by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner
I continue to wrack my mind about how I might be getting America’s existential choice of autocracy or civil war wrong. Is it possible that we’re going to continue to be an anocracy for the foreseeable future and all my hysterical predictions are wrong?
This is very true, I suppose.
And, yet. It’s self-evident that not only is autocracy very popular in the United States, but we don’t have the political will to do anything about it. As such, at the moment I think we’re just going to become an autocracy and that’s it. We might (at least at first) settle for a Hungary-style autocracy, something more akin to a “managed democracy” than a hard autocracy.
But we’re going to be an autocracy.
And, in all honesty, the difference between living in an anocracy like we do now and a “light touch” autocracy probably wouldn’t be that different. I say that, then immediately come up with a number of reasons why that wouldn’t be the case.
The biggest reason why I think this is Republicans, once they know they can do whatever the fuck they want without having to worry about the will of the people, will push through an extremely unpopular social agenda. Taxes for plutocrats will be all but end and taxes for the poor will skyrocket. Republicans will gut the social safety net. The list goes on.
And, don’t forget, form follows function.
Autocrats tend to be insecure motherfuckers and America’s autocrat would be no different. He (or she?) would soon enough come after freedom of speech, weaponize the ICE infrastructure, the whole shebang. Then drunk cranks like me will simply go poof! and that will be that.
I hope I’m wrong. I really do. But as of right now, the only other option we face is civil war. So, get out while you can I suppose.
