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Alright, so the following is the ten steps from "A 10-step plan for turning a democracy into a dictatorship, from Robert Reich" written by Shawn Langlois, published back in 2019:; 1. First, destroy labor unions, so people have no way to bargain for higher wages and less capacity for political organization.**; 2. Crack down on college students, so they won’t oppose you (hint: burden them with so much student debt and make it so hard for them to find good jobs that they won’t dare rock the boat).**-ish; 3. Undermine public education, so people are less able to think critically for themselves.**; 4. Cut deals with rich business executives and billionaires that if they back you you’ll reduce their taxes, slash government spending on the poor, and eliminate regulations that impinge on their profits.**; 5. Make most people economically anxious, frustrated, angry, and insecure.**; 6. Convince them their problems stem from “them” — foreigners, immigrants, racial or ethnic or religious minorities, intellectuals.**; 7. Make them cynical about democracy.**; 8. Convince them all they need is a strongman who will fix everything.**; 9. Fill the airwaves with big lies.**; 10. Get elected, and then take over. The challenge? Well it's two-fold:; First, read "From Democracy to Dictatorship" by Roger F. Noriega, published February 18, 2009, research the changes made in Venezuela during Chavez's tenure and see how many direct hits Mr. Riech's list scores. Second, I want you to THINK about all the **direct hits for things on Mr. Reich's list happening in the U.S., being pushed, enacted by republican politicians and/or advocated, bullhorned, proposed, perpetrated by GOP mouthpieces, Donald J. Trump.
