Woah! That's crazy dude. This isn't a Poem. Its almost like *Cough* I haven't finished setting up my other site POLITICAL.POSTACH.IO *Cough* or something. Anywho.

"It Can't Happen Here" by Sinclair Lewis is a prophetic novel from 1935. it is prophetic in the sense that Sinclair Lewis seemed to have a deep understanding of people and their political machinations. Here I have, as briefly as I could, gathered what I saw as the really important bits. Obviously it's lacking some context, but I don't think that fact will take away from the core of it.

"Historical" Racism, Homophobia, Antisemitism, and just general disregard for basic human decency ahead. (luckily not by me),

The 15 points summarized

Buzz Windrip's 15 points use contradictory points in an attempt to appeal to the largest political base possible. These points use false hope and American chauvinism to enable disagreeing groups to accept them and their outright betrayal of American principles of liberty, the separation of church and state, and the complete and total destruction of our fragile checks and balances. A dictatorship is systematically created by giving the president and those he appoints absolute power.

The first point completely neuters Congress by giving the president absolute control over the economy. This is done by creating a board "empowered to make all regulations governing finance". This is further reinforced by giving this board absolute authority to nationalize "mines, oilfields, water power, public utilities, transportation, and communication", meaning every valuable resource or piece of infrastructure. This guarantees the owners of these resources will work with the Windrip Administration because the alternative is having your business and property taken.

The second point gives the President absolute control over all labor organizations by elevating favorable unions to government offices and banning dissident organizations. Later the same process will be done on America's farm organizations. This in effect completely silences workers by taking away their ability to organize and removing their already limited rights to good working conditions; and gives the President indirect control over food production and prices.

The third point directly contradicts the first two points and the fifth by guaranteeing private property and private initiatives. This is an outright lie as above it is stated the government maintains the right to nationalize everything in America of value including money, and any publicly owned but privately run business will lose all control if they don't play ball with the Windrip Administration. It also seems to try to draw the elderly vote by implying some form of social security.

The fourth point makes America for Christians alone, as any non-Christian is barred from holding "any public office or to practice as a teacher, professor, lawyer, judge, or as a physician, except in the category of Obstetrics." Preventing them from having any cultural impact or making any serious money. This combined with point 9, which classifying Jews as non-Americans. Point 10 which makes anyone of 1/16th African-American blood a slave. As well as point 12, which in effect removes all women's rights and relocates them once again to the job of breeding sow. These in combination amass to the goal of an "Ideal American Ethnostate" for white Christian patriots.

Point five at first glance abolishes the needlessly rich, but in reality simply pressures the rich to cooperate with the Windrip. If the rich don't they get their assets and inheritances siezed, but if they do they get the extra privileges of being a government official.

Point six guarantees under its broad definition all manufacture or production during wartime, which they can arbitrarily declare, can in effect have all profits taxed. This enables them to remove their opponents and incentivizing Business owners to turn on their peers to get better government positions or favors.

Point seven states the scaling up of America's military might will be the primary goal of the Windrip Administration. It is almost explicitly stated the goal is to have all branches of our military to rival the largest power groups in the world with the goal of world conquest.

Point Eight bribes congress with the power to print money to line their pockets and requires them to all but crash the global economy. Locally this would barely effect the richest of Americans, but would cripple the middle class and poor Americans. Internationally, this would hurt all countries that use US Dollars. It would radically drop prices of imported goods temporarily and would enable governments and companies in the know to consolidate and clear foreign debts before the fall.

Point eleven states that should economic prosperity not magically appear it is not the President's fault. The blame can simply be passed to this subordinate committee or to any of the consultants listed.

Point thirteen allows the Windrip Administration to execute or imprison anyone they see fit by arbitrarily declaring them communists. It sews dissent and suspicion between Americans. Americans all of the sudden can improve their quality of life by ratting on their neighbors.

Point fourteen guarantees veteran and military support. The group most likely to cause significant problems in a governmental takeover becomes one of their best assets.

Point fifteenth is the most important point as it truly secures the Windrip Administration's iron grip on America. Congress is made purely an advisor and the Supreme Court has no ability to veto the president. Like a keystone in an arch, this point guarantees the Administration the ability to enforce the other 14 points.

Doremus Jessup's beliefs throughout the novel did not waiver from his strong beliefs in freedom, liberty, and what he views as American values, however how what he sees as his part to play in maintaining those values radically shifts throughout the book. In the first eight chapters of the book Doremus recognizes the risk of Fascism in America and even warns his close friends to some success such as agreement from Father Perefixe, but Doremus himself still doubts Fascism can really rise in America. Even after he is directly threatened he does nothing to act in a mix of complacency, disbelief, and fear of consequences leads him to largely do nothing to hamper Buzz's rise to power.

