There is a dangerous anger sweeping Western nations, and the tenor is shifting, becoming “less episodic and more persistent, a constant drumbeat in our lives” creating a fraying at the edges of our society.[1] This anger and frustration is directed at our public and economic institutions, and it is ripping apart our countries’ social fabric – weakening public confidence, societal trust, and social cohesion; undermining civility, toleration, public discussion and compromise; and turning our citizens and communities against each other. 

Social media outlets, ideology, and opportunistic political leaders have inflamed this anger. There is no question that ideas and language of division are not new, but as recently noted, “something is afoot. Social media and the internet broadly have become cesspools of hate” and misinformation, “and when you wallow in such toxic waters it is easy to become intoxicated by anger and bitterness”. [2] This is particularly true when those toxic waters are fueled in part by economic inequality (particularly impacting the middle- and working-class); polarization; non-inclusive government and economic systems; economic and employment shifts; anxiety about rapid social changes; the widening abyss of race, class and education; public health mandates;[3] antipathy to political elites, and other factors.[4]

American’s [have] historically low levels of trust in the country’s major governing institutions. … Gallup’s latest survey found that Americans were less confident in every major societal institution … [including] economic institutions. … [T]hey don’t think the institutions that are the building blocks of American life are doing anything for them. … The failure to address these issues is eroding faith in the political system and the parties themselves.

– Business Insider[5]

And people “feed off of one another, too, so it doesn’t take long before you have a mob” – particularly if inflamed by divisive and/or opportunistic political leaders – “organizing to disrupt” a nation’s institutions and fellow citizens, threatening elected officials and politicians, participating in hate speech or crimes, occupying “the nation’s capital” in Canada[6] (and more than 25 other countries),[7] or attacking the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington, D.C.[8] The trends we are seeing are indicative of violent behaviour in democratic countries that can be motivated by socio-economic events and directed purposefully for political goals.[9] While the issue “is bipartisan, violence is overwhelmingly on the right” (with extremist groups using mainstream causes to recruit),[10] “suggesting a role played by” some opportunistic “political leaders” who are prepared to undermine the norms, values and institutional guardrails – including social cohesion and trust –  of a healthy society and democracy.[11]

‘Stop the Steal’ is a metaphor … for the country being taken away from the people who think they should rightfully be setting the tone. … [E]vidence remains secondary when what you’re really doing is questioning whose vote counts—and who counts as an American. … It’s a Christian country. That doesn’t mean we’ll throw out everybody else, but they’ve got to accept that we’re the ones setting the tone.

– The Atlantic[12]

During this period of societal fragmentation, authoritarian leaning leaders, parties and movements have emerged, accelerating the challenge to the fundamental norms, values and institutions of democracy,[13] and negatively impacting societal peace, order and good government. Organizations from “Freedom House to the Economist Intelligence Unit to V-Dem have documented these global declines in the health of democracy”.[14]

These type of conservative right-wing political leaders and enablers are escalating the anger, but what is particularly concerning “is the disconnect between the rational political calculus and the rhetoric being deployed”.  These type of politicians and parties are undermining their own society and their own country’s institutions as a political tool.[15]  One suggested reason for this is because, at this point in time, there appears to be little “political cost” for their actions and “dangerous inflammatory words” that stoke tension, unrest and violence (as opposed to quell it or resolve the underlying issues), and such opportunistic disinformation and extremism appear to “no longer matter” to their partisan supporters.[16]

Although we like to believe that politicians govern with integrity and are motivated to serve in public office by interests that transcend partisan politics,^[17] unfortunately that is not always the case.  There is a direct connection between “hate-filled speech and hate-filled violence”.^[18] With a “wink and a nudge” prejudice, intolerance, and hatred is “legitimized”.^[19] Across the Western world we are seeing a rise in violence and intolerance by certain right-wing elements of society acting on a toxic belief system — one that has been long nurtured by (a) opportunists in politics^[20] prioritizing their political fortune and power over institutional norms, evidence-based policymaking, and civil discourse, and (b) certain constituents of social-media platforms^[21] and the media proper (whose “formula animates a thriving strain of conservatism, one that pairs conditional values rooted in the naked pursuit of self-interest with the fetishization of debate”)^[22].^[23]

[W]hat happens in American politics does not remain in the United States. It drifts across the world’s longest undefended intellectual border, and it falls like acid rain. … But the [Canadian political] party most at risk from cross-border emissions these days is the Conservative Party. There’s a lot of crazy in American politics right now, and the majority of it is coming from the … Republican Party … increasingly going off the deep end. Once the party of law and order and small government, it now often sounds like the party of anti-law, disorder and no government. 

– Editorial Board, Globe and Mail[24]

And attacks on our democratic institutions are spreading faster than ever across the world, coalescing into a challenge to democracy itself.[25]

It is a portrait of our democratic nations in political and societal crisis. To reverse this decline in our democratic institutions and values, to strengthen democracy and society, it is particularly important to identify and address the underlying socio-economic factors driving this state of affairs.[26] Because,  without such efforts, without strong ethical leadership and an inclusive civil society, these exhibitions of anger and political violence[27] will continue to grow in tandem with what appears to be polarization, disinformation and right-wing extremism going mainstream. The veneer of civilization is remarkably thin.[28]

This may be the darkest moment for democracies and inclusive societies in over half a century. There is nothing inevitable about the triumph of democracy and equality, and in this dark new era the strategies and choices of democratic states and leaders will have consequences that resonate for decades: “only a clear-eyed recognition of the depth of the current peril can generate the necessary will”.[29]

Once citizens lose confidence in the fairness of the legal and political system, they may turn to other means to assert their basic rights, and inevitably this results in violence and loss of human life.

– Daniel C. Préfontaine QC and Joanne Lee^[30]

How Much Anger Can a Nation Sustain?

From the U.S. to the EU, and from the UK to Australia, Canada and India, debate and disagreement and civility and toleration and compromise are central to the political enterprise. Indeed, a functioning democracy relies on social interactions between people who disagree. By engaging in such interactions and listening to others’ viewpoints in the context of heterogeneous political discussion networks, citizens become more tolerant of those with whom they disagree and adopt more moderate political views. Not surprisingly then, the current anger-fueled nature of contemporary politics has done much to weaken an important aspect of the political system. Should politicians, ‘captured’ media, and social media and the internet continue to promote and elicit anger and distrust among a nation’s citizens (particularly the middle- and working-class), partisan polarization will continue to increase and intensify. This social polarization, in turn, facilitates more negative opportunities for fellow citizens to stereotype and de-humanize “the Other” (including supporters of opposing political parties). Thus, the social and political consequences of political anger – a continuing alienation from and mistrust of democratic society and its institutions – are severe[31]:[32]

“And identity politics and misinformation that amplifies fears and grievances – boosted on a non-stop loop by social media and partisan television and radio – has created real problems for democracies and the rule of law as the corrosive power of hate speech, disinformation, fake news and incitement to violence has shown it is ‘a short step from crude conspiracy theories’ to the ‘storming of the’ U.S. ‘Capitol Hill’ by former President Trump’ supporters. That is because a politics that reinforces immutable identities leads away from the tolerance and forbearance and compromise that a democracy needs to solve social conflicts and move forward. In arguments about who gets what, people can split the difference and feel content. In arguments about who they are – over religion, race and anti-elitism, for example – compromise can seem like betrayal. When ways of life appear to be at stake the ‘other side’ are not just seen as mistaken, they are represented and seen as dangerous, leading to animosity and gridlock and away from political effort towards real economic and social outcomes and solutions. In some countries majoritarian leaders have exploited this tribal loyalty to undermine the institutions – including the rule of law – supposed to check them.”

In this environment the question is now becoming how much more anger and distrust can a functioning democratic country continue to sustain?[33] Without inclusive leadership and institutions – political, economic, legal and academic – nations within this crucible of continuing division and conflict have indeed fragmented and will continue to decline.[34] 

The country appears to have gone mad – a portion of it, at least. … And … certain politicians … [have] given people fodder to be really angry …. In today’s highly charged world, that is a dangerous game. Leadership should be about easing people’s rage, not feeding it – especially since one day, it could well come at a horrible cost.

– Gary Mason, A dangerous rage is sweeping the land, Globe and Mail (Canada’s newspaper of record)[35]

And when authoritarian leaning leaders – leaders of the institutions that have fallen into disrepair – encourage, exploit and manipulate the cynicism, discontent, and grievances of furious factions (which may include extremists or even majorities),[36] for their own power and self-interest, they “need to own some of what we are seeing”[37] – as they point at various scapegoats believed to have wronged them, seemingly distant groups that are easy to demonize[38]– having contributed to poisoning their own nation’s discourse, undermining societal trust and the social fabric of society, and threatening democracy and its institutions:[39]

“Authoritarian and nationalist populists like former U.S. president Trump, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán came to power as a response to the perceived failings of traditional democratic governments.  In particular, four key factors: (1) rising economic insecurity and economic (income and wealth) inequality; (2) cultural backlash to perceived threats to national and cultural identity and status (i.e. blaming ‘Them’ for stripping prosperity, job opportunities, and public services from ‘Us’); (3) an unresponsive government (captured by ‘big money’ influence); and (4) an ‘epidemic of misinformation’, social instability, and consequential widespread mistrust in societal institutions and leaders around the world.

Today’s populism in Western society is increasingly nationalistic, authoritarian, and anti-democratic, with the flare of xenophobia propelling a narrowing definition of who ‘the people’ are in an ‘us vs them’ paradigm, with ‘the Other’ targeted as an ‘enemy and existential threat’ for a range of economic and social grievances. Preaching hostility toward ‘outsiders’ and ‘elites’, authoritarian populism is rising because a significant segment of the population – driven by economic and social inequality, cultural backlash (against long-term, ongoing social change), and dispossession – feel threatened, disregarded and left behind by traditional political parties and government.  …

Stepping into this leadership vacuum (created by an abdication of principled democratic leadership and representative government), authoritarian populist leaders are able to tap into popular resentments and a struggling population’s economic, social and cultural insecurities to ‘shake things up’ – pointing to scapegoats (the ‘Other’), misinformation and ‘beliefs of convenience’ to pursue their narrow interests.” 

In this environment we are seeing in real time “a marked decline in the health of American democracy”, which is a bellwether for the EU, the UK, Australia and Canada. The “Economist Intelligence Unit downgraded the US from ‘full democracy’ to ‘flawed democracy’ status in 2016. The deteriorating condition of American democracy has” indeed “coincided with a wider global decline”:[40]

“The normalization of political violence, erosion of the rule of law, proliferation of mass shootings, rash of hate crimes, growing threats of domestic terrorism, and the sunset of bipartisanship began to escalate in 2016. That was, not coincidentally, the year American democracy was downgraded from ‘full’ to ‘flawed’. It was also the first time in the nation’s history that non-white births eclipsed whites. The cultural clash between the two Americas intensified and took on a heightened sense of urgency. Each camp believed their democracy—not our democracy—must prevail. Democracy has become a zero-sum game for competing factions.

America’s polarization has been amplified by social media; exploited by political opportunists; coalesced by highly organized fringe groups; calcified by ‘alternative facts’ and a pervasive attack on truth, the press, institutions, and established norms; and stoked by normalization of violence, liberalization of gun laws, perversion of the rule of law to subvert it; and the echo chamber that has replaced civilized debate.”

US seen as bigger threat to democracy than Russia or China, global poll finds.

– Guardian[41]

Unfortunately in these polarized times of “big money politics” and exploited extremism, what should happen and what will happen are usually distinct questions. One involves questions of problem-solving and doing what is right for society. The other is an equation in which the variables are the self-interest of the political actors involved:[42]

“Poor judgment, moral recklessness, bottomless opportunism: These aren’t policy positions, something you can moderate or explain away or wriggle out of. They’re attributes. They stick. That is increasingly the dividing line in American politics – not left versus right, but character and judgment versus their opposites. The party that is about to elect [Canadian conservative leader] Mr. Poilievre – the party that, with the help of hundreds of thousands of new recruits, he has done much to create – looks likely to entrench the same cleavage in Canada.”

Mr. Poilievre – recently photographed shaking hands with the leader of an extreme right-wing group[43] – has been referred to by fellow Canadian conservatives as “too polarizing and divisive” and that “his radical positions are part of his brand”.[44]  As noted by Canada’s newspaper of record, the Globe and Mail, “there’s a word for this sort of thing … it’s extremism” – “it does not attempt to persuade but to intimidate. … It is implicitly authoritarian”. His “campaign” for leader “is aimed squarely at attracting support from extremists” while “singularly lacking in concrete policy proposals, beyond a vague promise to ‘give you back control of your life’” and abolishing public health Covid-19 vaccine mandates.[45] The Globe’s editorial board, in an August 2022 article entitled “A highly contagious political virus is pouring over the Canada-U.S. border”, worries that the Conservative Party’s next leader (to be elected September 10^th) “adopts the resentment-based politics of the Trump GOP”. Why? Because:[46]

“The Republican Party is increasingly going off the deep end. Once the party of law and order and small government, it now often sounds like the party of anti-law, disorder and no government. …

The GOP agenda has been almost entirely about obstruction. The Inflation Reduction Act, the watered-down bill to reduce climate emissions and enhance health care, passed with zero Republican votes. That’s because small-government impulses of the old GOP have been replaced by something closer to no-government impulses. What does it want to do about millions of Americans who can’t afford health care? Nothing. What about climate change? Deny it. School shootings? Arm teachers. COVID-19? Just get over it.

