Indisputable is that the government is using military courts to try civilian protesters, that opposition figures are behind bars, that the president says he wants to change the constitution in order to, quote, restore the peace.

How is that not creeping authoritarian?

Chairman Mao may loom large here is a symbol of strength,

but he's also a reminder of the chaos that can come

when one leader has far too much of it.

The Iranian regime has shut down the internet all across the country

as it brutally cracks down on massive

protests.

Increasingly hardcore autocracy, one-man rule.

Orban successfully transformed Hungary's democracy into an autocracy.

The actual framework of governance that Maduro has been able to bend to his will, to be able to stage phony elections like the one that's going to be held this weekend.

Unless he's forcibly removed from power, Mr. Shee should now be able to personally choose for how long he will govern.

Much of that control now rests in the hands of just one man.

Hey Nick. Hey Hey, Nick.

Hey there, Hannah.

This is Civics 101, and this is an episode about something I think a lot of us think we understand.

Terms that we hear a lot, perhaps, especially lately.

But as with so many things we talk about on Civics 101, I had to ask myself, do we know what we are talking about? So, per usual, I found

someone who for sure knows what she is talking about.

I'm Anne Applebaum. I'm a staff writer for the Atlantic. I also teach at Johns Hopkins University,

and I'm a working historian. I came to Anne with a question. My question was, what is authoritarianism?

And right off the bat, I think I got a better catch-all term for the thing

...