Matthew Steinbach opinions@theotherpress.ca Richie RICH IS a FASCISEE sy siksieskecaovsi Wr didn’t love comics and cartoons when they were a kid? I know I did. I learned a lot from them. Archie books taught me everything I know about dating; from the Smurfs I learned a lot about cooperation; from Richie Rich I learned about the ideals of utopian fascism and from Scooby-Doo I learned how to avoid superstition and to think critically, so when... wait, what?! What did I learn from Richie Rich? Wasn’t he a kind, down-to-earth kid—just like me— the only difference being that he had a pile of money, gems coming out of his ears and a robot maid? Thanks to what I learned from Scooby-Doo, I’m not so convinced anymore. In fact, the more I think about it, the more the comic seems to be a metaphor for fascist corporatism whereby the private interests have merged with government to create a new world order, a sort of worldwide autarky— a self-contained private nationalism without class conflict headed by only a few individuals. There are a few key issues that I need to take up with Richie and his creators at Harvey Comics. The first and most obvious of course being the disparity of wealth between the Riches and, well, the rest of the world. Their true familial dynasty, which includes Richie’s cousin Reggie of the Van Doughs, Aunt Noovo Rich—a play on the phrase nouveau riche— and others occupy the inner circle at the top of society. Contrast that with Richie’s best friend Freckles, seemingly an orphan with agrarian overalls and a working-class haircut who lives with his brother Pee Wee in a downtrodden shack. Richville is obviously society without social welfare while Freckles and Pee Wee bear all the hallmarks of the “noble proletarian,” whose refusal of charity and thus his decision to stay poor mirrors the fascist tenet of class collaboration that suggests that a social hierarchy is a necessary aspect of civilization, the very opposite of Marxian class struggle. The second is Richie’s tagline, the descriptive, “Poor Little Rich Boy.” It seems to be an attempt at elevating Richie to idol status by evoking a cult of personality. Most effective dictatorships do this, from Stalin to Hitler. These regimes sought to foster a hero-like worship of authority. To achieve this, Richie is cast as a contradiction, poor like the common majority, or if you like, poor in the pitiable sense—Richie constantly faces adversity through theft and danger, but always manages to return things to the status quo, relatable to the commoner and infallible. Even in some stories, statues of him literally rise up from the ash. In the April 1982 issue of Richie Rich Treasure Chest Digest, there is a story entitled “Never Say Don’t Town.” Here Richie is fed up with regulatory structure and civic law, as children are continually told to obey bylaws like staying off park grass or waiting for traffic signals. He decides to set up a social experiment and builds a town for kids without any laws or rules. While it is fun at first, it eventually descends into chaos as the kids (the masses) can’t be trusted to govern themselves. Richie is shown angrily vetoing his earlier decision and re-establishing authoritarian rule. So maybe it’s time to think twice before handing over “harmless” comics to little kids; Harvey comics seems to have altered the adage “might makes right” to its own ends with “rich makes right,” and preaches a version of legality and morality through the eyes of its blonde haired, blue eyed fascist idealist. The POOR LITTLE RICH BOY Classic Politics get us talking Were knee-deep into the fall of ‘08 and politics cannot be escaped. Whether you followed the campaign trails of PM hopefuls across our country or the presidential debates in the US; whether you chose to cast your vote hoping to make Crystal Auffray “ranting, raving and relating” A. a difference in Canada’s future or if you stood idly by waiting for others to do it for you; you’re at least aware in some capacity that this has been an important time in the political landscape of North America. Although I’m of the school of thought that if you don’t vote, you can’t claim to be disappointed or angry about the way things turn out post-election, one thing these elections have done is get us talking about the state of affairs not only at home, but around the world. I remember growing up and hearing adults complain about how young people didn’t care enough to vote. Campaigns like Rock the Vote aimed to attract young voters to the polls and improve low numbers of voter turnout. In the wake of technological explosions worldwide, younger generations now have access to more information than ever. It’s almost impossible to escape any news that has to do with political agendas, parties, and campaigns. The result? We are making our votes count, and we do care about what the future holds for us. We want to know how well a prospective candidate could lead our country. So, even though you may think your friends have lost their marbles when they tell you who and why they’re voting for a certain political party, the fact that you’re invested enough to discuss it amongst other not-so-sobering topics on the weekend is a very good Ranting, Raving, and Relating Although we may not agree on why we should vote Green or Liberal or Conservative or Bloc, the very fact that we’re discussing it is a huge step forward—not only for our generation, but for the world. I’m glad we’re considering the issues, and I believe we’re making a difference.