Once bullied people tend to become bullies seeking retribution against an ambiguous “they” whom they redefine to fit the moment. It’s the “when you’re a hammer everything’s a nail” thing but instead of being able to have differing views its “a dangerous person or group who doesn’t see the world we see it, they must be evil and need to be stopped”.

Feels like Mao’s cultural revolution. “You are a reformer you must be evil” became “you aren’t revolutionary enough, you must be a reformer sympathizer”…