FASCISM, a totalitarian political philosophy, is based on the glorification of the state and the absolute authority of the leader. It is incompatible with either democracy or communism, and it denigrates the democratic concepts of individuality and equality. "Fascism" was first used by Italy’s Benito Mussolini in 1918 to describe an intensely patriotic, ruthless and warlike state. As Mussolini expressed it, “War alone brings up … all human energies and puts the stamp of nobility upon the people who have the courage to meet it …. War is to man what maternity is to woman.” Fascism was introduced to Germany by Adolph Hitler, Chancellor and leader of the Nazi party. The Nazi version of fascism carried patriotism into racism, glorifying the Nordic “race” and carrying out a homicidal anti-Semitic campaign. Other countries have gone through a period of fascism, including Spain, Portugal, Greece, Romania and Argentina.

DEMOCRACIDE details the progressive attacks on democracy launched by the Bush Administration, as well as describing more than a dozen characteristics of that administration that closely resemble aspects of fascism.

BANKRUPTCY is a state of insolvency brought about by the inability to pay debts. It can be either “involuntary” (when creditors bring the matter to court) or “voluntary” (when the debtor brings the matter to court). The court tries to avoid a complete dissolution of the company by permitting it to reorganize its affairs and restructure its debts. In the case of a nation like the U.S., when the major debtors are foreign countries, bankruptcy occurs when foreign credit dries up. The immediate effects are soaring inflation and plunging standards of living.

"This book is about America as an endangered nation. Yes, this fabulous country—the wealthiest, strongest, most creative and productive nation in the history of the world—may soon vanish from the earth. Its disappearance will not be the result of a physical process. It will not be destroyed by nuclear bombs or obliterated by a giant meteor. To a casual observer, nothing will seem changed. The flag and National Anthem will be the same; the cities and suburbs, farms and forests will remain; children will still play in the schoolyards, television shows and shopping will still fill leisure hours; but the nation’s legal, social, political, economic and foreign policies will be different. No one will mention the arrest of protestors, dissident writers, journalists and editors, activist judges, teachers who discuss outlawed books, and key members of heterodox groups—many of them never to be seen again. The United States will be transformed from a democracy to an imperial authoritarian state. The American spirit—the sense of personal freedom and limitless opportunities that encourages us to be all we can be—will have disappeared.

"The change has already started. Most people haven’t noticed it because the country is still in what might be called the early stage of a serious illness: 'democracide' (also known as 'constitutional dissipation'), defined here as 'distortion of the spirit and letter of the U.S. Constitution.' Its symptoms are secrecy, the ascendancy of military aggression over diplomacy, fiscal irresponsibility, questionable elections, stifling dissent, supremacy of the executive branch of government, tyranny of the majority political party, and subordination of the various States.

"Democracide is not the result of new constitutional amendments; but reveals itself in political acrimony over federal and state laws, regulations and court decisions. Like a communicable disease, it is carried by numerous small changes—some of them as small as a single sentence in a new law, a presidential executive order, or a new law-enforcement procedure.

"These changes, like microbes, are eating America’s heart and soul, slowly destroying our civilization as no foreign enemy could possibly achieve. It is an incremental process that, over time, could leave us unable to control our public institutions and personal destinies."