WALTER LAQUEUR
Postfascism, Postcommunism
As the age of fascism and Communism appears to recede into the past, it
should be possible to look back with greater detachment and reach a
deeper level of understanding. But for the time being this is little more
than a noble dream. The new dawn of freedom, to begin with, seems as
yet uncertain: Political movements have arisen in various parts of the
world, which in some essential respects share basic features with fascism.
The inspiration may be religious-radical in some cases, ultra-nationalist in
others. Fifty years ago, it was generally accepted that fascism was an ex–
clusively European affair; this was by and large true. Being a modern
phenomenon, fascism was unthinkable in premodern societies; it became
possible only at a certain level of economic, social, and technological
development. Fascism beyond Europe was called "false-fascism," which
was true at the time but is no longer correct with regard to the more
advanced parts of the third world. The demise of Communism has also
been less than total; the
nomenklatura
in most of these countries had a
soft landing. The new rulers are no longer Communists, but neither are
they social democrats or liberals or conservatives. If the general situation
deteriorates, all kinds of extremist regimes might emerge.
Whether to call the new extremists of the right neo-fascists or post–
fascists is a moot point. Other terms have been suggested including
"right-wing radicalism," "nationalist populism," "radical- or right-wing
populism," "right-wing extremes," "revolutionary nationalism," but
these are no more satisfactory. Fascism resembles pornography, in that it
is difficult and frequently impossible to define in an operational, legally
valid way. Those with a little experience know it when they see it.
These developments on the political scene should not necessarily af–
fect our assessment of the past, and it is sometimes argued that historians
and political scientists have made huge progress over the last decades in
their analysis of fascism and Communism. Concerning the study of the
specific aspects this is certainly true , but it is questionable whether similar
progress has been made in the interpretation of fascism and Communism.
There is the legacy of the past: It is unthinkable that German nationalists
(such as Ernst Nolte and Rainer Zittelmann) will ever reach agreement
with Jewish historians (such as Saul Friedlander and Dan Diner) about
the place of the Holocaust in history. Those who believe that historical
