There are many reasons to read “Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents,” by the Pulitzer Prize-winning author Isabel Wilkerson, not least of which is its meticulously researched account of how law, custom, and above all fear, have hardened “race” into a caste system as rigid as any in world history.
But a brief chapter on alpha behavior in wolf packs in the wild was eye-opening, particularly in light of the recent unpleasantness known as the Trump administration. True alphas, canine or human, lead with calm assurance and strength. Insecure or false alphas will “yell, scream, bully, or attack those beneath them into submission,” putting the entire pack (or nation) at risk.
Trump was never a true leader. Just a fool with a really big megaphone.
