The idea that history is radically open, that anything can happen, upset some people, you know, the idea that we could, yes, we could, this could be the beginning of the end of American democracy.

We could be at the beginning of the end of American power.

I mean, there are many negative scenarios you can project into the future.

But I wanted to tell readers that there are positive scenarios as well and that it's in their

hands.

Hey, everybody.

Miriam Williamson here.

Thank you so much for being with me today.

I read an article recently by a man named Matthew McWilliams,

and he was talking about authoritarianism and democracy.

And listen to this.

He says, what I found is that approximately 18% of Americans are highly disposed to authoritarianism, according to their answers to four simple survey questions used by social scientists to estimate that disposition.

A further, 23% or so are just one step below them on the authoritarian scale.

This roughly 40% of Americans tend to favor authority, obedience, and uniformity over freedom,

independence, and diversity. I don't know about you, but I find that so scary, somewhat horrifying.

What is happening? What is this ideal of democracy that so many Americans are willing to

turn away from? What is it about an open society where everybody gets to think whatever they

want to think and share what

their opinion is and everybody gets and nobody has a monopoly on truth and that there are

diverse opinions and diverse ethnicities and diverse religions and diverse sex and sexuality.

You know, to some of us, that's exciting, that that really is the ideal of America that makes this whole thing so amazing.

To other people, that is what's scary.

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