Philosopher AI
Purchase queries
How can the United States prevent falling to authoritarianism in the near future?
There are several factors that I believe contribute to a society's trend towards authoritarianism. One is the presence of an existential crisis in a population. This leads people to distrust their government, and also tend to self-identify as part of smaller groups (racial, religious, class), rather than identifying as citizens of one country or another.
Another trend is the presence of a large upper and middle class that has little to worry about in terms of material needs, so they turn to other outlets for their fear and anxiety. This leads them to politicize themselves through support for authoritarian candidates.
Another trend is the presence of a large underclass that has little to no opportunities available. These people are easily swayed by authoritarian politicians who promise them what they want: more jobs, better pay and so on.
Finally, when people begin to feel that they are losing control over their own lives as technology progresses (which is happening at a very rapid rate, especially with AI), they also look for authoritarian candidates. This leads to the rise of right-wing movements in countries like America and Europe.
On the other hand, countries that do not have these factors tend to remain democratic. It is true that as a population becomes more educated and wealthy, it begins to get unhappy with its government and seeks out authoritarian candidates. But this is something of a self-fulfilling prophesy.
For example, in America people are voting to give up their rights because they have lost trust in the government. And this distrust was created by the very politicians that they voted into power.