ABSTRACT
In this section we explore what has become integral to any future development of American fascism – a deepening and increasingly far-reaching surveillance apparatus located throughout the society. As part of the national security-state but far transcending it, the surveillance order has refined the process of data collection and processing beyond Orwellian levels that were confined mostly to the governing system. Nowadays the surveillance capacity of modern societies extends beyond state agencies into the realm of corporations, the technological sector, and the everyday life landscape. This is especially true for the U.S., given its enormous warfare state and the great sophistication of its technology sector. We know from the revelations of whistleblowers from the NSA, CIA, and elsewhere that surveillance managers are prepared to gather information of all sorts on Americans: political activity, banking records, Internet transactions, travel, personal data, and more. Given the intrusive power of modern technology, the authoritarian consequences of the surveillance order cannot be overstated.
