I probably pay more attention to American politics than is good for me. My interest was already there well before Trumpism but it spiked dramatically when I was able to see first hand, from just north of the border, how people fall for crooked despots.
I have much less doubt about how it happens now.
The soil is always ripe when a nation is in decline. Someone comes along and feeds into the desire of people who fall for slogans and quick fixes. It works particularly well when the leader shows you people you can razor focus your anger on while you are being distracted.
When Hitler came to power, Germany was in huge economic trouble. They had massive inflation and their currency kept devaluating. Under this pressure came someone who said he was going to make Germany great once again. Things only escalated from there to a catastrophic downfall.
Trump isn't Hitler but what they both share is a malevolent narcissism sourced in deeply troubled childhoods. The ultimate victims of their psychopathy are the people least deserving of it which is always the way of history.
We are going to finish this era in chaos and turmoil with the US having one of the biggest downfalls. It will be their chance to rebuild again as the worst intentioned members of the boomer class which Trump belongs to, slowly expire.
But no matter the era we live in, there are traits we cannot erase from our DNA; traits which make us predictable and prone to self-sabotage.
Its just that during the golden periods, we manage to distract ourselves just enough to not fall prey to our worst instincts.
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