I lead a fairly sheltered life even when I'm not shielding. I had never heard of QAnon until this year. Conspiracy theorists, Fake Newsers, the Loony Right & Left, fanatical Religious Extremists.... have always been in the dark underbelly of humanity. But now they are coming out of the woodwork & are driving an agenda of civil unrest.
Why are we surprised, when our world is so divided between the have's & the have nots? If we marginalise people enough, if their lives are so poor, what do we expect them to do? We reap what we sow & we have sowed some pretty divisive policies.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/53498434
Populism - National Populism, Right Wing Nationalism, the Radical Right, call it what you will, is becoming more widespread. As well as the USA - France, Italy, The Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, Austria, the UK, have all gone the Populist route. Also Jair Bolsonaro in Brazil. It's largely driven by immigration, economic policies & Global consumerism. Nationalism is at the centre of Populist beliefs. Trump is simply the most powerful, amoral, figurehead in the "democratic" world.
Populism believes strongly in the "corrupt elite". In the USA in particular there is a very strong ideology based on the "will of the people". Those two have come together in the belief that the "people" can use any method to overthrow the "elite". That's what we saw in Washington last weekend - a mob of nationalist conspiracy theorists. I'm not surprised that the similarities between now & Germany between the wars have been identified.
I remember unions fighting for jobs. I remember race riots in London & elsewhere. I remember the lights going out & the 3 day week. But things have changed since my 20's & 30's. Instant communication, mass media & social media didn't exist. They have stoked the fire & now it's burning.
Populism is destructive. Unless we face up to what we have created & do something about it Populism will win & it will be bloody - not popular.
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