• Optional@lemmy.world
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    3 days ago

    It says media is insanely powerful and we were idiots for not understanding that at any time in the last 60 years.

    Other countries - it’s coming for you. You’ll have your own MAGA cult soon if you don’t already.

    • merc@sh.itjust.works
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      3 days ago

      Other countries don’t have this problem because they don’t have the free for all media landscape that the US does.

      For example, in virtually every other country there’s a well funded public broadcaster. And, even when that public broadcaster isn’t dominating the viewership, it’s normally seen as the most trustworthy news source. So, people can watch their favourite news channel, but when they want to fact check something they know they can tune in the public broadcaster.

      Other countries are also not as insane as the US when it comes to defunding public education. Having a population that is able to tell fact from fiction is seen as important by most other countries, even if that means slightly higher taxes. The US sees well funded education as communism, and is trying to get rid of it, or defund it at a minimum.

      The US is also one of the only places with a true 2-party duopoly with no other options for voters. Even in countries where only 2 parties have a realistic chance at forming a government, there are other parties that siphon off the crazies, and/or put pressure on the mainstream parties from both left and right.

      I’ve lived in 4 other countries and have visited dozens more. The US is truly unique, and not in a good way. I’m not saying it couldn’t happen somewhere else, but it’s much more likely to happen in the US because of unique US dysfunction.

        • merc@sh.itjust.works
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          2 days ago

          Were you directing the “you” in your comment at people in Russia, China and North Korea?

          If so, I don’t think they’ll be surprised that fascism is coming for them.

          I understood “you” to mean people who believe that they live in free countries with a free press.

          • Optional@lemmy.world
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            2 days ago

            I dunno, they might be! But no, you understood correctly. I’m just saying state media is as state media does. Hopefully it keeps the signal to noise ratio high. But private media companies are always growing due to their immense Political power.

            • merc@sh.itjust.works
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              2 days ago

              But private media companies are always growing due to their immense Political power.

              In the US that’s true, but is it true of other countries? It seems like it in some countries like Israel, Italy and Hungary. But, those seem to be countries that have already gone pretty fascist.

      • Tinidril@midwest.social
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        3 days ago

        What’s happening in the US was based on what had already been done in Hungary. Every single thing you mentioned happened there first.

        • merc@sh.itjust.works
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          3 days ago

          A former soviet republic that never managed to stabilize after their soviet time doesn’t really count.

          • Tinidril@midwest.social
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            2 days ago

            No true Scotsman.

            Maybe the US never recovered from being a slave-owning British colony. Everyone has their baggage.

            • merc@sh.itjust.works
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              2 days ago

              The post I was replying to said "Other countries - it’s coming for you. "

              Most Lemmy users aren’t people using it from former Communist countries that never made the transition to working democracies. It may be coming (or have already come) for Hungary. But it isn’t coming for “you”, because “you” don’t have the problems that Hungary or the USA does.

    • Echo Dot@feddit.uk
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      3 days ago

      Other countries - it’s coming for you. You’ll have your own MAGA cult soon if you don’t already.

      Not too downplay the serious threat the hard right represent all over the world but it’s not likely that they will get mega into other countries. Firstly because everyone can see what an absolute disaster they have been in the US but also because Trump isn’t possible without a cult of personality and that’s really hard to achieve.

      Le Pen tried it in France and Nigel Farage is trying it in the UK and both have run up against the limits of support. There’s always going to be the racists and the stupid who will vote for them (who then turned to inviting when things don’t go their way), but they don’t have the personality credits to convince the fence sitters over to their side.