you just never can tell, can you?
i've ben a news junkie for a long time and think i understand the long arc of history --- but events of the last decade or so make me wonder exactly where we are on that arc --- even before the advent of trumpistan, i noticed the "illiberal state," as he calls it, that viktor orbán has created in hungary over the last ten or so years, by attacking hungary's free press, judiciary, and central bank --- all of it perfectly legal --- and i have imagined how easily it could all happen here ---
also too recep tayyip erdoğan, as he has begun to undo the genius of ataturk's secular democracy in turkey over the same period --- appealing to the ignorant religionists
and rodrigo duterte, who has killed thousands in his crusade against "drugs" and in general put a very thuggish face on the face of the phillipines --- and yet has an enthusiastic following who have somehow rationalized the immorality of it all
and i'm convinced that because of trump, brazil has jair bolsonaro, who has essentially declared war on the amazon and its indigenous people, and israel has netanyahu, who doesn't give one big shit about palestinians or israeli democracy
all of them love trump, and he loves them ---
omg, and nevermind how badly the UK is fkn itself
and don't get me started on the end-times evangelicals, who are not a lunatic fringe (well, they are actually) but are all over this administration, in more ways than one, doing their best to bring on their stupid "end times" ---
poor us --- i've read shirer's "rise and fall of the third reich," and am seeing firsthand how fascism comes to power --- "it can't happen here" was the title of sinclair lewis's book in 1935 --- sure it can --- and it is happening now --- all we need is a reichstag fire, and we are shit out of luck ---
i've read too much history to be comfortable with the present situation, and don't know what i can do about it at the present time other than deal with it
No comments:
Post a Comment