Excerpts: “Through seemingly inconsequential acts of hate, our discourse becomes imperceptibly degraded and our prejudices become part of everyday reality. Ignorance calcifies as if it were the natural order of things. Hateful beliefs spread, increasing the potential for more harmful speech and even outright violence going forward” (p.43).

“Facebook, Twitter, and other social media platforms are weapons of mass disinformation that in a single stroke can infect billions with the virus of hate. These companies serve as super-spreaders of intolerance, achieving reach and scale beyond any previous platform in the history of humanity” (p.91).

“Conspiracy theories go beyond morally reprehensible; they are deeply dangerous. They help radicalize individuals and inspire them to perpetrate acts of violence. At the broadest level, they also erode trust in society and in democracy, catapulting people into a fractured ‘post-fact’ world in which individuals not only can’t agree on policy issues but can barely find common ground on what’s true and false” (p.98).

“We can all get in the habit of questioning our beliefs rather than following them blindly. A resurgence of pragmatism and intellectual honesty would go a long way toward creating a post-hate society” (p.171).

“One survey found that only about a quarter of Americans could name the three branches of government (legislative, judicial, and executive). This lack of knowledge makes our political system vulnerable to forces that would twist democracy into tyranny” (p.181).

Greenblatt, Jonathan (2022). It Could Happen Here: Why America Is Tipping from Hate to the Unthinkable–And How We Can Stop It. New York: HarperCollins Publishers.