On Fascism and Militaries
Sep. 1st, 2026 04:32 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
chris_gerribSix-plus months into Trump's disasterous two-week war with Iran, I find it useful to revisit something I posted back in March - why fascists are bad at war. The original article I was linking to can be found here.
Now, I am not going to argue as to whether or not Trump and Hegseth are truly fascists or not. (Well, maybe I will a little, in that I think Trump is too stupid and self-centered to have any ideology.) In any event, here's a tl;dr as to why facsists are bad at war.
First, let's define "bad at war." The original post uses a simple definition - "did you win?" The two most famous fascist regimes, WWII Italy and Germany, obviously did not, in fact losing so comprehensively as to encompass the destruction of their nations. Expanding the circle of regimes does not change the win / loss record. So why are they bad? Let us count the ways, and I'll highlight where I see parallels with the current war in Iran.
1) Appearance vs. capability: Facsicsts love themselves a parade and have really snazzy uniforms. See Hegseth's fascination with physical fitness, "maximum lethality," and Trump's military parade.
2) Facsists pick fights they shouldn't: Germany, AFTER failing to invade Britain and invading Russia, declared war on the USA in support of their "ally" Japan. Contrast this with our decision to attack Iran for a second time.
3) Fascists are "condemned to lose wars because they are constitutionally incapable of objectively evaluating the force of the enemy:” Yep - Hitler thought Britain would fold. Hesgeth in 2026 disbanded a US Army unit focusing on how to fight with and against drones. Just spitballing here, but we might need to know how to do that. (Ask Commander Fifth Fleet if he misses his HQ building.)
4) Loyalty vs. performance: To be fair, this is more Authoritarianism 101 then just being restricted to fascists, but in these regimes, loyal idiots trump (pun intended) smart people.
Here endeth the lesson.
Now, I am not going to argue as to whether or not Trump and Hegseth are truly fascists or not. (Well, maybe I will a little, in that I think Trump is too stupid and self-centered to have any ideology.) In any event, here's a tl;dr as to why facsists are bad at war.
First, let's define "bad at war." The original post uses a simple definition - "did you win?" The two most famous fascist regimes, WWII Italy and Germany, obviously did not, in fact losing so comprehensively as to encompass the destruction of their nations. Expanding the circle of regimes does not change the win / loss record. So why are they bad? Let us count the ways, and I'll highlight where I see parallels with the current war in Iran.
1) Appearance vs. capability: Facsicsts love themselves a parade and have really snazzy uniforms. See Hegseth's fascination with physical fitness, "maximum lethality," and Trump's military parade.
2) Facsists pick fights they shouldn't: Germany, AFTER failing to invade Britain and invading Russia, declared war on the USA in support of their "ally" Japan. Contrast this with our decision to attack Iran for a second time.
3) Fascists are "condemned to lose wars because they are constitutionally incapable of objectively evaluating the force of the enemy:” Yep - Hitler thought Britain would fold. Hesgeth in 2026 disbanded a US Army unit focusing on how to fight with and against drones. Just spitballing here, but we might need to know how to do that. (Ask Commander Fifth Fleet if he misses his HQ building.)
4) Loyalty vs. performance: To be fair, this is more Authoritarianism 101 then just being restricted to fascists, but in these regimes, loyal idiots trump (pun intended) smart people.
Here endeth the lesson.
