"The only reliable compass in 21st century America is a moral one."

This was a hard book to read, but it was harder to put down. Picked it up just after the re-election of Donald Trump was perfect and hideous timing. Kendzior explains exactly what paved the way for his first win, along with the long corruption and dangerous movements he joined and inspired before 2016, and her warnings in this book pointed to his reelection as well. It was disturbingly cathartic to see beliefs I held myself be written out with such clarity and further or different research than I had done, and maybe this catharsis is what some people need to regain energy in the fight against fascism.

While Kendizor is more patriotic than I expected and than I will likely ever been, I can see how that motivates her and led her to the work she does now. I might need a break from my next read, but will likely be picking up another of her books in the future.

"COVID is but a prelude for how states will handle the era of catastrophic climate change. It is a test run of what happens when powerful elites deem the public disposable without even feigning a pretense of concern. It is a dark omen of our lost leverage... Constant momentous climate events can lead to the normalization of mass death. The normalization of mass death is a stepping stone to the normalization of mass murder. The climate crisis is a gift to fascism, and it is already being exploited by authoritarian kleptocrats worldwide. What is predictable is preventable... We are now at the point of no return, there is no going back. But there are still choose to make about how to move forward and mitigate the damage, and one of those is the be honest about the crisis, to be honest about everything. It means feeling around the edges of the void, grasping at loose ends, and following them back to where they lead, even if it is a place appalling in its familiarity."