George MonbiotThe more I think about it, the more I reckon the 2003 Iraq War began the process that let Trump win. The blatant lies we were told by our governments, the disregard for public opinion and mockery of international law created a rupture that never healed. Trust, consent and cohesion were smashed.🧵 1/3
Yes, things were rotten before. But it was such a breathtaking breach of trust and display of impunity that it broke something subtle but crucial: a belief that, for all their faults, our societies are broadly democratic. The breach has only widened since. As trust collapses, demagogues prosper. 2/3
Tom RitchfordMany of us warned - repeatedly - before it occurred that the Iraq war would be a huge and fatal shift. We were ignored or shouted down. But I don't think any of us realised just how many monsters would come through the breach. 3/3 www.monbiot.com/category/war...
war – iraq – George Monbiot
war – iraq – George Monbiot
RegTaking economic, social and environmental liberties has been diagnostic trait of neoliberalism since its imposition in the 70s, and the fact that the technology-driven state in Chile was deismantled by those same powers invalidates the claim that neoliberalism is responsible for the recent advances in technology.
I'd say 2008 was the event that led to Trump tho, because the crash raised the spectre of economic reform that authoritarianism avoids.