Far Left and Far Right Not So Far Apart

The irony is that while Golden Dawn is considered a hard-right, fascist party (as most Neo-Nazi movements are), the economic policies of the original Nazis were as far-left as anything imaginable in this day and age.  TIME Magazine named Adolf Hitler their 1934 Man of the Year and a big part of their profile centered on the anti-capitalism of the Nazi party:

"Most cruel joke of all, however, has been played by Hitler & Co. on those German capitalists and small businessmen who once backed National Socialism as a means of saving Germany's bourgeois economic structure from radicalism. The Nazi credo that the individual belongs to the state also applies to business. Some businesses have been confiscated outright, on other what amounts to a capital tax has been levied. Profits have been strictly controlled. Some idea of the increasing Governmental control and interference in business could be deduced from the fact that 80% of all building and 50% of all industrial orders in Germany originated last year with the Government. Hard-pressed for food- stuffs as well as funds, the Nazi regime has taken over large estates and in many instances collectivized agriculture, a procedure fundamentally similar to Russian Communism." (emphasis mine)

Read it at The Reformed Broker
Nazi-nomics and the New Greek Minority Power
By Joshua Brown


While Greek voters displayed renewed conviction for some parties considered far right, France elected a left-wing Socialist president for the first time since 1981. Although the reasons behind their economic views are almost certainly different, in opposing capitalism both sides actually favor a form of Socialism. As Josh Brown notably points out, Hitler’s rise to power through the National Socialist party was based on a vast increase in government control and ownership that was “fundamentally similar to Russian Communism.”

Today, many people seem to associate Socialism with a kinder version of paternalism meant to improve equality for all. This Utopian ideal, however, stands in contrast with history where Socialist economic regimes have led to anti-Democratic forms of government including Communism and Fascism. If depressions are allowed to persist, the radical political parties across Europe are likely to continue gaining support. The current rise in nationalism and socialism within Europe should not be taken lightly.