Norway: Background and consequences of the massacre

A  christian fundamentalist with  intense "contacts  to the right  scene" has murdered in a horrible massacre more than 70 people. At least now it is necessary to reflect in a deep way about right wing populism and the far right in all its facettes. For above all we have to deal with their social reasons, their strong international rise  in the last years and how we have to fight against them- not only with beautiful liberal, "enlighted" speeches.

The man who killed so many people is not unknown: he is conservative, a christian fundamentalist,  he was (still is?)  member of th rightpopulist " Fortschrittspartei" (this party has supported" from outside" governments in Norway) . There are recherches if he was  in his youth also activist in the Neonazi-scene .

So horrible the murdering is it is NOT a  "crazy single phenomenon"- it fits exactly in the international development- even when it is bringing it to a tragic peak. In the USA f.e. christian fundamentalism is a massphenomenon (see the Tea Party). Some months ago such a  "christian knight" shot a bullet into the head of a member of the congress.

The far right has won in the last years o a lot of political ground : from -for above all votes collecting- rightpopulists over far right organisations and parties to hardcore nazis and fascists. A  small" right sector" has been in nearly all countries after World War II. In Austria  the farright FPÖ had for a very long time poor  5/ 6 percents ofv the votesn. But with the neoliberal hurrican, the desaster of the "official politics", the "moderate " politics of  traditional left the far right grew  international to a large extent.

When we reflect now the catastrophy of Norway it is not ENOUGH to "feel with the victims". We have to state that the far right has entered the  "middle ofv the socity" " since decades . And that the open and combined social, economic and ecological crises of  capitalism are the ground for the growing of the far right (similar but not identic(!) to the twenties and thiertes)

The official politics will follow its way- even after this massacre : more social cuts ("Sparprogramme"), some only administrative measure against rightsextremists etc. But also seeking the support of the far right- when it seems to be "politically opprtune "  (see  the conservative- far right government under chancellor Schüssel ).

The movements and a consequent left  has to combine the  fight against right with the fight against  capitalism in crisis . We should be  "radical"- what means to go to the roots ( Marx) . And the roots for  what is happening in  Norway, in the USA and in in many other countries are the combined crises, the fear and "uncertrainity", the "ideological vacuum", which is more bad more occupied by the far right .The movements and the left have to act with a  clear,  concrete  politics. Not   small "reforms"  of the system are on the agenda- the status/movens quo is the MAIN basis  for the far right  to gain the support of "people without hope" ( The FPÖ-"Führer" Strache is presenting his party as  "social homeland party/ soziale  Heimatpartei"). We have to go beyond the system itself, the "logic " of making profits at any cost and the shorthanded indirect bourgeois democracy . Socialism- selfgovernned  and  plural- is not "retro": it is  the necessary and realistic project to save the future of the mankind and the planet.