in a little while” responses as I tried to
squeeze in every spare minute possible to write and research. The good news
is—you’ve got me back!
Tony: I know you often lost me for days at a time when I sequestered
myself from life in order to have chunks of time in which I could write.
Your support has not only made everything possible, but has also served as a
reminder of how much I love you.
Source: Created by the author.
vii

Chapter 1
New Threat, New Era
It was Marcellus who famously remarked to Horatio in Shakespeare’s Ham-
let, “Something is rotten in the state of Denmark.” Such sentiment captures
the thoughts echoing in the minds of many Europeans as they bear witness
to the rise of euroscepticism1 within member states across the European
Union (EU) and the greatly altered European political landscape emerging
as a result.
In 1998, scholar Robert Paxton noted fascism’s “politics in a new key,”
evident through much of Europe at the turn of the nineteenth century. This
transition was reflected in a changing political environment that emerged as
“an assembly of all nationalists who hated the Left and found the Right inad-
equate.” His observations led to this thought-provoking idea:
We must be able to examine this phenomenon as a system. It is not enough
to treat each national case individually, as if each one constitutes a category
in itself. If we cannot examine fascism synthetically, we risk being unable to
understand this century, or the next. We must have a word, and for lack of a bet-
ter one, we must employ the word that Mussolini borrowed from the vocabulary
of the Italian Left in 1919, before his movement had assumed its mature form.
Obliged to use the word fascism, we ought to use it well. (Paxton 1998, 9)
Paxton was clearly on to something. Even to an untrained eye, the sense
of great change throughout Europe in the new millennium is palpable and
no longer able to be ignored. There is, undoubtedly, a certain “something”
occurring in Europe, a certain something that has allowed for the emergence
of non-traditional, often right-wing, “fascist,” parties in large numbers, with
manifestations evident at both the national and international levels.
1