As people do not seem to learn

I will recommend going back to the piece that I wrote on 26/1/2011 - "The differences between Fascism and Communism - a history lesson"

rather than repeating myself.

Secondly those of you incapable of reasoning in terms other that "left-wing" and "right-wing", stick to soccer where the terms are meaningful. In a real world current affairs discussion they are meaningless slogans!

It is amazing how many proverbial rats have come out of the proverbial sewers since the Nadja Drygalla / Michael Fischer story broke. Supporters of Fascists and neo-Fascist groups may constitute a very small minority in most of the country (though in parts of the former East where reunification has been an obvious disaster, they attract a higher following), but they seem capable of making a lot of noise when it suits them.

Not that their arguments have one rational basis for discussion. Most of what they have to say can be compared unfavourably with manure. As for one thing that I read yesterday about Germany being threatened with the return of Communism ....

If one thing is not going to happen in Germany it is the rise of a meaningful, effective Communist organisation that will eventually take power. There is no sense of 1932 any more when the KPD could get 17.9% of the vote in the elections, and consequently a lot of conservative voters supported Hitler to block their rise to power.

Parties like the NPD would love that to happen again. As Communism is almost dead in the water nearly everywhere (the Chinese have abandoned it for starters), though, the arguments from the Fascists, based upon fear rather than fact, should be dismissed for what they are.

One difference between Communism and Fascism not mentioned previously on this blog is the fact that there will be no return to Communism, but Fascism could well be another matter. A movement that can attract over 20% of the vote in Austria, nearly 20% in France, and is responsible for all sorts of unpleasant manifestations in various Eastern European countries needs watching. And (excuse the bad grammar) guarding against!

Appealing to people's ignorance and meanest instincts in difficult times is easy and an obvious vote winner. The lessons of history need to be observed and attempts to fix the symptoms of the problem (increasing unemployment and poverty) are urgently required if we are not to repeat the errors of the 1930s!