End Times Fascism: And the Fight for the Living World by Naomi Klein and Astra Taylor
In their new book End Times Fascism: And the Fight fort he Living World, Naomi Klein and Astra Taylor provide an important
observation from Joyce Carol Oates about Elon Musk, where she questioned his
lack of enjoyment or celebration on social media. Where other tech moguls like
Mark Zuckerberg have proclaimed social media’s ability to bring us together,
Oates observes how other social media platforms have devolved into a space for
harboring grievances and complaints. It’s a fitting observation that Klein and
Taylor lean into to raise questions about how these wealthy elites with
seemingly more resources than some countries and many people can find so much
of the world problematic that many of them seek to develop charter cities or
autonomous zones of exclusivity or even isolated bunkers that will allow them
to disengage and shield themselves from the rest of the world. End Times
Fascism explores the hard shift in the tech industry from progressive ideas
and thoughts towards fascism and dictatorships to how they have exploited
millennialism and apocalyptic thinking and partnered with other fascistic
political movements in America and around the world in order to demonstrate
their need for exclusivity and shelter. After reading Gil Durán’s excellent new
book The Nerd Reich, which also details the fascistic shift in Silicon
Valley and its determination to accelerated the collapse of society to form
their own autonomous enclaves and feudal systems, End Times Fascism
provides a complementary if not a broader view in how 21st century
fascism and its links to technology and apocalyptic thinking are different from
the 20th century fascism that we’re often warned about and keep
vigilant eyes in order to prevent its resurrection. These books are not only
timely and relevant, but also necessary in helping to make meaning and
understand the motivations of the individuals and groups who not only hold much
of the world’s wealth but also are able to leverage that wealth to change the world,
often to benefit themselves.
An important lesson Klein and Taylor explain at the
beginning of their book is how this modern version of fascism differs from
earlier iterations, examining its evolution as “humanity has entered an era of
unprecedented, global-scale existential crises.” While in the past, we might
trust our leaders in industries and governments to mount challenges to these
crises, but today’s approach is much different and more self-serving.
Furthermore, Klein and Taylor explore how this approach to accelerating the end
and the apocalyptic thinking limits resources for others while allowing the
world to burn. That is, with the end of the world fast approaching, there’s no
need to help others out, but rather only to prepare for its imminent demise. This
book not only highlights the apocalyptic thinking of Silicon Valley, but also
their symbiosis with the conservative, right-wing political world to wrest more
control and dominion over society.
End Times Fascism is organized into 4 different
sections that examine the history of fascism and millenarianism in the 20th
century and how it has led to an increasing belief in end times and the hypervigilance
of these end times symbols. While it is still a little unsettling to see how
many people are increasingly banking on the end of the world being near, Klein
and Taylor’s book is also a reminder about how often this kind of thinking and
belief system arises during manufactured crises and unprecedented events. In
Chris Jennings’s End Times, he explores the Ruby Ridge standoff and
tragedy, and how it arose from the millenarianism that permeated the Christian nationalism
of the 70s and 80s, and how Hal Lindsey’s book The Late Great Planet Earth
was among the best-selling books of the 1970s. Even though this kind of
thinking isn’t novel, the apocalyptic thinking and hastening the end of the world
remain a popular belief system for some groups of people. The second section
details how Silicon Valley is working to hasten the end times and how AI and
data centers in particular are proving to be part of the accelerant that is
hastening the end for some communities. While there has rightly been
considerable pushback against data centers in communities, it was shocking to
read about Musk’s Colossus, a massive data center in Memphis. Named after a
1960s sci-fi movie computer, Klein and Taylor document Musk’s late-to-the game
approach to AI, and how this facilitated his hasty and dangerous construction of
basically a private powerplant to fuel his AI, which the authors also note has
a reputation for generating racist and misogynistic content. As Duran’s book
noted, many of the Silicon Valley’s companies are named after sci-fi and fantasy
book characters, yet these CEOs and leaders often misread or omit the warnings
and ironies in these characters, and it seems like Musk missed the irony of
naming his vast AI data center after a murderous robot- man-made technology run
amok and seeking to end humanity. It was shocking to learn about Musk’s secret
deal with the Memphis city council that allowed him to unleash pollutants,
toxic chemicals, and waste in neighborhoods that have often been the site of
other economic and environmental injustices. Although there’s been more and
more pushback regarding data centers recently, Klein and Taylor’s reporting
helps to further emphasize the environmental and human toll that our use of AI
has on communities and individuals. This book raises important awareness of
these issues and frames the damage done to communities in a way that identifies
its toll on individuals and families, making this an important read. It’s also one
of the many travesties and atrocities that are perpetrated around the world in
the name of technological progress and efficiency. While we may think our lives
are improving, Klein and Taylor remind us of those voices and victims who are
often stifled, maligned, or silenced by the powerful and affluent.
Although Klein and Taylor focus on the institutional, racial, economic, and political violence that has become more prominent with the rise of 21st century fascism, their book also offers signs of hope through resistance. Although they report on Musk’s data center and the damage it has inflicted on the Boxtown neighborhood of Memphis, Klein and Taylor also highlight group and individuals like Keshaun Pearson who helped organize the Memphis Communist Against Pollution, which has collaborated with other organizations to fight the encroaching environmental pollution from these data centers. They also spend time discussing how communities and groups in Minneapolis supported neighbors and immigrants when DHS invaded its neighborhoods and murdered two citizens. For all the attempts to malign these victims and paint them as radical terrorists, Klein and Taylor highlight the kind of supportive communities and neighbors who put themselves as risk for the care and good of one another. It’s an important reminder of the connections that help to sustain us during these wild, violent times. It’s also an important reminder of the kinds of dichotomies and sides that are set up as our society continues to break apart due to polarization. We can choose the side of exclusivity, of rejection, of violence and condescension, or we can choose to be part of a broader collective, working to protect others against harm. While Klein and Taylor don’t necessarily frame their arguments in this way, they do end their book with a reminder of the doomsday clock, and how both the UN and Bulletin of Atomic Scientists raised concerns about the destructive powers of nuclear technology. Both organizations arose from the wreckage of World War II, seeking to prevent further wars and the use of destructive technology. While Klein and Taylor acknowledge the limitations of the UN and the frequent failures to recognize the destructive power of nuclear technology, they present important warnings and reminders of what lies ahead if we continue down this apocalyptic path while indiscriminately using technology without thinking. Klein and Taylor report on many of the interconnected fascist factions not only in the US but around the world, and although breadth of this coverage can feel daunting, it’s also important to recognize their coverage of the communities of resistance that have risen to challenge the encroachments on our rights. My thanks to Farrar, Straus, and Giroux and NetGalley for sharing an advanced copy of this book. Highly recommended!
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