Once you allow bullies to take power, they tend to ruthlessly accumulate it. Passive bystanders participate in the process, while disavowing the results. Germany and Russia were the bullies of 20th century Europe, leave a swath of destruction in their wake. The residue was readily apparent in Nuremberg, where the rotting remains of the Third Reich leave an obvious stench. But we also found abundant footprints of the bad boys in the Czech Republic and in Hungary. Surely such madness couldn’t occur here in the land of the free and the home of the brave. But our freedom and bravery seem to be eroding in recent years, as we shift further right, elect a bully as our leader, and tolerate the prejudice and authoritarian politics he embraces. A look in the rear view mirror may clean the fog off the windshield

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