One of the first steps to understanding what’s happening in the world right now is to grasp that Make America Great Again is just a local version of Putin’s promise to return to the glories of the Soviet Union.

Weaponized white-identity nostalgia concealing kleptocracy.

You also have to grasp that America didn’t actually win the Cold War. The two combatants inflicted mortal wounds while betraying all of their principles. America survived longer, but was left bleeding. We’re watching the fallout now and it’s metastasized into something sinister.

Anybody who wants you to believe America won a clean victory in the Cold War and that the conflict was glorious wants to sell you on hypercapitalism, white supremacy in the form of controlled democracy, and endless militarism. It’s a lie and it’s always been a lie.