I used to claim the same thing about Roe v. Wade. I remembered even in 2016 I thought, as bad as things looked, it was impossible for Roe v Wade to seriously be under threat.

I typically think I'm a fairly cynical, pessimistic person, but the last 5 years or so has taught me that I'm not nearly cynical and pessimistic enough.

When you look at the history of fascists take overs, it's usually done clumsily by a bunch of goons and thugs. It doesn't take brilliant political strategy to undermine democracy, and democracy is far more fragile than most of us are willing to believe.