I guess it shows that the society we thought existed, actually didn't exist.

We thought we live in a world of science, reason and kindness. Sure, not everyone is a scientist, or understands it all, but somehow we have recast the mediaeval human into someone who instinctively believes in experiments and peer reviewed papers, not pagan rites and magic.

But I think this must have actually disappeared a long time ago and we just didn't notice. There was no one combining charisma, credibility and the willingness to build support out of setting science on fire.

I'm not even really picking on the US here, I think the rest of the West is not much better.

I'm not a doomer though. I'm sure we can turn it around, or rather that we will bounce back, sooner or later. I just hope it will be a conscious effort rather than a reaction to being utterly burned, like the changes that came from the two world wars.