An interesting thing about rapidly gaining a lot of followers due to the pandemic is that some think that's all I care about, and get cranky to learn I also care about a military occupation of the neighborhood in which I work, and about systemic police violence in my country.
I spent my early career in unfree countries, and I have seen what happens when a presidency becomes a cult of personality, when security forces are loosed of any restraints, when citizens cannot freely speak or assemble.
I'm not going to be silent about those trends here.
I'm not going to be silent about those trends here.
I began my career in the Balkans. The instincts of this President and his enablers are eerily similar to the dynamics that destroyed Yugoslavia. Division and grievance as the path to power. Shredding of institutional restraints. Demonization and violence toward minorities.
We should not think our country is uniquely immune. Sarajevo went from hosting a magical Olympics to being besieged and ravaged in a mere 8 years.
Democratic erosion and creeping authoritarian behavior are not other people's problems. They're everyone's problem.
Democratic erosion and creeping authoritarian behavior are not other people's problems. They're everyone's problem.
So feel free to unfollow or mute, I guess. The pandemic is still with us and I'll be back to tweeting mostly about that and bread before long.
But hopefully you can also see that this is a unique moment in the history of this country, and we have a duty as citizens to speak up.
But hopefully you can also see that this is a unique moment in the history of this country, and we have a duty as citizens to speak up.
(and all but like three of you are going to be in for a very unpleasant surprise when this is all over and I go back to tweeting about arcane humanitarian financing reform plans)