This at first gradually, then radically changed over the course of the novel. Chafing at the notion of American values like free speech and liberty are being eroded all too late becomes a desire to speak out about the injustice of the Windrip presidency after professors start getting arrested for their ideas. This is the final nail in him having any say in his paper the Daily Informer. With no hope of leaving the country, he takes more radical action forming a New Underground cell leading to his arrest. In being savagely tortured, watching the people he is trapped with degrade, and being isolated and ignorant to what was happening to the people he loved Doremus's resolve to overthrow the fascist dictatorship is strengthened. After escaping to Canada his desire to make a meaningful impact is so great he returns to America in the hopes of saving his country in spite of the risks.

Doremus transitions from a self proclaimed burgouis intellectual to a radical and effective organizer and activitist. He realizes the damage his, and his fellow Americans, complacency caused and acts not to atone but on his principles. Even at his lowest point Doremus is able to see the futility and harm of actions like the murder of Shad in the Concentration Camp. Doremus' becomes someone who pays attention to the world and the people in it without losing any reverence to the ideas he values. He became the kind of person who sticks his neck out for what be believes in and the people those beliefs protect.

It Can't Happen Here is an excellent showcase of the weakness of democracy. Buzz Windrip, Lee Saranson, Bishop Prang and their party use average Americans hopes and fears and weapons against them. Their focus is not to engage with the world as it is, they sell an ideal version of the world. A version of the world that isn't help up by logistics or reason, but instead is Utopia at no cost.

Very similarly to several President's, most recently Trump, cults of personality combine over common values in order to amass power. Much like Trump Buzz Windrip, with the aid of skilled advisors, carefully naritivized his own history and being making the public see him as not the conman who in the past sold snake oil as medicine, but instead as a pioneer of the Common man. Instead of being done with stories online, through social media, and networking television as it would be done today in It Can't Happen Here this is done through a book ghost wrote by Lee Saranson, the calls to action by preacher Bishop Prang, and paid off or later intimidated journalists. A core group is established, in this case American patriots, and an out group is established to be hated: in this case the jews, blacks, or communists. Later after the "Corpos" achieved near total control, details are conveniently charged or sensationalized to maximize its effective on the public. Sometimes the same bit of good news is rereported as new, or news is even created such as the instances of "false flags" in the book such as the framing of Mexico for a fake attack on America.

The techniques used by media today are no different than the techniques used in the past, but the technology enabled us to do it more effectively. Instead of having to pay for radio waves Bishop Prang could have had a livestream to spread his hate for free. Buzz could l Instead of having to galivant about the country and relying on word of mouth he could have had constant access to every American with an internet connection to spread his sugary and contradictory ideas. There will always be people selling salvation for 50 cents, and seeing it in the past without the complexities of the modern world make it all the more obvious.

"It Cant Happen Here" has a narrative arc that most resembles the story of Oedipus, fall then rise then fall, type, however the story ends on a neutral note as opposed to a true fall. In the beginning Doremus begins to stand up for his beliefs in American values in opposition to the rise of Fascism. After this high point Doremus is captured and taken to a concentration camp bringing him to the lowest point in his life losing all he cares about. He begins to rise again in prison up to the point he is finally freed and can escape to Canada. He rises still in his work in Canada with the New Underground and his return to the United States. However, in the couple pages of the book it reached a point where the Corpos find him and intend to catch him. This forces him to be hidden away by the New Underground in a safe house ending the book in a neutral point. Fascism could reassert itself in force or it could fall and America could become free once more. The ends ambiguity is a subtle but important change from the standard fall rise fall arc that leaves a far greater burden on the reader.

"It Can't Happen Here" was a radical piece of literature that pushed social and cultural boundaries, as I see it; it isn't really a piece of Modernist literature. It is heavily grounded in the realm of what is possible. It plays with absurdity, but nothing unrealistic. Further, instead of being highly individualistic it uses the individual to examine the fragility of society from a single detached narrators perspective. These characteristics are antithetical to what most would consider Modernist writing.

Chapter 1-8

This first part of the book introduces the setting and the characters while showcasing the rise of Buzz's party. Showcasing failings in the structure of democracy; a populist movement votes supported by a worshipped radio preacher and a political party called "The League of Forgotten Men". Chapter eight introduces "the 15 points" of his campaign and turns the Minute Men into an actual military force.

Key Plot Summaries

The 15 points.

Characters (Obviously Incomplete, but these are most mentioned)

Doremus Jessup - A well educated liberal Newspaper editor and proprietor of the Daily Informer. "A small town bourgeois intellectual" who actively uses his platform to speak what he sees as true.

Karl Pascal - ideological communist

"Shad" Ledue - This character is an archetype of a failing of democracy. Purely acting on self interest and ignorance. Having no real interest in learning about that which would inoculate him against the hollow promises of fascism he is an active member in his area promoting fascism. Is down horrendous for Sissy

"Sissy" - free spirited feminist being oppressed by the inconsistency of the state. Jessup's daughter