History does not repeat itself, but it rhymes, and there is a reason for this: Humans are capable of learning, and as such we avoid repetition. However, we are always influenced by incentives, and have for this reason a tendency to fall into error of similar nature.
This means that we can only make general predictions about the future. The fact that a certain sequence of events led to a certain outcome in the past does not guarantee that it will happen again if repeated. Chances are that we will get something similar, but distinctly different in style. There's simply no way to completely control society.
Riots that took place in Germany in the 1920s led to Nazi Germany. Riots in the US today are likely to produce something entirely different. That we will see changes are all but certain, but it's very unlikely that those changes will be anything like what happened in Germany 100 years ago.
It's not even certain that we will get political chaos. If the intent is to provoke chaos in order to profit from it pragmatically as things unravel, sponsors and instigators may be sorely disappointed. They may even be found out, in which case we'll have something that rhymes better with first French republic events than late Weimar republic events.
Either way, history will unfold in new and unpredictable ways. While some things may be near certain, such as the collapse of the current political and economic world order, other things are completely open and best kept at a distance. Our best option is to focus on the well being of ourselves and our nearest and dearest. Our quiet and sustainable revolution can roll on as the old establishment burns.
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| Execution of Robespierre |
By Unknown author - This image comes from Gallica Digital Library and is available under the digital ID btv1b6950750j, Public Domain, Link
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