Human Nature

[Ivan Denisovich]

If I recall correctly it was food that played big role in overthrowing Louis XVI and Tsar. It would indicate that people are willing to tolerate much as long as they're fed. Other than that I imagine populace reason for not standing up to tyranny are as varied as populaces itself.

Good old bread and circuses. 

You probably know the old joke about the Soviet Union --- if they had had two Communist Parties, a Red Team and a Blue Team, they'd still be in power. 

Half the populace would blame the Red Team and imagine that the Blue Team wanted to save them. And the other half would believe the reverse. Then the two parties could switch in and out of office every few years, and people would imagine it's not really a tyranny.

Joke hits too close as many Poles acts as if they would have only 2 parties to choose from.

That's what I see when people blame everything on one party, and refuse to accept criticism of the other.

It can happen when politics becomes part of one personality. As far as I am concerned politicians are like cleaning service - they're doing specific job for agreed upon pay and if they fuck up then they should be dropped without sentimentality getting in a way.