And on law-and-order, its transformation has been even more extreme. The party has become unrecognizable.

A half-century ago, Republicans joined with Democratic lawmakers to investigate president Richard Nixon and, after uncovering the depths of his lawbreaking, to remove him. A half-century later, Republicans in Congress and at the state level have nearly all rallied around Donald Trump, repeatedly, despite a level of lawbreaking far worse than anything Mr. Nixon did or contemplated, and despite ever-more troubling revelations from the Jan. 6 committee investigation.

Mr. Trump and his allies tried to block the counting and certifying of votes after the 2020 presidential election; having failed, he encouraged a mob to storm the Capitol, to stop Congress from going through a normally perfunctory final step recognizing Mr. Biden’s victory.

It does not get any more banana republic than this.

Yet the Republican Party isn’t correcting course. It isn’t returning to normalcy and legality. Election denialism has become almost mandatory, and even politicians who would rather see Mr. Trump ride off into the sunset feel compelled to defend him against any and all accusations. The party appears to no longer believe in the rule of law, or democracy.”

As noted by one American commentator, “a recent survey from academics at UC Davis found that half of Americans agreed that “in the next several years, there will be civil war in the United States.” While almost certainly overstated, “the finding does point to a growing and well-founded belief that more Americans have become willing to engage in political violence”.[47] 

Strong ethical political leadership can help to de-escalate, defuse and deter the threat of political violence. When political leaders denounce violence from their own side, studies show that partisans listen. On the other hand, political leaders also “have the match to light the tinder”. And “in recent years”, unfortunately, some opportunistic “candidates on the right have been particularly willing to use violent speech and engage with groups that spread hate”.[48]  In this light, it is clear that extremism and political violence and political rhetoric must be taken seriously:[49] 

“Ultimately, political leaders need to tone down their inflammatory rhetoric. Reacting to various events with divisive rhetoric or threats of retaliation encourages people to act on that language. Leaders should understand that words have consequences and how they lead has major ramifications for the health of our polity.”

One in five US adults condone ‘justified’ political violence, mega-survey finds.

– Ed Pilkington, The Guardian[50]

Political spending and lobbying by wealthy corporations and financial elite do not just stand in the way of a fair representative political system, it also stands in the way of an economy that works for the middle- and working-class, and the trust required for a functioning democracy and rule of law.[51]

A robust and resilient democracy depends on a strong, thriving middle- and working-class able to hold government accountable. The “link between income and stable democracies is, at a certain level, intuitive. After all, at the heart of democracy is an economic contract between citizens who consent to pay taxes and a government that, in exchange, safeguards the security and welfare of the nation by providing public goods such as education, health care, infrastructure and national security. In essence, any economic challenge that threatens the middle” and working “class places this contract – and ultimately, democracy – in peril”.[52] Empirical studies have found that the drivers of authoritarian populism in Western society have interrelated root causes, and economic factors play an important role in increasing the support for authoritarian populists.[53] Economic inequality[54] and economic and social insecurity leads to fear, a growing trust gap in traditional political leaders, and uncertainty about the future and their role in it. This, not surprisingly, exacerbates social and economic instability in society, with the power to dramatically reshape our democracies[55] and rule of law as the middle- and working-class are left behind to look for answers – for shared but distinct beliefs that can furnish a sense of purpose and continuity – as they struggle with socio-economic distress that is more corrosive with each passing year[56].[57] 

The equation, as noted by Richard Edelman of the annual Edelman Trust Barometer, is pretty straightforward: “Lack of belief in system + economic and societal fears + loss of trust in institutions = populism”, or at least the potential for populism. Populism is people taking authority back from institutions they no longer have faith in, and it is now ascendant not just in the United States, but in countries across the world (i.e. France, Germany).[58]

In this light, good policy, good governance, and good decision making, is the cornerstone of democracy, good government and leadership. And it is the job of leaders in government, business and academia to address government policy to fix it. But “we should not sleep comfortably until the underlying” socio-economic “problems are addressed”.[59] For now, “democratic publics want policy changes that give them hope for a better future”.[60] However, if continued to be left unmet, these demands for economic and political reform to address the underlying problems will likely evolve into significant civil unrest and “pressure for regime change”[61].[62]

What is needed is inclusive leadership, to put public purpose first, build societal trust, and to solve the economic and social problems that matter to a nation’s people.

In countries with long-established democracies, internal forces have exploited the shortcomings in their systems, distorting national politics to promote hatred, violence, and unbridled power. … [D]emocracies are being harmed from within by illiberal forces, including unscrupulous politicians willing to corrupt and shatter the very institutions that brought them to power…. It is now impossible to ignore the damage to democracy’s foundations and reputation. 

– Freedom House[63]

The Three (or so) Major Forces of Successful Democracies have been Weakened

There are at least three major forces that collectively bind together successful democracies: social capital and cohesion (extensive social networks with high levels of trust), strong institutions, and shared identity and stories (which may be said to contain a common purpose if you will). All three have been weakened, with an increasingly fragmented society undermining democracy and the social contract across the Western world. Why, because democracy and Western society depends on the foundations of trust and the widely internalized acceptance of the legitimacy of its institutions and the guardrails and anchors of its democratic rules, norms and values.[64]

Without a sense of national cohesion, shared identity and common purpose, the fabric of our society may come apart at the seams.

– ‘Bridging Our Political Divide: Uncivil Agreement’[65]

The pace and range of anger has accelerated today as authoritarian leaders, parties and movements strategically seek to elicit that anger among their supporters. And “partisan sorting, or the tendency of voters to interact only with those who agree with them, has left” democratic countries “increasingly divided. The political and social consequences are severe – from decreasing people’s trust in our institutions to weakening their commitment to democratic norms to forging unhealthy, unquestioning and polarized tribal partisan loyalty.[66]

“Captured” cable news, talk radio, newspapers, and social media often entrench it. It’s now easier than ever to lose trust and become angry, and easier for self-serving political leaders to stoke that distrust and anger. That cascade moves a nation’s citizens outside the competition of ideas and into the realm of echo chambers and “tribal warfare” – it’s ‘us against them’ and an increasing belief that ‘my loss’ “is going to lead to some unfortunate consequence for the health of the country”.[67]

Unfortunately, within our society, this appears to be creating an environment where reason, discussion, and respectful debate all too often is giving way to invective, distortion, and gamesmanship. Once the art of compromise and statesmanship, political discussion is now too commonly a battle between extremes, where power, dogma, or self-interest – not reason – prevails, and where closed minds simply seek to impose a point of view rather than listen respectfully to others and work with the legitimate issues they raise[68].

There’s a word for this sort of thing….. It’s extremism. … It is not rooted in evidence, but in feeling. It makes no allowance for compromise or exceptions. It does not attempt to persuade but to intimidate. Its purpose is not to join the mainstream, but to disrupt it. It is implicitly authoritarian.

– Globe and Mail[69]

Looking across the world today can be alarming for democracy, society and the rule of law as economic inequality[70] – resulting in a two-tiered economy where the 1% have gotten trillions of dollars richer over the last forty years while the bottom 50% have gotten poorer[71] – has led to economic and social instability, and the unintended consequence of dramatically reshaping our democracies[72] as significant segments of society are left behind to struggle with the economic and social distress[73].[74] 

Societies are undone in many ways, not all of them obvious. We tend to think of decline along economic lines, but it is a nation’s culture – particularly in terms of civility, public discourse, and the robust open exchange of diverse ideas and perspectives[75] – that determines its societal credentials. Among any nation’s most precious possessions is its social fabric. Civility and civil discourse is not just a necessary part of societal cohesion, trust and identity, it is an important part of our democracy and institutions and common purpose:[76]  the glue that holds society, our institutions, and our communities together[77].[78]

Civility, trust and public discourse lies at the heart of democracies around the world, including Canada, the U.S., the UK, Australia, and the EU.[79] Unfortunately there appears to be less civility and trust in society generally today, less courtesy, less respect. In the political arena and in public discourse, the rhetoric and partisan ‘us v. them’ ideology is harsher and the decibels are higher, and they too frequently overshadow the power of ideas and the substance of reasoned debates.[80] Deep polarization and loss of trust[81] in society’s leaders and institutions (including the apolitical credibility of Courts in some jurisdictions)[82] – with the concomitant social fragmentation, anger, and civil unrest – appears to be a fact of political life in many countries, with partisan divisions over the functioning of democratic institutions particularly large in the U.S., the UK, and Europe[83].[84]

Across the world, the increase in polarization, disinformation, and extremism into the mainstream – with the concurrent  erosion and decline of objective truth and civil discourse,[85] the descent into what looks like a full on ‘crisis’ – has profound and negative effects on our society, the rule of law,[86] and on our democracies[87].[88] 

This is a societal issue, and we appear to be losing sight of this in politics, the legal system, the workplace, and our day to day interactions. National cohesion, a shared identity and common purpose, and strong institutions is taking a back seat to ‘winning’ at any cost, and there appears to be a loss of thoughtful discourse between people of differing views. [89]

The modern world suffers from a lack of trust and civility,[90] and destructive discourse can have negative consequences for society. It continues to foster polarization rather than community, enmity and contempt rather than understanding and tolerance, and alienation instead of involvement. It limits the potential for problem-solving, as fewer voices and ideas are heard and factored into decision-making.  It is well-established that democracy cannot function effectively under these conditions. Without a social structure that supports tolerance, a basic level of trust and confidence in our traditional institutions and values, and a spirit of community, government, economic and judicial institutions become hollow – less efficient, less effective, and less responsive. And, as legitimacy and trust in the foundations of our society are undermined, anger and frustration continue to grow to the point that citizens are more likely to reject institutions (and their norms and values) and organizations of suspect credibility,[91] potentially responding to disagreements and conflict with political violence rather than relying on civil institutions and the rule of law[92].[93]

Some commentators suggest that anger, incivility, and political violence is possibly “becoming the new normal in our society” – stating that the key to a positive engaging culture requires leadership setting the tone for meaningful, respectful interaction.[94]  In this regard, it is generally accepted that values drive behaviors, and behaviors drive outcomes. The culture of a society is the expression of its values in action; and to be successful it is up to those who shape it—in particular its political, economic, legal and academic leaders.[95] 

Sustaining a healthy society, democracy and its institutions is, at the end of the day, a fundamental societal choice between creating a culture of integrity and lawfulness/justice and inclusive economic and political opportunity for all citizens, or allowing distrust, disinformation, polarization, extremism, and authoritarian and power politics to prevail. Strengthening free and fair elections, an inclusive economy, a representative and inclusive government, an independent and free press, independent prosecutors and judges, and trust in our institutions and leaders[96] are all critical to supporting democracy, its institutions (and norms and values), and the rule of law[97].[98]

Conclusion

Across Western society economic and social inequality has widened, living standards have declined, and the American Dream has continued to free–fall. There was a time the “American (Canadian, UK, EU, Australian) dream” was built on the ideal that hard work leads to success. For many citizens this no longer appears to be the case.[99]

There is a mounting sense that societies’ economic and political institutions serve only those select few with enough money to secure a controlling stake.[100] These issues are enormously destructive – setting the socio-economic conditions for the rise of authoritarian and opportunistic parties and leaders – and cannot continue to be left unattended.

The displacement of global democratic norms by authoritarian powers and other antidemocratic actors can still be reversed. But success will require a bold, sustained … participation of both governments and an engaged and active citizenry.

– Freedom House[101]

Citizens of democratic countries have “genuine grievances, which populism has exploited, but too many of those opposed to populism have simply stood for better management of the status quo”. This is not the answer, and business leaders – the wealthy and economic elite across Western society – “must realize that they not only have” an obligation, “but also a commercial stake in advocating for a fairer, more equitable” and more inclusive political and economic “system. Unless and until the core problem of” economic and social “inequality is addressed, all other overarching objectives and desires will remain elusive”[102] in what today is becoming a more polarized, unstable and dangerous world.[103]

It is a long agenda—but a doable one. When skeptics say it is nice but not affordable, I reply: We cannot afford to not do these things. We are already paying a high price for inequality, but it is just a down payment on what we will have to pay if we do not do something—and quickly. It is not just our economy that is at stake; we are risking our democracy.

