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The 1990s version of this movie was such a good satire of fascism
that most don’t realize it was satire, or that it didn’t accurately reflect the
book.
In the book version of Starship Troopers anyone can
participate in government by simply volunteering for the military. In other
words, the government in Starship Troopers is a democracy, but suffrage is
based upon military service and not simply being born in the country and reaching
a certain age. The civics teacher in the book explains why, and it boils down
to only those that have skin in the game get to have a say in policy.
The military service isn't forced or conscripted like you'd
see in a dictatorship. In fact, the military gave the main character plenty of
chances to back out of their contract, even after they’ve shipped off. Those
that didn’t fulfill their term of service weren’t sent to the gulag. They still
enjoyed all the rights of being a citizen except voting. Most qualifying terms
of service were only two years long in non combat support roles. The main
character grew into a such a man that he went career in the infantry.
The government respected the rights of its citizens
including free speech. There were no secret police rounding up minorities and
dissidents like a person would expect in a fascist government. The court
system, especially for the military, had protections for the accused. The main
character witnessed his military leadership trying to help the average soldiers
avoid the harshest punishments until they blurted out their crime and it was
unavoidable. The main character is Filipino, showing there wasn’t some master
race ideology that motivated the government.
They are fighting a war, but there is almost nothing about higher strategy or the reasons for either side fighting it. The main character's hometown was attacked, so in contrast to the desire for greater East Asian prosperity sphere or “living space”, the war in Starship troopers was arguably defensive. But Rico literally says, the pawn doesn't interrogate the grand master about why its moved so that is secondary.
The tactics displayed by Rico,
particularly in the opening chapter are violent, but comparable to airborne operations from
World War II, negating any charges of attempted "genocide." (Ever
since Gaza that word has been overused to the point of meaningless anyway.)
In short, the book is no more militaristic or fascist than
the memoir of any real-life veteran. Any veteran reading this book would
appreciate its focus on military life and culture but wouldn’t call it fascist.
The message of the book was simply: a dumb kid finally grows up and learns how
to be a good son, father, and citizen after joining the military.
I highly recommend you read the book for yourself.
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