Did Benito Mussolini come up with the idea of fascism?
No. He came up with the name, and used it for his own movement. Fascism is (like Socialism) a collectivist ideology which sees a person’s relationship with his group, with the rest of his society, as the most important thing about him. The name is derived from the Latin fasces – an axe whose handle is made, not of a single strong shaft, but of a bundle of slender twigs. Individually they are weak; collectively extremely strong. “United we stand; divided we fall.” Hence, Fascism is often seen as a viable choice in moments of national emergency, whether military or other – and is often associated with aggressive nationalism, exaggerated respect for one’s own side and wars of conquest. In practice, all this translates into a very powerful state, with restricted choices for the citizens. This is, inevitably, the outcome of the endeavour to get everyone pulling together, marching in step – strong, but not free. It is what happens when Government gets too big and intrusive. Swinging along to