– Professor Joseph Stiglitz (Nobel laureate in economics), ‘The American Economy is Rigged’, Scientific American[104]

As noted by Freedom House, “democracies are being harmed from within by illiberal forces, including unscrupulous politicians willing to corrupt and shatter the very institutions that brought them to power. This was arguably most visible last year in the United States, where rioters stormed the Capitol on January 6 as part of an organized attempt to overturn the results of the presidential election. But freely elected leaders from Brazil to India” to Hungary and Poland “have also taken or threatened a variety of antidemocratic actions, and the resulting breakdown in shared values among democracies has led to a weakening of these values on the international stage”. There is a lesson the Hungarian and Poland experience with the EU offers to western democracies, and that is that “a political party that was once dedicated to democracy can, over time, become so preoccupied with holding power that it now longer cares enough about the substance of democracy to play by the rules”[105]:[106]

“It is now impossible to ignore the damage to democracy’s foundations and reputation. … The displacement of global democratic norms by authoritarian powers and other antidemocratic actors can still be reversed. But success will require a bold, sustained response that establishes support for democracy and countering authoritarianism at the heart of each democracy’s foreign policy, national security strategy, and domestic reform agenda. It must also entail the participation of both governments and an engaged and active citizenry. Rather than longing for a bygone era of expanding freedom, democratic leaders need to confront the problems caused by their past mistakes and address weaknesses in the international system that authoritarians have been able to exploit.”

Societies with a strong middle class … experience higher levels of social trust, lower crime incidence, and higher life satisfaction. The evidence shows that the middle class champions political stability and good governance.

– Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)[107]

We are going to be living in this era of political anger, rage, and violence for the foreseeable future. All any of us can do is continue to say and defend what is right in the face of these dangers and fragmentation of societal ties.

And yet, finding strategies that would enhance societal bonds – social cohesion and trust – is crucial to any nation. Especially today. Anger and frustration is on the rise. Eventually, despondency and disillusionment will be the straw that breaks the camel’s back.[108]

Political, business and legal leaders have a collective responsibility to do more. This requires thinking beyond narrow or traditional roles, putting aside self-interest and partisan differences, appropriately collaborating, and committing to the pragmatic work of making meaningful change. In many cases leaders know the direction they must take, they simply need the courage and political will to put the public interest first. As noted by the President of the European Commission, “we all know what to do; we just don’t know how to get re-elected after we’ve done it”^[109].

The legal profession has largely stood on the sidelines as democracy and the rule of law have been attacked with chisels, sledge hammers, and wrecking balls. Lawyers have collectively failed to speak up—much less act— as a unified profession and with one voice. To do so is not a matter of personal choice; it is their sworn duty.

– Mark Cohen[110]

Unfortunately, across the world we are in danger of falling far short by continuing to give in to our worst instincts of hyper-partisan and polarized groupthink – closing our minds to facts and independent thinking – and the elevation of self-interest over any concept of common ground and the common good.[111] And in this environment authoritarian political leaders and their right-wing conservative parties across Western society “have grown more ambitious and unashamed”. But the extreme embrace of identity politics and authoritarianism “has also become too garish to miss. And that constitutes a silver lining of sorts” as it is has also been clarifying[112] as the rule of law and our democratic institutions have been threatened, undermined, and in some Western countries, destabilized.[113]

There is now a recognition that we are at an historical moment of crisis.

There is a growing realization that we as a society must address the underlying economic inequality and the major socio-economic issues Western countries are facing, and in doing so address the rising anger and frustration and build “trust” and social cohesion – the “glue of healthy societies”.[114] And public engagement across the political spectrum will be an important part of the process that governments and leaders must implement to build trust and obtain the social licence to proceed with reforms.[115]

If there is a silver lining the current crisis offers the legal profession, it is the opportunity to reclaim its humanity and purpose, both for itself and, more importantly, for American democracy. Lawyers and allied legal professionals should refresh their recollections of professional purpose.

– Forbes[116]

This will require political, business,  and legal leaders – guided by facts and independent thinking (with the capacity to define and champion principled positions) – who can build trust, create coalitions, develop a national inclusive vision and shared identity, find acceptable compromises for the benefit of society, and actually govern. Leaders who have the ethics and courage to put an end to the capture of government and economic policy by private vested interests that work against the public interest^[117] (and wish to continue to be the economic and/or social beneficiaries of such politically-inspired inequality)^[118].[119]

A robust and resilient and peaceful democracy depends on a strong, thriving, socially cohesive middle- and working-class able to hold government, political leaders, and our political and economic institutions accountable.

Eric Sigurdson

Endnotes:

---

[1] Gary Mason, A dangerous rage is sweeping the land, Globe and Mail, August 4, 2022; Charles Duhigg, The Real Roots of American Rage, The Atlantic, January-February 2019.

[2] Gary Mason, A dangerous rage is sweeping the land, Globe and Mail, August 4, 2022.

[3] For example see: Devi Sridhar, A scientist in the public eye has taken her own life. This has to be a wake-up call, The Guardian, August 12, 2022.

[4] Eric Sigurdson, Democracies under threat: Inclusive economies and (economic and political) institutions go hand-in-hand with a stable democracy – a way forward, Sigurdson Post, February 26, 2021; Eric Sigurdson, Leadership Reimagined: the ‘CEO Statesman’ and ‘Lawyer Statesman’ in a Time of Political, Economic and Social Fragmentation – statespersonship is good for business, good for institutions, and good for a divided and disaffected society, Sigurdson Post, May 31, 2019; Eric Sigurdson, Corporate Strategy and Geopolitical Risk in a G-Zero World: Inequality, Polarized Democracies, and the shifting economic and political landscape, Sigurdson Post, May 31, 2018; Eric Sigurdson, The Decline of the Rule of Law: Experiencing the Unimaginable in Western Society – the impact of economic and social inequality in the 21^st century, Sigurdson Post, April 26, 2020.

[5] Daniel Cox, Gen Z is the most mistrustful generation, Insider, August 25, 2022.

[6] Gary Mason, A dangerous rage is sweeping the land, Globe and Mail, August 4, 2022.

[7] Alexander Panetta, Ottawa protest inspires talk of copycat convoys in U.S. and beyond, CBC News, February 8, 2022 (“… There are now pandemic-related truck convoys planned in all 27 European capitals, New Zealand and elsewhere in the U.S. …. We’ve imported language and money for the event from Americans.”).

[8] Eric Sigurdson, Democracies under threat: Inclusive economies and (economic and political) institutions go hand-in-hand with a stable democracy – a way forward, Sigurdson Post, February 26, 2021. Also see for example: John Ibbitson, Democracy at stake as incidents and threats of violence are levelled against elected officials, Globe and Mail, October 18, 2021; David French, The Growing Danger of Political Violence Threatens to Destabilize America, Time, October 14, 2020; Rachel Kleinfeld, The Rise of Political Violence in the United States, Journal of Democracy, Vol. 32, Issue 4, 2021; Joan Greve and Lauren Gambino, US faces new era of political violence as threats against lawmakers rise, Guardian, July 31, 2022; Ja’han Jones, GOP candidate says nation’s top cop should be executed (then says he’s kidding), MSNBC, August 19, 2022; Chris McGreal, US political violence is surging, but talk of a civil war is exaggerated – isn’t it?, Guardian, August 20, 2022; Jenn Jefferys, Canada needs to brace itself for the next chapter of far-right extremism, Macleans, April 15, 2021; Jim Bronskill, Intelligence report flagged possible ‘violent revenge’ after Ottawa shutdown, CBC News, August 17, 2022; David Fraser, QAnon-inspired protest leads to special investigation into arrest, CBC News, August 18, 2022; The Resilience of Online Right-Wing Extremism in Canada, Institute for Strategic Dialogue, July 20, 2021; Rachel Gilmore, How close is too close to the far-right? Why some experts are worried about Canada’s MPs, Global News, July 7, 2022; Bob Hepburn, Pierre Poilievre is Canada’s most dangerous appalling politician, Toronto Star, June 29, 2022; Bruce Arthur, Pierre Poilievre will say just about anything – opening the door to anger, conspiracies and extremism, Toronto Star, May 11, 2022; Elizabeth Thompson, Threat of violent extremism rising in Canada, MPs told, CBC News, May 12, 2022; Annelies Pauwels, Contemporary manifestations of violent right-wing extremism in the EU: An overview, European Commission, Publications Office of the European Union, 2021; Vikram Dodd, Terrorism in the UK: the rising threat of far-right extremists, Guardian, May 16, 2022; Diane Liang, The transnational element of right-wing extremism in Australia, Strategist (Australian Strategic Policy Institute), May 19, 2022; Heather Ashby, Far-Right Extremism Is a Global Problem: And it is time to treat it like one, Foreign Policy, January 15, 2021; Daniel Byman, Terrorism and the threat to democracy, Brookings, February 2019; John Schwarmantel, Democracy and Political Violence, Edinburgh University Press, 2011. Also see for example reference to far-right extremism and ties to police, military, legal and political institutions: Mark Townsend, Growing ‘culture of extremism’ among UK and European police forces, report warns, Guardian, July 10, 2022; Michael German, Hidden in Plain Sight: Racism, White Supremacy, and Far-Right Militancy in Law Enforcement, Brennan Center for Justice, August 27, 2020; Seth Jones, Catrina Doxsee, and Grace Hwang, The Military, Police, and the Rise of Terrorism in the United States, Center for Strategic & International Studies, April 12, 2021; Hassan Kanu, Prevalence of white supremacists in law enforcement demands drastic change, Reuters, May 12, 2022; Hon. Hohn McKay, Chair, Systemic Racism in Policing in Canada: Report of the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security, 43^rd Parliament, 2^nd Session, June 2021; Alex Boutilier, Public safety minister acknowledges threat of white supremacist infiltration to Canada’s police forces, Toronto Star, June 25, 2021; Dark Money and the Courts: The Right-Wing Takeover of the Judiciary, American Constitution Society, acslaw.org – referencing: Caroline Fredrickson and Lisa Graves, On Dark Money and the Right’s Judicial ‘Revival’, Law.com, May 31, 2019; Robert O’Harrow Jr and Shawn Boburg, A conservative activist’s behind-the-scenes campaign to remake the nation’s courts, Washington Post, May 21, 2019; Jamal Greene, Trump’s Judge Whisperer Promised to Take Our Laws Back to the 1930s, Slate, May 27, 2019.

[9] Rachel Kleinfeld, The Rise in Political Violence in the United States and Damage to Our Democracy, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace: March 31, 2022 Testimony – Select Committee to Investigate the January 6^th Attack on the United States Capital, March 31, 2022.

[10] Rachel Kleinfeld, The Rise in Political Violence in the United States and Damage to Our Democracy, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace: March 31, 2022 Testimony – Select Committee to Investigate the January 6^th Attack on the United States Capital, March 31, 2022; Rachel Kleinfeld, The Rise of Political Violence in the United States, Journal of Democracy, Vol. 32, Issue 4, October 2021. Eric Sigurdson, Democracies under threat: Inclusive economies and (economic and political) institutions go hand-in-hand with a stable democracy – a way forward, Sigurdson Post, February 26, 2021. Also see for example: John Ibbitson, Democracy at stake as incidents and threats of violence are levelled against elected officials, Globe and Mail, October 18, 2021; David French, The Growing Danger of Political Violence Threatens to Destabilize America, Time, October 14, 2020; Rachel Kleinfeld, The Rise of Political Violence in the United States, Journal of Democracy, Vol. 32, Issue 4, 2021; Joan Greve and Lauren Gambino, US faces new era of political violence as threats against lawmakers rise, Guardian, July 31, 2022; Ja’han Jones, GOP candidate says nation’s top cop should be executed (then says he’s kidding), MSNBC, August 19, 2022; Chris McGreal, US political violence is surging, but talk of a civil war is exaggerated – isn’t it?, Guardian, August 20, 2022; Jenn Jefferys, Canada needs to brace itself for the next chapter of far-right extremism, Macleans, April 15, 2021; Jim Bronskill, Intelligence report flagged possible ‘violent revenge’ after Ottawa shutdown, CBC News, August 17, 2022; David Fraser, QAnon-inspired protest leads to special investigation into arrest, CBC News, August 18, 2022; The Resilience of Online Right-Wing Extremism in Canada, Institute for Strategic Dialogue, July 20, 2021; Rachel Gilmore, How close is too close to the far-right? Why some experts are worried about Canada’s MPs, Global News, July 7, 2022; Bob Hepburn, Pierre Poilievre is Canada’s most dangerous appalling politician, Toronto Star, June 29, 2022; Bruce Arthur, Pierre Poilievre will say just about anything – opening the door to anger, conspiracies and extremism, Toronto Star, May 11, 2022; Elizabeth Thompson, Threat of violent extremism rising in Canada, MPs told, CBC News, May 12, 2022; Annelies Pauwels, Contemporary manifestations of violent right-wing extremism in the EU: An overview, European Commission, Publications Office of the European Union, 2021; Vikram Dodd, Terrorism in the UK: the rising threat of far-right extremists, Guardian, May 16, 2022; Diane Liang, The transnational element of right-wing extremism in Australia, Strategist (Australian Strategic Policy Institute), May 19, 2022; Heather Ashby, Far-Right Extremism Is a Global Problem: And it is time to treat it like one, Foreign Policy, January 15, 2021; Daniel Byman, Terrorism and the threat to democracy, Brookings, February 2019; John Schwarmantel, Democracy and Political Violence, Edinburgh University Press, 2011. Also see for example reference to far-right extremism and ties to police, military, legal and political institutions: Mark Townsend, Growing ‘culture of extremism’ among UK and European police forces, report warns, Guardian, July 10, 2022; Michael German, Hidden in Plain Sight: Racism, White Supremacy, and Far-Right Militancy in Law Enforcement, Brennan Center for Justice, August 27, 2020; Seth Jones, Catrina Doxsee, and Grace Hwang, The Military, Police, and the Rise of Terrorism in the United States, Center for Strategic & International Studies, April 12, 2021; Hassan Kanu, Prevalence of white supremacists in law enforcement demands drastic change, Reuters, May 12, 2022; Hon. Hohn McKay, Chair, Systemic Racism in Policing in Canada: Report of the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security, 43^rd Parliament, 2^nd Session, June 2021; Alex Boutilier, Public safety minister acknowledges threat of white supremacist infiltration to Canada’s police forces, Toronto Star, June 25, 2021; Dark Money and the Courts: The Right-Wing Takeover of the Judiciary, American Constitution Society, acslaw.org – referencing: Caroline Fredrickson and Lisa Graves, On Dark Money and the Right’s Judicial ‘Revival’, Law.com, May 31, 2019; Robert O’Harrow Jr and Shawn Boburg, A conservative activist’s behind-the-scenes campaign to remake the nation’s courts, Washington Post, May 21, 2019; Jamal Greene, Trump’s Judge Whisperer Promised to Take Our Laws Back to the 1930s, Slate, May 27, 2019.

