Off The Record

A smart and accessible dissection of twenty-first-century fascist politics, providing general readers with the tools to understand, and defeat, today’s resurgent far right “Fascism is the term that is everywhere and nowhere in contemporary political discussions.” —David OstAround the globe, far-right political parties and movements are on the march, stoking fears of the revival of fascism. What to make of this dangerous drift?In this masterly examination of far-right politics past and present, political scientist David Ost argues that in order to resist its revival, we must understand its often broad appeal, particularly to non-elites who have traditionally aligned with the Left. Ost shows that equating fascism only with violence and mass repression misses its distinctive populist elements, and thus keeps us from recognizing the dangers of a contemporary Right that, for now, downplays its repressive dimensions.Drawing on a wide range of contemporary and historical examples, Ost argues that both classic fascism and today’s right-wing populism should be seen as different versions of what he calls Red Pill Politics. Both promote authoritarian politics, intolerance, xenophobic outrage, and rigid gender roles. Yet they win support by speaking for the dissatisfied with anti-elitist rhetoric, while underemphasizing their repressive policies. They have their best chance of winning when the Left is failing.Red Pill Politics draws on meticulous historical research and deep familiarity with current global developments to present a startlingly original analysis that helps us understand and challenge today’s most pressing political threat.https://amzn.to/4wwzAcfBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-opperman-report--1198501/support.

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When Men Become Gods: Mormon Polygamist Warren Jeffs, His Cult of Fear, and the Women Who Fought BackIn When Men Become Gods, New York Times bestselling author Stephen Singular casts a light on a dark corner of religious extremism. He reveals a group of fundamentalists operating in the present-day United States, where teenage girls are kept in virtual bondage in the name of upholding the "sacred principle" of polygamy.As the leader and self-proclaimed prophet of the Fundamentalist Latter Day Saints, a sect of Mormonism based in isolated southern Utah, Warren Jeffs held sway over thousands of followers for nearly a decade. His rule was utterly tyrannical. In addition to coercing young girls into polygamous marriages with older men, Jeffs reputedly took scores of wives, many of whom were his father's widows. Television, radio, and newspapers were shunned, creating a hidden community where polygamy was prized above all else.But in 2007, after a two-year manhunt that landed him on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted List, Jeffs's reign was forcefully ended. He was convicted of rape as an accomplice for his role in arranging a marriage between a fourteen-year-old girl and her nineteen-year-old first cousin.In When Men Become Gods, Edgar Award nominee Stephen Singular traces Jeffs's rise to power and the concerted effort that led to his downfall. It was a movement championed by law enforcement, private investigators, the Feds, and perhaps most vocal of all, a group of former polygamous wives seeking to liberate young women from the arranged marriages they'd once endured. The book offers new revelations into a nearly impenetrable enclave---a place of nineteenth-century attire, inbreeding, and eerie seclusion---providing readers with a rare glimpse into a tradition that's almost a century old, but that has only now been exposed.https://amzn.to/4wbSxkhBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-opperman-report--1198501/support.