January 6th was America's Beer Hall Putsch.

1/ Hitler's Nazi Party, just four years old, attempted a coup d'état in 1923. Hitler was inspired by the successful fascist insurrection in Italy the year before. That same night Jews living in Munich were attacked in hate crimes.

2/ The coup failed and Hitler was arrested. The trial the next year was expected to bring an end to the Nazi Party. Instead, sensationalist covering by the media increased Hitler's audience and he used his trial to give a speech, much of which he reproduced in "Mein Kampf".

3/ The prosecutor and judge at Hitler's trial were sympathetic towards him. He was found guilty of treason but wasn't deported back to Austria. He received a light sentence, went to prison, was out in nine months. Eight years later the Nazi Party won and Hitler became Chancellor.

4/ What began with the Beer Hall Putsch culminated in WWII sixteen years later b/c Germany allowed a party led by a white supremacist/convicted insurrectionist to run for election. Let's see how America compares to Germany now that it too suffered a failed white supremacist coup.

5/ Party relentlessly undermining the democratic process allowed to participate in the government formed through a democratic election, check. Media sensationalizing the aspiring dictator and his virulent racist movement, check. Failed coup, check.

6/ Allowing sympathizers to determine the conviction of the would-be dictator, check. And by sympathizers I mean members of his own party in which his popularity is rising who, bar possibly five, openly signalled ahead already that they won't convict.

7/ Democrats, fearful and weak from a position of power as usual, are already surrendering to that outcome. So, politicians that still stand for democracy are grossly underestimating the threat to it, check. For a preview of how that will very likely turn out, see history.

8/ So that's the checks. Are they red flags that signal the end of American democracy? They could be if Democrats don't stop trying to reach out to the viper thinking it will act in good faith too and not bite, rather than inoculate democracy against its poison.

9/ That poison has already spread to the point where senators who, based on the lie of election fraud which they themselves perpetuated and which led to the violent attempt to overthrow the government, openly object to certifying a lawful electoral victory, and are not expelled.

10/ House members who also spread the election fraud lie that resulted in 1/3 of Americans believing that lie and who also opposed the election results, are seated in Congress without consequences. I need not warn this is reckless endangerment of democracy, except it seems I do.