[11] Rachel Kleinfeld, The Rise in Political Violence in the United States and Damage to Our Democracy, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace: March 31, 2022 Testimony – Select Committee to Investigate the January 6^th Attack on the United States Capital, March 31, 2022; Rachel Kleinfeld, The Rise of Political Violence in the United States, Journal of Democracy, Vol. 32, Issue 4, October 2021; Darrel West, We need to take political violence seriously, Brookings, August 15, 2022.

[12] Elaine Godfrey, ‘Stop the Steal’ is a Metaphor, The Atlantic, August 12, 2022.

[13] Richard Wike, Laura Silver, and Alexandra Castillo, Many Across the Globe are Dissatisfied with how Democracy is Working: Discontent is tied to concerns about the economy, individual rights and out-of-touch elites, Pew Research Center, April 29, 2019.

[14] Richard Wike, Laura Silver, and Alexandra Castillo, Many Across the Globe are Dissatisfied with how Democracy is Working: Discontent is tied to concerns about the economy, individual rights and out-of-touch elites, Pew Research Center, April 29, 2019.

[15] Marie-Danielle Smith, Appetite for populism on the decline in Canada – except among politicians: report, National Post, May 7, 2019; Eric Sigurdson, Leadership Reimagined: the ‘CEO Statesman’ and ‘Lawyer Statesman’ in a Time of Political, Economic and Social Fragmentation – statespersonship is good for business, good for institutions, and good for a divided and disaffected society, Sigurdson Post, May 31, 2019.

[16] Dhalia Lithwick, We Don’t Need a Trump Inspired Civil War for Things to Get Real Bad, Real Fast, Slate, August 19, 2022; Gary Mason, A dangerous rage is sweeping the land, Globe and Mail, August 4, 2022. Also see for example reference to far-right extremism and ties to police, military, legal and political institutions: Mark Townsend, Growing ‘culture of extremism’ among UK and European police forces, report warns, Guardian, July 10, 2022; Michael German, Hidden in Plain Sight: Racism, White Supremacy, and Far-Right Militancy in Law Enforcement, Brennan Center for Justice, August 27, 2020; Seth Jones, Catrina Doxsee, and Grace Hwang, The Military, Police, and the Rise of Terrorism in the United States, Center for Strategic & International Studies, April 12, 2021; Hassan Kanu, Prevalence of white supremacists in law enforcement demands drastic change, Reuters, May 12, 2022; Hon. Hohn McKay, Chair, Systemic Racism in Policing in Canada: Report of the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security, 43^rd Parliament, 2^nd Session, June 2021; Alex Boutilier, Public safety minister acknowledges threat of white supremacist infiltration to Canada’s police forces, Toronto Star, June 25, 2021; Dark Money and the Courts: The Right-Wing Takeover of the Judiciary, American Constitution Society, acslaw.org – referencing: Caroline Fredrickson and Lisa Graves, On Dark Money and the Right’s Judicial ‘Revival’, Law.com, May 31, 2019; Robert O’Harrow Jr and Shawn Boburg, A conservative activist’s behind-the-scenes campaign to remake the nation’s courts, Washington Post, May 21, 2019; Jamal Greene, Trump’s Judge Whisperer Promised to Take Our Laws Back to the 1930s, Slate, May 27, 2019.

[17] Carol Toller, Amplify: Jacinda Ardern is the leader the world needs right now, Globe and Mail, March 22, 2019.

[18] Colby Itkowitz, An expert on ‘dangerous speech’ explains how Trump’s rhetoric and the recent spate of violence are and aren’t linked, Washington Post, October 29, 2018; Richard Glover, In the shadow of Christchurch, let’s drive racism out of Australian politics, Washington Post, March 16, 2019; Jennifer Lynn McCoy, Extreme political polarization weakens democracy – can the US avoid that fate?, The Conversation, October 31, 2018; Greg Sargent, Just say it: Trump’s attacks on Ilhan Omar are designed to incite hatred, Washington Post, April 15, 2019. Also see, Jennifer McCoy, Tahmina Rahman and Murat Somer, Polarization and the Global Crisis of Democracy: Common Patterns, Dynamics, and Pernicious Consequences for Democratic Polities, American Behavioral Scientist, Vol. 62, Number 1, 2018.

[19] Alex Boutilier, Politicians must combat, not court, anti-immigrant hatred, Trudeau says, Toronto Star, March 18, 2019. Also see, Katie Dangerfield, 1 in 4 Canadians say it’s becoming ‘more acceptable’ to be prejudiced against Muslims: Ipsos poll, Global News, May 21, 2019.

[20] See general: Oliver Laughland, Trump’s record on white nationalism under new scrutiny after synagogue shooting, Guardian, April 28, 2019; Peter Walker, Nigel Farage under fire over ‘antisemitic tropes’ on far-right US talkshow, The Guardian, May 6, 2019; Camille Busette, Charlottesville and Donald Trump’s crass political opportunism, Brookings, August 14, 2017; Benjamin Goggin, Most Americans think Trump has encouraged white supremacists, and some are worried he has become a ‘legitimizing voice’ for hate groups, Business Insider, October 30, 2018; Kevin Roose and Ali Winston, Far-Right Internet Groups Listen for Trump’s Approval, and Often Hear It, New York Times, November 4, 2018; Richard Glover, In the shadow of Christchurch, let’s drive racism out of Australian politics, Washington Post, March 16, 2019; Luke Pearson, There’s no excuse for justifying the racist attitudes that plague Australia, Guardian, January 3, 2019; Paul Daley, White supremacy was the mainstay of Australian federation. Little has changed, Guardian, August 16, 2018; Sam Hall, Ukip candidates urge followers to switch to far-right social network GAB, Guardian, May 11, 2019; Andrew Coyne, Why does Andrew Scheer find it so difficult to say the right thing: Scheer has been to eager to appease, or to afraid to offend, a section of opinion that is at best filled with fear and at worst filled with hate, National Post, March 15, 2019; Michelle Zilio, Canadian Labour Congress and Muslim group accuse Scheer of emboldening far-right actors, Globe and Mail, March 21, 2019; John Paul Tasker, ‘There is no racism in Canada’: Beyak leaves controversial letters online as minister calls for action – Ontario senator describes letters calling indigenous peoples lazy whiners as ‘edgy and opinionated’, CBC News, March 29, 2019; Emma Teitel, Andrew Scheer can’t be tough on crime if he is soft on hate, Toronto Star, March 25, 2019; Glenn Thrush and Maggie Haberman, Trump Gives White Supremacists an Unequivocal Boost, New York Times, August 15, 2017; Rod McGuirk, Australian senator censured for blaming Muslim victims, Toronto Star, April 3, 2019; Dan Bilefsky and Stephen Castle , British Far-Right Group Exults Over Attention from Trump, New York Times, November 29, 2017; Ryan Gallagher, British Neo-Nazis Are on the Rise – And They’re Becoming More Organized and Violent, Intercept, May 3, 2018; Frank Giustra, The United States needs leaders to bring together a divided America, Vancouver Sun, November 12, 2018; Robert Reich, Trump is cornered, with violence on his mind. We must be on red alert, The Guardian, March 16, 2019; Matt Kwong, Despite Trump’s view, white nationalism is a growing threat, data shows, CBC, March 19, 2019; Chris Van Hollen and Gerald Connolly, Congress cannot afford to ignore Netanyahu’s embrace of the far right, Washington Post, April 10, 2019; Allyson Chiu, ‘I am as American as everyone else’: Rep. Ilhan Omar fires back at critics questioning her patriotism after 9/11 remark, Washington Post, April 11, 2019; Olivia Messer, Ilhan Omar Calls Out Fox News and GOP for ‘Dangerous Incitement’ Over Her 9/11 Comments, Daily Beast, April 10, 2019; Alex Boutilier, Scheer denounces white supremacy after Conservative senator questions threat, Toronto Star, April 10, 2019; Liz Goodwin, For the UK’s nationalists, President Trump is a ‘role model’, Boston Globe, November 10, 2018; Nick Robins-Early, Trump and the American Far Right Stoke Hate in Canada, Huffington Post, May 23, 2018; Jason Wilson, Alt-right infiltrators find soft targets in Australia’s moribund political parties, Guardian, November 8, 2018; Kristy Campion, Right-wing extremism has a long history in Australia, and support is surging, ABC.net.au, March 21, 2019; David Mastracci, Doug Ford’s Victory is Also One for White Nationalists: Ford’s alleged dog whistles and connections to the far-right will further embolden white supremacists and normalize hatred, Huffington Post, June 11, 2018; Karen Mock, Why is it so hard for Doug Ford to say Nazis are bad: White supremacy, racism and xenophobia are on the rise again, but this time a sitting premier is cavorting with them, Now, October 8, 2018; Doug Ford’s History of Flirting with the Alt-Right and White Nationalists, North99.org, September 24, 2018; Jen Kirby, Far-right Australian senator blames New Zealand attack on Muslim immigrants, Vox, March 15, 2019; Rachel Withers, In Australia, Anti-Immigrant Racism is Everywhere: the alleged Christchurch shooter is a product of the dog whistles and overt bigotry in the political mainstream, Slate, March 15, 2019; Patrick Strickland, White Nationalism Is an International Threat – Christchurch attacks point to a disturbing web reaching from the United States, to the United Kingdom, to Greece, and beyond, New Republic, March 15, 2019; David Leonhardt, It Isn’t Complicated: Trump Encourages Violence, New York Times, March 17, 2019;  Lenore Taylor, Morrison sees votes in anti-Muslim strategy, Sydney Morning Herald, February 17, 2011; Mike Blanchfield, Canada, international allies butting heads over Ottawa’s focus on dangers of white supremacism, Globe and Mail, April 23, 2019; Felicia Sonmez and Ashley Parker, As Trump stands by Charlottesville remarks, rise of white nationalist violence becomes an issue in 2020 presidential race, Washington Post, April 28, 2019; Michelle Zilo, Canadian views on immigrants, refugees hold steady, despite increasing political rhetoric: polls, Globe and Mail, April 29, 2019; Neil Macdonald, Why is conservative politics such a natural home for white supremacists?, CBC, April 16, 2019.

