Hinge Events

Description

Peter Bergen:

"Hinge events change the way people understand their world-- and their concept of what leaders and institutions should do to keep their country secure. In the US, out of the vast suffering of the Great Depression, for example, came the reforms of the New Deal, including Social Security, the Fair Labor Standards Act, banking reforms, rural electrification and crop insurance, all of which remade the nation.

Globally, that economic collapse also played a key role in the rise of fascism and the Nazi Party, whose aggressive political vision led to World War II and the death of an estimated 60 million people.

Yet, out of the ashes of that devastating conflict arose the "rules-based international order" and the creation of new organizations, such as the United Nations, the International Monetary Fund and NATO, a new alliance of mutual protection." (https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/07/opinions/the-future-normal-hinge-event-bergen-rothenberg/index.html?)