Why Rich People Love Fascism: How Elites Trade Democracy for Profit: How Capitalists Use Authoritarianism to Crush Labor and Control Markets
Why Rich People Love Fascism is a provocative examination of the unholy alliance between capital and authoritarianism. This book cuts through the myths of political neutrality and liberal virtue to reveal a stark truth: when the wealthy face the threat of democracy, they consistently choose fascism. Not by accident. Not under duress. But willingly, and often eagerly.
Drawing on a century of history, the book traces how economic elites have repeatedly aligned themselves with far-right regimes-from Mussolini's Italy to Hitler's Germany to Pinochet's Chile-not because of shared ideology, but because of shared economic interests. Fascism, the author shows, is not a failure of liberalism. It is one of its escape hatches. When workers organize, when wages rise, when the public demands a say, the rich have often responded by backing regimes that silence dissent, criminalize labor, and enforce austerity at gunpoint.
The narrative dismantles the comforting idea that fascism is an aberration. Instead, it exposes it as a reliable tool in capitalism's toolbox-useful when markets need discipline, when populations get restless, or when profits begin to fall. It details how institutions we consider democratic-from parliaments to newspapers to banks-have historically normalized and profited from this descent into authoritarian control.
Written with unsparing clarity and dry skepticism, Why Rich People Love Fascism is not a work of nostalgia or speculation. It is a hard look at how power works. This book isn't just about the past. It is about the economic logic still shaping the world today, and the very real possibility that, when tested again, the elite will choose repression over reform-just like they always have.
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