Rush, Newspeak and Fascism for the masses!

[I'm repeating this post -- from July 6 -- because the original post's link is bloggered, and it contains the best quick explanation of the donation for "Rush, Newspeak and Fascism," and I wanted to link to it from the text at the upper left of the blog. I've added a few words, but for regular readers, this is nothing new. Just repair work, as it were.]

Well, after 16-plus ridiculously long posts, numerous letters and a fairly tough rewriting and editing process, it's finally compiled and available in PDF:

Rush, Newspeak and Fascism: An Exegesis

This is, as regular readers well know, the extended essay that appeared here over the course of multiple posts. As promised, I've put it together into a version you can download and read on your computer or print out and read it on the bus, or share it with friends.

I'm asking for a $5 donation (button at the upper left of the home page) with each download, because my bandwidth requirements are undoubtedly going to come back and bite me on this one. Besides, I've always been loath to hand out the tin cup and ask for donations -- I prefer to have something to offer in exchange. So the donation (and donors should feel free to make it more than $5 if they like!) is also an opportunity for Orcinus readers to support independent journalism.

The completed essay is about 40,000 words and 87 pages long. It contains large chunks of new material, and as you'll see, it's been rearranged and edited significantly. I think you'll find it's both more cohesive and more coherent, a little livelier, a little more detailed. Read it onscreen or print it out and share it with your friends. E-mail it around if you like. I'm frankly more interested in having it read than in the donations; I'm mostly just hoping to cover my expenses.

I tussled with what to do with the "Rush" essay for quite awhile. It's long enough to form a short book. But frankly, I remain extremely doubtful about its chances of being published through traditional venues -- a portion of it, after all, began life as a feature for Salon (that would be those sections dealing with Clinton-hate as a venue for coalescing the extremist and mainstream right) that never ran in the magazine; and if Salon wouldn't run it, I can't imagine who would. Let's face it: The material I'm writing about here is considered very explosive, and very sensitive, by mainstream publishers, and very few of them would be willing to back these kinds of ideas.

In previous centuries, when these kinds of ideas floated about, they often found expression through alternative publishing that was distributed through other means and was nonetheless consumed by the public at large. This was mainly the pamphlet, which was the chief means of publication for many of the world's great thinkers, including Tom Paine and Baruch Spinoza.

So I'm following their example with 21st-century means. Think of the 'Rush' essay as a kind of Web pamphleteering -- a way to spread information and ideas without relying on traditional, staid and reluctant publishing houses, including newspapers and Webzines. I already view blogging in general as this kind of alternative medium; and the 'Rush' pamphlet is the next logical step, a way to springboard from blogs and produce something that non-computer users can read too.

Of course, any and all feedback is always appreciated. Later this month, I'm going to start serializing the revamped 'Rush' essay so that it is available in an online version as well.

Finally, a big shout-out and THANKS to Paula at Stonerwitch for her hours of fine work, helping me put the essay together into the PDF form.