Chuck Darwin<p>Anne Applebaum hopes liberalism and democracy are sustainable but is uncertain of their fate.</p><p>“Nobody’s democracy is safe,” she writes. </p><p>Still, “there are liberal societies, open and free countries that offer a better chance for people to live useful lives than closed dictatorships do.”</p><p>For autocrats, liberty and autonomy are inconveniences. <br><a href="https://c.im/tags/Conformity" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Conformity</span></a> is king. </p><p>There is little surprise that Putin portrays himself as the defender of faith and traditional values.</p><p>American democrats <br>– as well as Democrats <br>– have reason to be concerned. </p><p>During the 2016 election, Paul <a href="https://c.im/tags/LePage" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>LePage</span></a>, then governor of Maine, thought Trump needed to show some “authoritarian power”. </p><p>A lot has happened since then. Come November, LePage just may get his wish.</p><p>-- "Autocracy, Inc: The Dictators Who Want to Run the World" is published in the US by Penguin Random House</p><p> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Schr%C3%B6der" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Schröder</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/launder" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>launder</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/stolen" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>stolen</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/wealth" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>wealth</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/United" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>United</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Arab" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Arab</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Emirates" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Emirates</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Turkey" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Turkey</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Brexit" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Brexit</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Lord" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Lord</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Lebedev" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Lebedev</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Farage" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Farage</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Russian" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Russian</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/China" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>China</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Iran" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Iran</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/North" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>North</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Korea" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Korea</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Brics" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Brics</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Kasowitz" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Kasowitz</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Putin" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Putin</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Xi" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Xi</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/gas" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>gas</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/pipeline" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>pipeline</span></a></p>