As someone who has dedicated much of my life to the study of history, and as someone who acknowledges that changes are constantly taking place, I offer the following observations. Our country is currently experiencing turmoil eerily reminiscent of developments in other countries in dark times. Power-hungry forces have all too frequently generated movements categorized as “cultural revolutions.” Totalitarian regimes have prospered in the face of weakness. China in the days of Mao Tse-tung comes immediately to mind, but the USSR and Nazi Germany, among others, have had their own versions. A brief survey of these cultural revolutions reveals some remarkable, relatively common characteristics that can be instructive. They conduct purges of social and political leaders and look to install their own, all the while claiming they are doing it for the good of the people. They disparage and harass influential cultural figures and members of the regime they despise. …