“There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there always has been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that ‘my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.’”
— Isaac Asimov
I’ve always been drawn to the pattern behind the pattern. Whether it’s fencing footwork, the mechanics of a game engine, or the way history rhymes more than it repeats—there’s something deeply unsettling and familiar about what we’re seeing now in American politics.
The erosion of civil liberties doesn’t start with sirens or martial law. It starts when people grow suspicious of thought itself—when complexity becomes “elitist,” and curiosity becomes “dangerous.” As Asimov warned decades ago, there’s a cult of ignorance in America—one that’s been festering in our cultural and political fabric since before he put pen to paper. It’s not just an embarrassing quirk. It’s almost a cultural norm. And right now, it’s being weaponized.
It’s found a home in a movement that no longer even pretends to care about governing in good faith.
What used to simmer on the fringes is now backed by policy proposals, campaign platforms, and think tanks like the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025—a roadmap to consolidate executive power, gut regulatory protections, and embed Christian nationalist ideology across federal institutions. It’s not just bad ideas floating around in Facebook threads anymore.
It’s instead a very public, and open, resurgence of authoritarian thinking – intellectually hollow, strategically aggressive, and increasingly emboldened. Under the banner of “freedom,” we’re seeing coordinated efforts to silence dissent, erase history, and dismantle democratic norms. And now, it’s not just rhetoric—it’s becoming policy.
You don’t need jackboots when you have bureaucracy. You don’t need secret police when you can purge civil servants for not pledging loyalty. That’s not hypothetical. It’s part of Project 2025’s personnel strategy: replace expertise with obedience.
Authoritarianism doesn’t always announce itself. Sometimes it arrives wrapped in populism, cloaked in patriotism, and fueled by a base that’s been taught to treat facts as elitist and dissent as betrayal. When “I believe it” becomes indistinguishable from “it’s true,” democratic decision-making becomes impossible.
Project 2025 Isn’t a Theory
If you haven’t read the Project 2025 blueprint, you should. It’s not fringe—it’s the foundation for what the current Trump administration is implementing. It lays out a sweeping plan: consolidating executive power, gutting federal agencies, imposing ideological loyalty tests, and removing civil service protections for nonpartisan experts. It is, quite literally, a playbook for authoritarian governance dressed up as “reform.”
We’re seeing:
- Efforts to rewrite history, banning books and sanitizing curriculums that dare to include race, gender, or oppression
- Targeted attacks on education, from public schools to universities, painting teachers as threats and expertise as elitism
- Systemic erosion of rights, especially for LGBTQIA+ people, immigrants, and women, justified with pseudoscience and fear
- A calculated dismantling of federal checks and balances, replacing career professionals with loyal ideologues
This isn’t accidental. It’s a coordinated campaign to replace critical thinking with obedience, complexity with simplicity, and expertise with derisive ignorance.
Compare what we’re seeing with the general Authoritarian Playbook:
- Undermine Experts: Paint scientists, journalists, teachers, and historians as biased elites.
- Control Information: Ban books. Limit what can be taught. Reframe historical atrocities as “inconvenient”, “fake news”, or “divisive.”
- Manufacture Crisis: Frame minorities, educators, immigrants, or “woke ideology” as existential threats.
- Legislate Oppression: Pass laws under the guise of protection—voter restrictions, anti-trans legislation, speech suppression.
- Normalize Surveillance and Control: From school libraries to reproductive choices, expand the state’s reach into personal lives.
- Declare Dissent Unpatriotic: Redefine protest as treason. Punish educators, whistleblowers, and journalists.
Sound familiar?
How We Push Back
You don’t have to be an expert to make a difference. In fact, that’s one of the myths they’re banking on—that only “elites” can protect democracy. The truth? Every conversation, every vote, every book, every act of solidarity counts.
- Read widely, Share intentionally – Fiction, journalism, lived experience—narratives shape our understanding. Engage with more than what confirms your worldview.
- Defend Teachers and Libraries – They’re on the frontlines of this cultural war. Show up when they’re attacked. Fund them when the state won’t.
- Practice informed Citizenship – Ask better questions. Dig deeper. Challenge simple answers.
- Build Resilient Communities – Extremism festers in isolation. Truth thrives in community.
- Push Politicians on Policy, not Posturing – Ask real questions: “What are you doing to protect access to healthcare, books, and accurate education?” “How are you ensuring that civil rights are protected for everyone, not just the group in power?”
- Support Civil Rights and Press freedom – Groups like the ACLU, PEN America, and others aren’t just holding the line—they’re buying us time. Help them.
Hold the Line
Democracy was never supposed to be easy. But it is supposed to be built on truth. And right now, truth is under attack—not by accident, but by design. Asimov warned us about this moment, not as a prediction, but as a call to stay vigilant.
The noise is loud. The lies are persistent. But clarity still cuts through, truth doesn’t flinch.
And neither should we.
This post is the start of a broader look at authoritarianism and how ordinary citizens have a duty and obligation to resist. Other topics planned include:
- “Why Your Local School Board Might Matter More Than the White House”
- “Speak Up Anyway – How to Hold the Line When It’s Easier to Stay Quiet”
- “Civil Rights Are Human Rights”
- “Read. Think. Share: A Booklist”
