They want freedom for themselves. They're free to impose their will on others without judgement. That's the purpose.
Things started to make more sense to me once I realized that by nature, human beings hate freedom and love tyranny. Once you accept this, it all falls in place. Deporting citizens to foreign prisons? Sounds great. Incoherent foreign and economic policy? Love it. Freedom of the press? Who needs it! Destruction of democracy? Own the libs! Legalize bribery of foreign officials? Even the playing field! And finally, words don’t need to mean anything because they are simply evocations intended to stir up certain emotions. They are more akin to a hunter’s duck call. The hunter doesn’t speak duck and doesn’t care whether that sounds he’s making have any meaning, he simply makes noise and looks for a result. Not getting the desired result? Just change the noise a little.
This is why democracy will eventually fail and autocracy will rise in its place. And no one will ever learn.
We can read history, but it's nothing compared to actually living through it. And I think most American voters don't know their history, and don't bother to inform themselves either, which makes things much worse.
Combine that with the lessons kids are learning that they are legitimately unique and special, and anyone who makes them feel bad is just wrong, and here we are.
Or maybe I'm just the old man shouting at clouds now. Who knows.
I really think the world is too complex for most people and they outsource their critical thinking to the group they chose to join or even were born into.
I don’t think it’s a modern problem. Religion formed enormous safe spaces for incurious people before they ran into new peers via the internet.
Basically, young people haven't lived through anything and are very willing to give up democracy.
Turns out Apple watches can change and stabilize such autocracies.