Short Take: What's the Difference Between Fascism and Communism?

It's not ideological. It's methodological.

by Rod D. Martin
January 10, 2025

Reader Question: Given that Fascism and Communism are just different varieties of Socialism, what is the difference between the two?

My response: It’s really just methodological. In Communism, the aim is nationalization of “the means of production” such that the state manages all such assets on behalf of the people (ha!). In fascism, especially as practiced in Germany, it’s much more indirect. Hitler didn’t nationalize many businesses. HOWEVER: (1) he put a 100% tax on dividends (“for the duration of the emergency”), (2) he criminalized selling stock (“for the duration of the emergency”), (3) he made the state the sole decision maker on who would sit on all corporate boards (“for the duration of the emergency”), and so forth. Oh, and also, all savings had to be invested in a very specific new kind of government bond (MEFO bonds).

So as you can see, the state took absolute control over all of the means of production in the same manner that Lenin and Stal…