[21] Tony Romm, Facebook and Google to be quizzed on white nationalism and political bias as Congress pushes dueling reasons for regulation, Washington Post, April 8, 2019; Isobel Asher Hamilton, Facebook and Google will be grilled by Congress today on white nationalism as they struggle to silence hate speech, Business Insider, April 9, 2019; Daniel Leblanc, Goodale turns up heat on social-media companies over hateful and violent content, Globe and Mail, April 5, 2019; Shona Ghosh, Apple, Google, and Facebook could be forced to censor apps and sites featuring ‘harmful’ content under new UK laws, Business Insider, April 9, 2019; Jake Kanter, Facebook and Google will be punished with giant fines in the UK if they fail to rid their platforms of toxic content, Business Insider, February 28, 2019; Shona Ghosh, Britain just laid out plans to end the internet’s Wild West days and take a world-leading role in regulating big tech, Business Insider, April 9, 2019; Dominique Mosbergen, Facebook ‘Are Morally Bankrupt’ Liars, New Zealand’s Privacy Commissioner Says, Huffington Post, April 8, 2019; Tamsin McMahon, Facebook bans several Canadians for supporting white nationalism as Ottawa eyes new regulations for social platforms, Globe and Mail, April 8, 2019; Patrick Strickland, White Nationalism Is an International Threat – Christchurch attacks point to a disturbing web reaching from the United States, to the United Kingdom, to Greece, and beyond, New Republic, March 15, 2019; Josee St-Onge, Social media fuelling rise of ‘new generation of extremism’ in Alberta, report says, CBC, April 23, 2019; Ellen Cranley, Gunmen in attacks on New Zealand mosques and Poway synagogue were tied to racist manifestos on the same website. The founder says the online community would likely be responsible for future tragedies, Business Insider, April 28, 2019.

[22] Zak Cheney-Rice, Tucker Carlson and the Folly of Debating Bigots on Their Terms, Intelligencer (nymag.com), March 12, 2019.

[23] Richard Glover, In the shadow of Christchurch, let’s drive racism out of Australian politics, Washington Post, March 16, 2019; Eric Sigurdson, Leadership Reimagined: the ‘CEO Statesman’ and ‘Lawyer Statesman’ in a Time of Political, Economic and Social Fragmentation – statespersonship is good for business, good for institutions, and good for a divided and disaffected society, Sigurdson Post, May 31, 2019. Also see, Erik Wemple, Fox News struggles to balance Trump’s fans and ad dollars, Washington Post, March 18, 2019; Mary Papenfuss, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Links Jeanine Pirro’s Attack on Rep. Omar To Death Threat, Huffington Post, April 7, 2019; Aiden Pink, Why Do White Supremacists Love Tucker Carlson So Much?, Forward, March 17, 2019; Ellen Cranley, Tucker Carlson ignored white supremacist message of suspected New Zealand shooter, instead criticizing Democrats and journalists, Business Insider, March 16, 2019; Olivia Messer, Ilhan Omar Calls Out Fox News and GOP for ‘Dangerous Incitement’ Over Her 9/11 Comments, Daily Beast, April 10, 2019; Sheena McKenzie, How Australia’s ‘everyday racism’ moved from political fringe to mainstream media, CNN, April 16, 2019; Brian Stelter, Trump tells Fox to ‘bring back’ Jeanine Pirro; source says she was suspended for Islamophobic remarks, CNN, March 17, 2019.

[24] Editorial Board, A highly contagious political virus is pouring over the Canada-U.S. Border, Globe and Mail, August 17, 2022. Also see, David Corn, American Psychosis: We have some bad news for those who wish that today’s unhinged Republican party would just return to normal, Mother Jones, September-October 2022 (adapted from David Corn’s American Psychosis: A Historical Investigation of How the Republican Party Went Crazy, Twelve, 2022): “Since the 1950s, the GOP has repeatedly mined fear, resentment, prejudice, and grievance and played to extremist forces so the party could win elections”; Diane Liang, The transnational element of right-wing extremism in Australia, Strategist (Australian Strategic Policy Institute), May 19, 2022; Heather Ashby, Far-Right Extremism Is a Global Problem: And it is time to treat it like one, Foreign Policy, January 15, 2021.

[25] Eric Sigurdson, Democracies under threat: Inclusive economies and (economic and political) institutions go hand-in-hand with a stable democracy – a way forward, Sigurdson Post, February 26, 2021; Zselyke Csaky, Nations in Transit 2021: The Antidemocratic Turn – Attacks on democratic institutions are spreading faster than ever in Europe and Eurasia, and coalescing into a challenge to democracy itself, Freedom House, 2021; Kelly Magasmen, Michael Fuchs, Max Bergmann, and Trevor Sutton, Securing a Democratic World, Center for American Progress, September 5, 2018; Sarah Repucci and Amy Slipowitz, Freedom in the World 2021: Democracy Under Siege, Freedom House, 2021; Sarah Repucci and Amy Slipowitz, Freedom in the World 2022: The Global Expansion of Authoritarian Rule, Freedom House, 2022.

[26] Democracy contains the seeds of its own recovery: A global democratic recession need not go on forever, The Economist, November 26, 2020.

[27] John Ibbitson, Democracy at stake as incidents and threats of violence are levelled against elected officials, Globe and Mail, October 18, 2021; David French, The Growing Danger of Political Violence Threatens to Destabilize America, Time, October 14, 2020; Rachel Kleinfeld, The Rise of Political Violence in the United States, Journal of Democracy, Vol. 32, Issue 4, 2021; Joan Greve and Lauren Gambino, US faces new era of political violence as threats against lawmakers rise, Guardian, July 31, 2022; Ja’han Jones, GOP candidate says nation’s top cop should be executed (then says he’s kidding), MSNBC, August 19, 2022; Chris McGreal, US political violence is surging, but talk of a civil war is exaggerated – isn’t it?, Guardian, August 20, 2022; Jenn Jefferys, Canada needs to brace itself for the next chapter of far-right extremism, Macleans, April 15, 2021; Jim Bronskill, Intelligence report flagged possible ‘violent revenge’ after Ottawa shutdown, CBC News, August 17, 2022; David Fraser, QAnon-inspired protest leads to special investigation into arrest, CBC News, August 18, 2022; The Resilience of Online Right-Wing Extremism in Canada, Institute for Strategic Dialogue, July 20, 2021; Rachel Gilmore, How close is too close to the far-right? Why some experts are worried about Canada’s MPs, Global News, July 7, 2022; Bob Hepburn, Pierre Poilievre is Canada’s most dangerous appalling politician, Toronto Star, June 29, 2022; Bruce Arthur, Pierre Poilievre will say just about anything – opening the door to anger, conspiracies and extremism, Toronto Star, May 11, 2022; Elizabeth Thompson, Threat of violent extremism rising in Canada, MPs told, CBC News, May 12, 2022; Annelies Pauwels, Contemporary manifestations of violent right-wing extremism in the EU: An overview, European Commission, Publications Office of the European Union, 2021; Vikram Dodd, Terrorism in the UK: the rising threat of far-right extremists, Guardian, May 16, 2022; Diane Liang, The transnational element of right-wing extremism in Australia, Strategist (Australian Strategic Policy Institute), May 19, 2022; Heather Ashby, Far-Right Extremism Is a Global Problem: And it is time to treat it like one, Foreign Policy, January 15, 2021; Daniel Byman, Terrorism and the threat to democracy, Brookings, February 2019; John Schwarmantel, Democracy and Political Violence, Edinburgh University Press, 2011.

[28] Ed Pilkington, Ousted Republican reflects on Trump, democracy and America: ‘The place has lost its mind’, Guardian, August 21, 2022.

[29] Larry Diamond, Democracy’s Arc: From Resurgent to Imperiled, Journal of Democracy, Vol. 33, Issue 1, 2022.

[30] Daniel C. Préfontaine and Joanne Lee, The Rule of Law and the Independence of the Judiciary, World Conference on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Montreal, Canada, December 7-9, 1998. Also see: David Moscrop, America’s social contract with its citizens lies in tatters. What happens next is for Americans to decide, Globe and Mail, June 28, 2022 (“If the country continues on its current course of decline, the U.S. will face violent revolution or oblivion – maybe even both. A mix of plutocracy, theocracy and juristocracy – rule by courts – is no way to govern, nor is it sustainable. Eventually, people will have had enough. Eventually, certain functional states will no longer see the value in being part of a federal union. Eventually, it will all fall apart”.); John Ibbitson, Democracy at stake as incidents and threats of violence are levelled against elected officials, Globe and Mail, October 18, 2021; David French, The Growing Danger of Political Violence Threatens to Destabilize America, Time, October 14, 2020; Rachel Kleinfeld, The Rise of Political Violence in the United States, Journal of Democracy, Vol. 32, Issue 4, 2021; Joan Greve and Lauren Gambino, US faces new era of political violence as threats against lawmakers rise, Guardian, July 31, 2022; Ja’han Jones, GOP candidate says nation’s top cop should be executed (then says he’s kidding), MSNBC, August 19, 2022; Chris McGreal, US political violence is surging, but talk of a civil war is exaggerated – isn’t it?, Guardian, August 20, 2022; Jenn Jefferys, Canada needs to brace itself for the next chapter of far-right extremism, Macleans, April 15, 2021; Jim Bronskill, Intelligence report flagged possible ‘violent revenge’ after Ottawa shutdown, CBC News, August 17, 2022; David Fraser, QAnon-inspired protest leads to special investigation into arrest, CBC News, August 18, 2022; The Resilience of Online Right-Wing Extremism in Canada, Institute for Strategic Dialogue, July 20, 2021; Rachel Gilmore, How close is too close to the far-right? Why some experts are worried about Canada’s MPs, Global News, July 7, 2022; Bob Hepburn, Pierre Poilievre is Canada’s most dangerous appalling politician, Toronto Star, June 29, 2022; Bruce Arthur, Pierre Poilievre will say just about anything – opening the door to anger, conspiracies and extremism, Toronto Star, May 11, 2022; Elizabeth Thompson, Threat of violent extremism rising in Canada, MPs told, CBC News, May 12, 2022; Annelies Pauwels, Contemporary manifestations of violent right-wing extremism in the EU: An overview, European Commission, Publications Office of the European Union, 2021; Vikram Dodd, Terrorism in the UK: the rising threat of far-right extremists, Guardian, May 16, 2022; Diane Liang, The transnational element of right-wing extremism in Australia, Strategist (Australian Strategic Policy Institute), May 19, 2022; Heather Ashby, Far-Right Extremism Is a Global Problem: And it is time to treat it like one, Foreign Policy, January 15, 2021.

[31] Steven Webster, Elizabeth Connors, and Betsy Sinclair, The Social Consequences of Political Anger, The Journal of Politics (The University of Chicago Press), Vol. 84, No. 3, 2022.  Also see, Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt, How Wobbly Is Our Democracy?, New York Times, January 27, 2018; Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt, How Democracies Die, What History Tells Us About Our Future, Broadway Books, 2018.

[32] Eric Sigurdson, Democracies under threat: Inclusive economies and (economic and political) institutions go hand-in-hand with a stable democracy – a way forward, Sigurdson Post, February 26, 2021.

[33] Cahir O’Doherty, How much anger can America take before it breaks?, Irish Central, June 23, 2022.

[34] For example see: Lauren Jackson, The Idea of American Decay: Did the Capital riot make the belief in American democratic decline mainstream?, New York Times, January 7, 2022 Updated August 5, 2022); Tom McTague, The Decline of the American World, Atlantic, June 24, 2020; George Packer, Decline and fall: how American society unravelled, Guardian, June 19, 2013; Charles Stephen, Rapid American Decline Imminent as it Reaches the End of the Society Cycle, Medium (Illumination), March 5, 2021; Kim Parker, Rich Morin, and Juliana Menasce Horowitz, Looking to the Future, Public Sees an America in Decline on Many Fronts, Pew Research Center, March 21, 2019..

[35] Gary Mason, A dangerous rage is sweeping the land, Globe and Mail, August 4, 2022.

[36] Pankaj Mishra, Welcome to the age of anger, The Guardian, December 8, 2016. Also see, David Corn, American Psychosis: We have some bad news for those who wish that today’s unhinged Republican party would just return to normal, Mother Jones, September-October 2022 (adapted from David Corn’s American Psychosis: A Historical Investigation of How the Republican Party Went Crazy, Twelve, 2022): “Since the 1950s, the GOP has repeatedly mined fear, resentment, prejudice, and grievance and played to extremist forces so the party could win elections”.

[37] Gary Mason, A dangerous rage is sweeping the land, Globe and Mail, August 4, 2022.

[38] Charles Duhigg, The Real Roots of American Rage, The Atlantic, January-February 2019.

[39] Eric Sigurdson, Democracies under threat: Inclusive economies and (economic and political) institutions go hand-in-hand with a stable democracy – a way forward, Sigurdson Post, February 26, 2021.

[40] Mark Cohen, Democratic Degradation Is Law’s Ultimate Disrupter, Forbes, August 17, 2022.

[41] Patrick Wintour, US seen as bigger threat to democracy than Russia or China, global poll finds, The Guardian, May 5, 2021. Also see, Xander Landen, ‘Threats to democracy’ overtake ‘cost of living’ as voters’ top issue: Poll, Newsweek, August 21, 2022.

