Everyone is too happy around this guy

[u/Dismal-Display-370]

[u/Lordquas187]

Romania is the first country I traveled to outside of the US and I had zero comprehension of its history until I got there. The whole revolution story fascinated me, particularly with how modern it felt, being that you can watch Youtube videos of battles where dudes in sick 1990s outfits were smoking cigarettes while shooting AKs. How did it feel when you found out he was killed? Was there some sort of electric energy running through the country or was it a feel more like being in shock and realizing that it was time to start trying to piece the country back together?

[u/Sea-Cap-1540 → u/Lordquas187]

I did not live in Bucharest

In my city, it was quiet ( no shootings )

December 1989 the Berlin wall was already down, Poland started reforms, Hungary was in full change. I was lucky to see Hungarian TV since I lived near the border with Hungary and I speak Hungarian, too. They showed what was happening in Eastern Europe and we were praying for soemthing to happen.

December 16th came and in Timisoara started an uprising. Pastor Tokes was suposed to be evacuated ( or something like that ) and people garthered to protect him Police and army intervened, then more people came out. Nothing was said in the state news about this. We heard on the Hungarian TV and there was a radio station in Germany called "Free Europe" who broadcasted in Romanian, too and they were also talking about this.

On Dec 21, Ceausescu organized a meeting in the palace square to condemn the "fascists" elements who whated to destabilize the country.

I was grade 12. I remember like it was yesterday. I was on my knees in front of the tv because we all hoped that Timisoara was the spark. My parents were behind me and talking about change.

Than in the back pf the crowd some screams were heard. This was live tv. ( it is on the net ) They stopped the live transmission. After like 10 minutes, they resumed the transmission. But there was a BIG change.

All the "we love the communist and socialist Party and Ceausescu" panels were gone. In the crowd there were only few Romanian flags. Thise flags had the Socialist country ( sorry I do mot know the proper name of it in English ) emblem cut out from the yellow area of the flag.

It gave us BIG hopes. My mom was crying behind me.

Then it started, the secret service took Ceausescu from the balcony and then the revolution started.

In like 2 days the dicattors were gone.

....but their close politicians still stayed in the power... But they had no choice but to change the system, not because they wanted to, but because it already happened in the rest of the communist countries, because the Soviets approved it.

When I tell people here in North America that the food stores had norhimg in them... they do not understand it. They thing we had food but garbage. They do not understand that nothing in a food store was empty shelves. Only those understand this who came from similar countries.

Whenever I read about...this and that ( politicians in the Western world ) is fascist or communist ... I just lol.

Just in this thread, oh "Trump will be that"... No...he will not be that... He can not be because the system does not allow it. I do not like Trump, I am in Canada now, and we have issues with his policies and border economy.

To say trump is a dictator is disgenerous to those who eacaped dictatorships or live in such countries.

Or when I see that people in the Western world idolize communism or socialism... Like ...why?...stupidity? Plus anyone who disagrees is a fascist like Ceausescu said about the revolutionaries ( or communist if we look from the other extreme ) ( some confuse social democracy like in Western Europe with socialism...but many just love socialism, the economic system)

Ok..I wrote a lot..sorry All the best.

[u/Both-Subject-3674 → u/Sea-Cap-1540]

"No...he will not be that..."

I couldn't disagree more. Dictators come in many flavors, and a silent coup is still a coup. Worse than an overnight coup, is one that is done gradually over 10-15 years so that people are worn down and do not notice it has happened until it is too late. Even today it was announced that Hegseth has removed even more military leadership. Why? Why now? The timing (right before midterm elections that could make Trump a lame duck) is too perfect to be coincidence. They are preparing something. And hand-waving it by saying "it couldn't happen here" is exactly what will allow it to happen here.

You told us that you were in 12th grade when Ceausescu was killed. This means you were probably too young to be paying attention when he tightened his grip on power and turned fully authoritarian, but you can't ignore the parallels.

_____ built a secret police force

_____ instituted/extended mass surveillance

_____ built a cult of personality

_____ destroyed foreign relations

_____ ballooned the national debt

_____ mismanaged the economy and blundered multiple oil deals

_____ controlled the media and fought to destroy the free press

Now -- who am I talking about here? Ceausescu or Trump?

They have done all the same things, but one happened in a small country where people had very little to lose at the end and finally revolted, the other in the richest country on earth, where people still struggle to pay their bills, but haven't hit rock bottom en mass yet, and where difficulty and cost of travel prevents most mass civil protest from reaching a sustained fever pitch like in other countries.

So it is 100% happening. And to deny it or dismiss it is just plain foolish in my view.

[u/Motor_Ad_7103 → u/Both-Subject-3674]

i 100% agree with you!