[42] Andrew Coyne, Where would Poilievre take the Conservatives? Not to the far right, but the far out, Globe and Mail, August 12, 2022. Also see for example: Chelsea Nash, Politicians downplaying far-right extremism in convoy naïve and willfully ignorant, say criminologists, Hill Times, February 21, 2022; Jenn Jefferys, Canada needs to brace itself for the next chapter of far-right extremism, Macleans, April 15, 2021; Jim Bronskill, Intelligence report flagged possible ‘violent revenge’ after Ottawa shutdown, CBC News, August 17, 2022; David Fraser, QAnon-inspired protest leads to special investigation into arrest, CBC News, August 18, 2022; The Resilience of Online Right-Wing Extremism in Canada, Institute for Strategic Dialogue, July 20, 2021; Rachel Gilmore, How close is too close to the far-right? Why some experts are worried about Canada’s MPs, Global News, July 7, 2022; Bob Hepburn, Pierre Poilievre is Canada’s most dangerous appalling politician, Toronto Star, June 29, 2022; Bruce Arthur, Pierre Poilievre will say just about anything – opening the door to anger, conspiracies and extremism, Toronto Star, May 11, 2022.

[43] Jacques Boissinot, Poilievre will win Conservative leadership as he ignores critics, focuses on ‘normies’, Globe and Mail, August 23, 2022.

[44] Stephanie Levitz, Calling Pierre Poilievre ‘too polarizing’, reality TV star Kevin O’Leary makes pitch for Jean Charest as Conservative leader, Toronto Star, August 22, 2022.

[45] Andrew Coyne, Where would Poilievre take the Conservatives? Not to the far right, but the far out, Globe and Mail, August 12, 2022.

[46] Editorial Board, A highly contagious political virus is pouring over the Canada-U.S. Border, Globe and Mail, August 17, 2022. Also see, Steve Benen, Trump’s condemnations of the FBI reach a startling new level: As Donald Trump accuses federal law enforcement of committing ‘atrocities’ and ‘destroying’ the U.S., there’s no modern precedent for rhetoric like this, MSNBC, August 22, 2022; Zack Beauchamp, Trump is pushing us toward the abyss: His conspiracy theories about the FBI search have spawned a GOP assault on the legitimacy of the American state – and set the stage for violence, Vox, August 12, 2022.

[47] Zack Beauchamp, Trump is pushing us toward the abyss: His conspiracy theories about the FBI search have spawned a GOP assault on the legitimacy of the American state – and set the stage for violence, Vox, August 12, 2022. See, Survey finds alarming trend toward political violence, UC Davis Health (health.ucdavis.edu), July 20, 2022; Ed Pilkington, One in five US adults condone ‘justified’ political violence, mega-survey finds, Guardian, July 20, 2022.

[48] Rachel Kleinfeld, The Rise of Political Violence in the United States, Journal of Democracy, Vol. 32, Issue 4, October 2021. Also see, Rachel Kleinfeld, The Rise in Political Violence in the United States and Damage to Our Democracy, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace: March 31, 2022 Testimony – Select Committee to Investigate the January 6^th Attack on the United States Capital, March 31, 2022;

[49] Darrel West, We need to take political violence seriously, Brookings, August 15, 2022.

[50] Ed Pilkington, One in five US adults condone ‘justified’ political violence, mega-survey finds, Guardian, July 20, 2022. See, Survey finds alarming trend toward political violence, UC Davis Health (health.ucdavis.edu), July 20, 2022.

[51] Eric Sigurdson, Democracies under threat: Inclusive economies and (economic and political) institutions go hand-in-hand with a stable democracy – a way forward, Sigurdson Post, February 26, 2021.

[52] Dambisa Moyo, Why the survival of democracy depends on a strong middle-class, Globe and Mail, April 20, 2018. Also see, Eric Sigurdson, Corporate Strategy and Geopolitical Risk in a G-Zero World: Inequality, Polarized Democracies, and the shifting economic and political landscape, Sigurdson Post, May 31, 2018.

[53] Dalibor Rohac, Liz Kennedy and Vikram Singh, Drivers of Authoritarian Populism in the United States, American Progress, May 10, 2018; Israel Butler, It’s Time for Some Answers on Populist Authoritarians, Liberties, December 6, 2018; Ronald Inglehart and Pippa Norris, Cultural Backlash: Trump, Brexit and Authoritarian Populism, Cambridge University Press, 2019; Ronald Inglehart and Pippa Norris, Trump, Brexit, and the Rise of Populism: Economic Have-Nots and Cultural Backlash, Harvard Kennedy School of Government, HKS Faculty Research Working Paper Series, August 2016; Roger Eatwell and Matthew Goodwin, National Populism: The Revolt Against Liberal Democracy, Pelican, 2018; Konstantin Sonin, The Historical Perspective on the Trump Puzzle: A Review of Barry Eichengreen’s ‘The Populist Temptation: Economic Grievance and Political Reaction in the Modern Era’, American Economic Association, 2020 (Journal of Economic Literature, forthcoming); Marin Lessenski, Assya Kavrakova, Emily Long, Huw Longton, Lorene Weber, and Marrit Westerweel, Societies outside Metropolises: the role of civil society organisations in facing populism: Study, European Economic and Social Committee, 2019; Andrea Kendall-Taylor and Carisa Nietsche, Combating Populism, CNAS (Center for a New American Security), March 2020; Tomasz Mickiewicz, What explains support for authoritarian populists in Hungary and Poland?, The Conversation, December 18, 2020; Kevin Clements, Authoritarian Populism and Atavistic Nationalism: 21^st-Century Challenges to Peacebuilding and Development, Journal of Peacebuilding & Development, Vol. 13, Issue 3, 2018; Thorsten Wojczewski, ‘Enemies of the people’: Populism and the politics of (in)security, European Journal of International Security, Vol. 5, Issue 1, 2020; Tanya Voss, Jo Daugherty Bailey, Jim Ife, and Michaela Kottig, The Threatening Troika of Populism, Nationalism, and Neoliberalism, Journal of Human Rights and Social Work, Vol. 3, 2018; Dani Rodrik, What is driving modern authoritarian populism?, Mint, July 11, 2019; Dani Rodrik, Populism and the economics of globalization, Journal of International Business Policy, 2018; Italo Colantone and Piero Stanig, Heterogeneous drivers of heterogenous populism, VoxEU, December 10, 2019.

[54] Thomas Piketty, Capital in the Twenty-First Century, Harvard University Press, 2014; Thomas Piketty, The Economics of Inequality, Harvard University Press, 2015.

[55] Sophie Hardach, Here are 3 facts you need to know about inequality and populism, World Economic Forum, April 30, 2018.

[56] Hillary Hoffower, The typical US worker can no longer afford a family on a year’s salary, showing the dire state of America’s middle class, Business Insider, February 25, 2020; Hillary Hoffower, 6 findings that show the dire state of America’s middle class, Business Insider, May 23, 2019; Christopher Ingraham, This chart is the best explanation of middle-class finances you will ever see, Washington Post, February 24, 2020; Danielle Paquette, Living paycheck to paycheck is disturbingly common: ‘I see no way out’, Washington Post, December 28, 2018; Thomas Piketty, Capital and Ideology, Harvard University Press, 2020; Thomas Piketty, Capital in the Twenty-First Century, Harvard University Press, 2014; Thomas Piketty, The Economics of Inequality, Harvard University Press, 2015; Klaus Schwab, Five Leadership priorities for 2017, World Economic Forum, January 2, 2017;

[57] Eric Sigurdson, Democracies under threat: Inclusive economies and (economic and political) institutions go hand-in-hand with a stable democracy – a way forward, Sigurdson Post, February 26, 2021.

[58] Uri Friedman, Why Trump Is Thriving in an Age of Distrust: Populism is people taking back from institutions they no longer have faith in, The Atlantic, January 20, 2017. Also see, 2022 Edelman Trust Barometer, Edelman.com; 2021 Edelman Trust Barometer, Edelman.com; 2020 Edelman Trust Barometer, Edelman.com; 2019 Edelman Trust Barometer, Edelman.com; 2018 Edelman Trust Barometer, Edelman.com; 2017 Edelman Trust Barometer, Edelman.com

[59] Joseph Stiglitz, Is Donald Trump an aberration or a symptom of a deeper US malady?, Guardian, January 12, 202.

[60] William Galston, The populist challenge to liberal democracy, Brookings, April 17, 2018; Thomas Wright, The U.S. Must Now Repair Democracy at Home and Abroad: Our domestic troubles show that America has a real stake in the struggle for democracy worldwide, Atlantic, January 10, 2021.

[61] William Galston, The populist challenge to liberal democracy, Brookings, April 17, 2018; Thomas Wright, The U.S. Must Now Repair Democracy at Home and Abroad: Our domestic troubles show that America has a real stake in the struggle for democracy worldwide, Atlantic, January 10, 2021.

[62] Eric Sigurdson, Democracies under threat: Inclusive economies and (economic and political) institutions go hand-in-hand with a stable democracy – a way forward, Sigurdson Post, February 26, 2021.

[63] Sarah Repucci and Amy Slipowitz, Freedom in the World 2022: The Global Expansion of Authoritarian Rule, Freedom House, 2022.

[64] Jonathan Haidt, Why the Past 10 Years of American Life have been Uniquely Stupid, The Atlantic, April 11, 2022; David Brooks, The Fragmented Society, New York Times, May 20, 2016; Yuval Levin, The Fractured Republic: Renewing America’s Social Contract in the Age if Individualism, Basic Books, 2017; John Orbell, Langche Zeng, and Matthew Mulford, Individual Experience and the Fragmentation of Societies, American Sociological Review, Vol. 61, No. 6, 1996. Also see, Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt, How Wobbly Is Our Democracy?, New York Times, January 27, 2018; Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt, How Democracies Die, What History Tells Us About Our Future, Broadway Books, 2018.

[65] Samuel Kronen, Bridging Our Political Divide: Uncivil Agreement by Lilliana Mason – Book Review, Areo Magazine, June 13, 2019; Lilliana Mason, Uncivil Agreement: How Politics Became Our Identity, University of Chicago Press, 2018.

[66] Steven W. Webster, American Rage: How Anger Shapes Our Politics, Cambridge University Press, 2020; Noah Robertson and Patrik Jonsson, Americans are angry about … everything. Is that bad?, Christian Science Monitor, October 22, 2021; Cahir O’Doherty, How much anger can America take before it breaks?, Irish Central, June 23, 2022.

[67] Steven W. Webster, American Rage: How Anger Shapes Our Politics, Cambridge University Press, 2020; Noah Robertson and Patrik Jonsson, Americans are angry about … everything. Is that bad?, Christian Science Monitor, October 22, 2021; Cahir O’Doherty, How much anger can America take before it breaks?, Irish Central, June 23, 2022.

[68] R. Wayne Thorpe (Chair, Section of Dispute Resolution), Report to the House of Delegates: Resolution 108, American Bar Association, August 2011; Eric Sigurdson, Civility, the Rule of Law, and Lawyers: the ‘glue’ that binds society against social crisis – is incivility the ‘ugly new normal’ in government, politics, Sigurdson Post, November 25, 2016.

[69] Andrew Coyne, Where would Poilievre take the Conservatives? Not to the far right, but the far out, Globe and Mail, August 12, 2022.

[70] Thomas Piketty, Capital in the Twenty-First Century, Harvard University Press, 2014; Thomas Piketty, The Economics of Inequality, Harvard University Press, 2015.

[71] Eric Levitz, The One Percent Have Gotten $21 Trillion Richer Since 1989. The Bottom 50% Have Gotten Poorer, New York Magazine, June 16, 2019; Rec Nutting, The super rich elite have more money than they know what to do with, Market Watch, November 2, 2019; Jake Johnson, ‘Eye-Popping’: Analysis Shows Top 1% Gained $21 Trillion in Wealth Since 1989 While Bottom Half Lost $900 Billion, Common Dreams, June 14, 2019; David Harrison, Historic Asset Boom Passes by Half of Families, Wall Street Journal, August 30, 2019; Lola Fadulu, Study Shows Income Gap Between Rich and Poor Keeps Growing, With Deadly Effects, New York Times, September 10, 2019.

[72] Sophie Hardach, Here are 3 facts you need to know about inequality and populism, World Economic Forum, April 30, 2018.

[73] Hillary Hoffower, The typical US worker can no longer afford a family on a year’s salary, showing the dire state of America’s middle class, Business Insider, February 25, 2020; Hillary Hoffower, 6 findings that show the dire state of America’s middle class, Business Insider, May 23, 2019; Christopher Ingraham, This chart is the best explanation of middle-class finances you will ever see, Washington Post, February 24, 2020; Danielle Paquette, Living paycheck to paycheck is disturbingly common: ‘I see no way out’, Washington Post, December 28, 2018; Thomas Piketty, Capital and Ideology, Harvard University Press, 2020; Thomas Piketty, Capital in the Twenty-First Century, Harvard University Press, 2014; Thomas Piketty, The Economics of Inequality, Harvard University Press, 2015; Daniel Tencer, Canadians Increasingly Stuck in the Economic Conditions They Were Born In: StatCan: More and more, what your parents make determines what you will make, Huffington Post, February 11, 2021;

[74] Eric Sigurdson, Democracies under threat: Inclusive economies and (economic and political) institutions go hand-in-hand with a stable democracy – a way forward, Sigurdson Post, February 26, 2021.

[75] By civil discourse, we mean “robust, honest, frank and constructive dialogue and deliberation that seeks to advance the public interest” (Carli Brosseau, Executive Session: Civil Discourse in Progress, Frankly Speaking, Vol. 1, No. 2, October 27, 2011); Jennifer Kavanagh and Michael Rich, Truth Decay: An Initial Exploration of the Diminishing Role of Facts and Analysis in American Public Life, Rand, 2018, page 192.

[76] Jennifer Kavanagh and Michael Rich, Truth Decay: An Initial Exploration of the Diminishing Role of Facts and Analysis in American Public Life, Rand, 2018.

[77] Phoebe Griffith, Will Norman, Carmel O’Sullivan, and Rushanara Ali, Charm Offensive: Cultivating civility in 21^st Century Britain, Young Foundation.org, 2011; Chris Hannay, Civility: It’s the glue that holds society together, Globe and Mail, July 12, 2013; John Hall, The importance of Being Civil: The Struggle for Political Decency, Princeton University Press, 2013.

[78] Eric Sigurdson, Civility, Advocacy, and the Rule of Law: From Wall Street to Main Street, From the Boardroom to the Courtroom – lawyer civility is crucial in an uncivil world, Sigurdson Post, June 30, 2018.

[79] See, Eric Sigurdson, Civility, the Rule of Law, and Lawyers: the ‘glue’ that binds society against social crisis – is incivility the ‘ugly new normal’ in government, politics, Sigurdson Post, November 25, 2016.

[80] R. Wayne Thorpe (Chair, Section of Dispute Resolution), Report to the House of Delegates: Resolution 108, American Bar Association, August 2011; Judge Paul L. Friedman, Fostering Civility, American Bar Association Section of Public Contract Law, March 13, 1998; Josephine Stone, Civility and Professionalism – standards of courtesy, Article from the Office of the Legal Services Commissioner (NSW), Austlii.edu.au, 2007.

[81] 2022 Edelman Trust Barometer, Edelman.com; 2021 Edelman Trust Barometer, Edelman.com; 2020 Edelman Trust Barometer, Edelman.com; 2019 Edelman Trust Barometer, Edelman.com; 2018 Edelman Trust Barometer, Edelman.com.

[82] See, for example: David Paul Kuhn, The Incredible Polarization and Politicization of the Supreme Court, The Atlantic, June 29, 2012 (“the one branch of government designed to be above partisanship echoes the rise in hyperpartisanship seen throughout Washington.”); Adam Liptak, The Polarized Court, New York Times, May 10, 2014 (“The partisan polarization on the court reflects similarly deep divisions in Congress, the electorate and the elite circles in which the justices move. … The perception that partisan politics has infected the court’s work may do lasting damage to its prestige and authority and to Americans’ faith in the rule of law.”); Lucas Rodrquez, The Troubling Partisanship of the Supreme Court, Stanford Politics (Non-partisan Student) Newsmagazine, January 7, 2016; John Daniel Davidson, Americans Are Losing Confidence in the Supreme Court, The Federalist, June 29, 2016 (“Americans increasingly view the Supreme Court not as a revered body of judges considering questions of law, but as ideologues engaged at the front lines of America’s culture wars”.); Aylin Aydin, Judicial Independence across Democratic Regimes: Understanding the Varying Impact of Political Competition, Law & Society Review, Vol. 47, Issue 1, March 2013; The Decline of Democracy and the Rule of Law: How to Preserve the Rule of Law and Judicial Independence, Remarks of the Right Honourable Beverley McLachlin, P.C. Chief Justice of Canada, SCC-CSC.ca, September 28, 2017; Jessica Walsh, A Double-Edged Sword: Judicial Independence and Accountability in Latin America, International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute, April 2016; Alexadra Brzozowski, EU rule of law generally good but clouds on the horizon, Euractiv.com, May 29, 2018; Eric Sigurdson, The U.S. Supreme Court’s Rejection of ‘Roe v. Wade’ shatters public trust in its legitimacy: A Politicized Court curtails Women’s Constitutional rights in America, Sigurdson Post, July 24, 2022.

[83] Eric Sigurdson, Corporate Strategy and Geopolitical Risk in a G-Zero World: Inequality, Polarized Democracies, and the shifting economic and political landscape, Sigurdson Post, May 31, 2018; Richard Wike, Katie Simmons, Bruce Stokes, and Janell Fetterolf, Globally, Broad Support for Representative and Direct Democracy: 1. Many unhappy with current political system, Pew Research Center (Pew Global.org), October 16, 2017. Also see, for example: See generally: Robert D. Putnam, Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community (2001); Michael Woolcock & Deepa Narayan, Social Capital: Implications for Development Theory, Research and Policy, 15 World Bank Research Obs. 225 (2000); Robert D. Putnam, Making Democracy Work: Civic Traditions in Italy (1993); Brian O’Donnell, Civil Society: The Underpinning of American Democracy (1999); Susan Rose-Ackerman, Corruption: Greed, Culture and the State, 120 Yale L. J. Online 125 (2009); Larry J. Diamond, Three Paradoxes of Democracy, 1 J. DEM. 3 (1990); Ilya Somin, The disturbing growth of partisan bias, Washington Post, December 9, 2015; Saskia Brenchenmacher, Comparing Democratic Distress in the United States and Europe, Carnegie Endowment, June 21, 2018; R. Wayne Thorpe (Chair, Section of Dispute Resolution), Report to the House of Delegates: Resolution 108, American Bar Association, August 2011; Randolph Roth, How the erosion of trust leads to murders and mass shootings, Washington Post, October 6, 2017; Deepa Naraya, Raj Patel, Kai Schaffit, Anne Rademacher, and Sarah Koch-Schulte, Voices of the Poor: Can Anyone Hear Us?, Oxford University Press for the World Bank (World Bank eLibrary), 2000: see Chapter 6: Social Fragmentation; Lawrence Martin, Is the U.S. on the brink of civil unrest?, Globe and Mail, June 26, 2018.

[84] Eric Sigurdson, Civility, Advocacy, and the Rule of Law: From Wall Street to Main Street, From the Boardroom to the Courtroom – lawyer civility is crucial in an uncivil world, Sigurdson Post, June 30, 2018.

[85] Jennifer Kavanagh and Michael Rich, Truth Decay: An Initial Exploration of the Diminishing Role of Facts and Analysis in American Public Life, Rand, 2018, page 195-199; Jennifer Kavanagh and Michael Rich, Truth Decay in public discourse and how to fight it, World Economic Forum, May 17, 2018 [note: article part of World Economic Forum’s Geostrategy platform]; Phoebe Griffith, Will Norman, Carmel O’Sullivan, and Rushanara Ali, Charm Offensive: Cultivating civility in 21^st Century Britain, Young Foundation.org, 2011; Christine Porath, Mastering Civility: A Manifesto for the Workplace, Grand Central Publishing, 2016; Christine Porath, The hidden toll of workplace incivility, McKinsey Quarterly, December 2016; Christine Porath and Christine Pearson, The Price of Incivility, Harvard Business Review, January-February 2013; Aloke Chakravarty, A Call For Ethics and Civility in Governance and Litigation: Changing Culture and Increasing Accountability, 4 Emory Corporate Governance and Accountability Review 37, 2017; David Goodhart, The age of incivility: how social media amplifies our differences, The Spectator.co.uk, June 9, 2018; Peter Baker and Katie Rogers, In Trump’s America, the Conversation Turns Ugly and Angry, Starting at the Top, New York Times, June 20, 2018; Jayne Reardon, Civility in America – It Matters, 2civility.org, November 6, 2017; Daniel Dale, Bruce Campion-Smith, and Tonda Maccharles, ‘Special place in hell’: Trump aides hurl insults at Trudeau in unprecedented U.S. attack on Canadian leader, Toronto Star, June 10, 2018; Thomas Plante, Ph.D, ABPP, Stand Up for Civility, Psychology Today, July 17, 2017; Harry Eyres, Civilisation, or civility?, Financial Times, October 14, 2011; John Hall, The importance of Being Civil: The Struggle for Political Decency, Princeton University Press, 2013; Rupert Myers, Respect and civility in public discourse have evaporated with Brexit, The Guardian, June 27, 2016; James Graham, Enemies, traitors, saboteurs: how can we face the future with this anger in our politics: first step must be greater civility, The Guardian, February 17, 2018; Adam Lent, A crisis of civility, Renewal: a journal of social democracy, Vol. 16 No. 3 / 4, 2008; Clare Beckton, Canada Has Lost Its Civility, Huffington Post, June 17, 2016; Kathleen Hall Jamieson, Allyson Volinsky, Ilana Weitz, and Kate Kenski, The Political Uses and Abuses of Civility and Incivility, Oxford Handbook of Political Communication, August 2017; John McCormick, Before we blame the EU for all our woes, is there anyone doing any better, Guardian, May 8, 2013 (“… incivility in public discourse…”); Angelo Antoci, Alexia Delfino, Fabio Palieri, Fabrizio Panebianco, and Fabio Sabantini, Civility vs. Incivility in Online Social Interactions: An Evolutionary Approach, journals.plos.org (PLoS One, vol. 11(11)), November 1, 2016; Andray Domise, It’s too late for civility in American politics, MacLeans.ca, June 26, 2018; Jonathan Bernstein, Civility is Important in a Democracy. So Is Dissent, Bloomberg.com, June 26, 2018; Philip Bump, The irony of Washington’s ‘civility’ debate: Trump already proved that incivility works, Washington Post, June 25, 2018.

[86] Eric Sigurdson, Civility, the Rule of Law, and Lawyers: the ‘glue’ that binds society against social crisis – is incivility the ‘ugly new normal’ in government, politics, Sigurdson Post, November 25, 2016; Jayne R. Reardon, Civility as the Core of Professionalism, American Bar Association, 2014. Also see, What is the Rule of Law?: The Four Universal Principles, World Justice Project.org; Rule of Law Index 2017-2018, World Justice Project, 2018; Kenneth Grady, The Election, the Rule of Law, and the Role of Lawyers, Seytlines.com, November 17, 2016.

[87] Editor, Civility in America 2018: Amid Political Party Conflict, Individuals Agree: Erosion of Civility is Harming Our Democracy, WeberShandick.com, March 1, 2018; Jennifer Kavanagh and Michael Rich, Truth Decay: An Initial Exploration of the Diminishing Role of Facts and Analysis in American Public Life, Rand, 2018, page 195-199; Jennifer Kavanagh and Michael Rich, Truth Decay in public discourse and how to fight it, World Economic Forum, May 17, 2018 [note: article part of World Economic Forum’s Geostrategy platform]; Aloke Chakravarty, A Call For Ethics and Civility in Governance and Litigation: Changing Culture and Increasing Accountability, 4 Emory Corporate Governance and Accountability Review 37, 2017.  Also see, Editor, Civility in America 2017: The State of Civility, WeberShandick.com, January 2017; Editor, Civility in America 2016: U.S. Facing a Civility Crisis Affecting Public Discourse and Political Action, WeberShandick.com, January 28, 2016; Eduardo Mendieta, Civility at the core of American democracy, whatever politicians say, The Conversation, November 7, 2016. In addition, see: Abbott L. Ferriss, Studying and Measuring Civility: A Framework, Trends and Scale, Sociological Inquiry, Vol. 72, Issue 3, 2002; Cynthia Clark, Eric Lundrum, and Danh Nguyen, Development and Description of the Organizational Civility Scale, The Journal of Theory Construction & Testing, Vol. 17, No. 1, 2013; Benjamin Walsh, Vicki Magley, David Reeves, Kimberly Davies-Schrils, Matthew Marmet, and Jessica Gallus, Assessing Workgroup Norms for Civility: The Development of the Civility Norms Questionnaire, Journal of Business and Psychology, Vol. 27, 2012.

[88] Eric Sigurdson, Democracies under threat: Inclusive economies and (economic and political) institutions go hand-in-hand with a stable democracy – a way forward, Sigurdson Post, February 26, 2021; Eric Sigurdson, Civility, Advocacy, and the Rule of Law: From Wall Street to Main Street, From the Boardroom to the Courtroom – lawyer civility is crucial in an uncivil world, Sigurdson Post, June 30, 2018.

[89] Eric Sigurdson, Democracies under threat: Inclusive economies and (economic and political) institutions go hand-in-hand with a stable democracy – a way forward, Sigurdson Post, February 26, 2021; Eric Sigurdson, Civility, Advocacy, and the Rule of Law: From Wall Street to Main Street, From the Boardroom to the Courtroom – lawyer civility is crucial in an uncivil world, Sigurdson Post, June 30, 2018.

[90] Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein, Nudge: Improving Decisions about Health, Wealth, and Happiness, Yale University Press, 2008, page 235 [Note: Richard Thaler is the winner of the 2017 Nobel Prize in Economics. Named a Best Book of the Year by The Economist and the Financial Times]. Also see, Jennifer Kavanagh and Michael Rich, Truth Decay: An Initial Exploration of the Diminishing Role of Facts and Analysis in American Public Life, Rand, 2018, page 195-197; Jennifer Kavanagh and Michael Rich, Truth Decay in public discourse and how to fight it, World Economic Forum, May 17, 2018 [note: article part of World Economic Forum’s Geostrategy platform]; Jeffrey Goldberg, A Senior White House Official Defines the Trump Doctrine: ‘We’re America, Bitch’, The Atlantic, June 11, 2018; Christine Porath, Mastering Civility: A Manifesto for the Workplace, Grand Central Publishing, 2016; Christine Porath, The hidden toll of workplace incivility, McKinsey Quarterly, December 2016; Christine Porath and Christine Pearson, The Price of Incivility, Harvard Business Review, January-February 2013; Aloke Chakravarty, A Call For Ethics and Civility in Governance and Litigation: Changing Culture and Increasing Accountability, 4 Emory Corporate Governance and Accountability Review 37, 2017; Andray Domise, It’s too late for civility in American politics, MacLeans.ca, June 26, 2018; Philip Bump, The irony of Washington’s ‘civility’ debate: Trump already proved that incivility works, Washington Post, June 25, 2018.

[91] Jennifer Kavanagh and Michael Rich, Truth Decay: An Initial Exploration of the Diminishing Role of Facts and Analysis in American Public Life, Rand, 2018, page 207-208; Jennifer Kavanagh and Michael Rich, Truth Decay in public discourse and how to fight it, World Economic Forum, May 17, 2018 [note: article part of World Economic Forum’s Geostrategy platform].

[92] See generally: Robert D. Putnam, Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community (2001); Michael Woolcock & Deepa Narayan, Social Capital: Implications for Development Theory, Research and Policy, 15 World Bank Research Obs. 225 (2000); Robert D. Putnam, Making Democracy Work: Civic Traditions in Italy (1993); Brian O’Donnell, Civil Society: The Underpinning of American Democracy (1999); Susan Rose-Ackerman, Corruption: Greed, Culture and the State, 120 Yale L. J. Online 125 (2009); Larry J. Diamond, Three Paradoxes of Democracy, 1 J. DEM. 3 (1990); R. Wayne Thorpe (Chair, Section of Dispute Resolution), Report to the House of Delegates: Resolution 108, American Bar Association, August 2011; Randolph Roth, How the erosion of trust leads to murders and mass shootings, Washington Post, October 6, 2017; Deepa Naraya, Raj Patel, Kai Schaffit, Anne Rademacher, and Sarah Koch-Schulte, Voices of the Poor: Can Anyone Hear Us?, Oxford University Press for the World Bank (World Bank eLibrary), 2000: see Chapter 6: Social Fragmentation; Lawrence Martin, Is the U.S. on the brink of civil unrest?, Globe and Mail, June 26, 2018.

[93] Eric Sigurdson, Civility, Advocacy, and the Rule of Law: From Wall Street to Main Street, From the Boardroom to the Courtroom – lawyer civility is crucial in an uncivil world, Sigurdson Post, June 30, 2018.

[94] See generally: Dr. Steven Mitz, Can Civility in Society be Regained?, Ethics Sage, January 12, 2016; John Ibbitson, Democracy at stake as incidents and threats of violence are levelled against elected officials, Globe and Mail, October 18, 2021; David French, The Growing Danger of Political Violence Threatens to Destabilize America, Time, October 14, 2020; Rachel Kleinfeld, The Rise of Political Violence in the United States, Journal of Democracy, Vol. 32, Issue 4, 2021; Joan Greve and Lauren Gambino, US faces new era of political violence as threats against lawmakers rise, Guardian, July 31, 2022; Ja’han Jones, GOP candidate says nation’s top cop should be executed (then says he’s kidding), MSNBC, August 19, 2022; Chris McGreal, US political violence is surging, but talk of a civil war is exaggerated – isn’t it?, Guardian, August 20, 2022; Jenn Jefferys, Canada needs to brace itself for the next chapter of far-right extremism, Macleans, April 15, 2021; Jim Bronskill, Intelligence report flagged possible ‘violent revenge’ after Ottawa shutdown, CBC News, August 17, 2022; David Fraser, QAnon-inspired protest leads to special investigation into arrest, CBC News, August 18, 2022; The Resilience of Online Right-Wing Extremism in Canada, Institute for Strategic Dialogue, July 20, 2021; Rachel Gilmore, How close is too close to the far-right? Why some experts are worried about Canada’s MPs, Global News, July 7, 2022; Bob Hepburn, Pierre Poilievre is Canada’s most dangerous appalling politician, Toronto Star, June 29, 2022; Bruce Arthur, Pierre Poilievre will say just about anything – opening the door to anger, conspiracies and extremism, Toronto Star, May 11, 2022; Elizabeth Thompson, Threat of violent extremism rising in Canada, MPs told, CBC News, May 12, 2022; Annelies Pauwels, Contemporary manifestations of violent right-wing extremism in the EU: An overview, European Commission, Publications Office of the European Union, 2021; Vikram Dodd, Terrorism in the UK: the rising threat of far-right extremists, Guardian, May 16, 2022; Diane Liang, The transnational element of right-wing extremism in Australia, Strategist (Australian Strategic Policy Institute), May 19, 2022; Heather Ashby, Far-Right Extremism Is a Global Problem: And it is time to treat it like one, Foreign Policy, January 15, 2021.

[95] Eric Sigurdson, Civility, the Rule of Law, and Lawyers: the ‘glue’ that binds society against social crisis – is incivility the ‘ugly new normal’ in government, politics, Sigurdson Post, November 25, 2016.

[96] For example, see: 2021 Edelman Trust Barometer: Executive Summary, Edelman.com, January 13, 2021; 2021 Edelman Trust Barometer, Edelman.com, January 13, 2021; 2020 Edelman Trust Barometer: Executive Summary, Edelman.com, January 19, 2020; 2020 Edelman Trust Barometer, Edelman.com, January 19, 2020; 2019 Edelman Trust Barometer: Global Report, Edelman.com, 2019; 2019 Edelman Trust Barometer: Executive Summary, Edelman.com, 2019; Angel Burria (OECD Secretary-General), 2019 Edelman Trust Barometer, OECD.org, January 30, 2019; Marc Montgomery, International survey indicates trust  in key institutions declining, Radio Canada International, February 25, 2020; The Global State of Democracy: Exploring Democracy’s Resilience, International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (idea.int), November 2017; Richard Edelman, A crisis of trust: A warning to both business and government, Economist (theworldin.com), 2016; Uri Friedman, Trust Is Collapsing in America, The Atlantic, January 21, 2018.

[97] Ted Piccone, The rule of law is under duress everywhere, Brookings, March 17, 2020. Also see, Robert Burns, All 10 living former defence secretaries issue Trump extraordinary warning over election fraud claims, Globe and Mail, January 3, 2021; Ashton Carter, Dick Cheney, William Cohen, Mark Esper, Robert Gates, Chuck Hagel, James Mattis, Leon Panetta, William Perry and Donald Rumsfeld, All 10 living former defense secretaries: Involving the military in election disputes would cross into dangerous territory, Washington Post, January 3, 2021; America’s former defence secretaries sound the alarm over Trump: The president’s desperate effort to overturn the election raises fears that he will try to suborn the armed forces, The Economist, January 4, 2021.

[98] Eric Sigurdson, Democracies under threat: Inclusive economies and (economic and political) institutions go hand-in-hand with a stable democracy – a way forward, Sigurdson Post, February 26, 2021.

[99] Eric Sigurdson, Democracies under threat: Inclusive economies and (economic and political) institutions go hand-in-hand with a stable democracy – a way forward, Sigurdson Post, February 26, 2021.

[100] Robert Reich, The System: Who Rigged It, How We Fix It, Knopf, 2020; Robert Reich, Saving Capitalism: For the Many, Not the Few, Vintage, 2016.

[101] Sarah Repucci and Amy Slipowitz, Freedom in the World 2022: The Global Expansion of Authoritarian Rule, Freedom House, 2022.

[102] Andrew Ross Sorkin, Business makes the case for a post-Trump reset, New York Times, January 19, 2021.

[103] Eric Sigurdson, Democracies under threat: Inclusive economies and (economic and political) institutions go hand-in-hand with a stable democracy – a way forward, Sigurdson Post, February 26, 2021.

[104] Joseph E. Stiglitz, The American Economy is Rigged: And what we can do about it, Scientific American, November 1, 2018.

[105] Zack Beauchamp, It happened there: how democracy died in Hungary: A new kind of authoritarianism is taking root in Europe – and there are warning signs for America, Vox, September 13, 2018. Also see, Aziz Huq, This is how democratic backsliding begins: Coups are out. The erosion of the rule of law more typically occurs through the curbing of watchdog agencies, Vox, May 15, 2017.

[106] Sarah Repucci and Amy Slipowitz, Freedom in the World 2022: The Global Expansion of Authoritarian Rule, Freedom House, 2022. Also see, Eric Sigurdson, Democracies under threat: Inclusive economies and (economic and political) institutions go hand-in-hand with a stable democracy – a way forward, Sigurdson Post, February 26, 2021; Eric Sigurdson, The Decline of the Rule of Law: Experiencing the Unimaginable in Western Society – the impact of economic and social inequality in the 21^st century, Sigurdson Post, April 26, 2020.

[107] Under Pressure: The Squeezed Middle Class, Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), OECD Publishing, 2019.

[108] Maurizio Valsania, Political rage: America survived a decade of anger in the 18^th century – but can it now?, The Conversation, December 3, 2021.

[109] Dambisa Moyo, Why the survival of democracy depends on a strong middle-class, Globe and Mail, April 20, 2018. Also see, Eric Sigurdson, Corporate Strategy and Geopolitical Risk in a G-Zero World: Inequality, Polarized Democracies, and the shifting economic and political landscape, Sigurdson Post, May 31, 2018; Eric Sigurdson, Democracies under threat: Inclusive economies and (economic and political) institutions go hand-in-hand with a stable democracy – a way forward, Sigurdson Post, February 26, 2021.

[110] Mark Cohen, Democratic Degradation Is Law’s Ultimate Disrupter, Forbes, August 17, 2022.

[111] Eric Sigurdson, A Toxic Brew: The Politicization of the Rule of Law and Judicial Independence, Sigurdson Post, September 30, 2018.

[112] Eric Levitz, House GOP Admits It Opposes Democracy, Not Voter Fraud, Intelligencer (nymag.com), January 4, 2021.

[113] Eric Sigurdson, Democracies under threat: Inclusive economies and (economic and political) institutions go hand-in-hand with a stable democracy – a way forward, Sigurdson Post, February 26, 2021.

[114] Tim Hanstad, Trust is the glue of a healthy society. Here’s how to bring it back, World Economic Forum, December 17, 2020. Also see, Trust in Government: Assessing the Evidence, Understanding the Policies, 47^th Session of the Public Governance Committee, OECD Conference Center, Paris, France, April 25-26, 2013; Investing in Trust: Leveraging Institutions for Inclusive Policy Making, OECD, 2013; The Framework for Policy Action on Inclusive Growth, Meeting of the OECD Council at Ministerial Level, OECD, 2018; Lisa Kimmel, Canada’s unprecedented trust gap: Who will build the bridge for a country divided?, Globe and Mail, February 14, 2019. See generally, Yuval Noah Harari, The world after coronavirus: This storm will pass. But the choices we make now could change our lives for years to come, Financial Times, March 20, 2020.

[115] Eric Sigurdson, Democracies under threat: Inclusive economies and (economic and political) institutions go hand-in-hand with a stable democracy – a way forward, Sigurdson Post, February 26, 2021.

[116] Mark Cohen, Democratic Degradation Is Law’s Ultimate Disrupter, Forbes, August 17, 2022.

[117] 2019 Edelman Trust Barometer: Global Report, Edelman.com, 2019; Lisa Kimmel, Canada’s unprecedented trust gap: Who will build the bridge for a country divided?, Globe and Mail, February 14, 2019.

[118] Wayne Swan, Tax avoidance impoverishes us all. Fighting it requires challenging the powerful, Guardian, January 11, 2016.

[119] Eric Sigurdson, Democracies under threat: Inclusive economies and (economic and political) institutions go hand-in-hand with a stable democracy – a way forward, Sigurdson Post, February 26, 2021.