See, that's the thing. If they were doing this, could we even tell in advance? Who pays attention to passport and visa controls? Immigration policy and border controls? How food gets priced and distributed. How the police are armed and trained to use those weapons.
How populations can be manipulated to basically "eat themselves".
One of the things about studying Civil Wars is that you come across the 30-30-40 rule of thumb. It basically goes:
40% of a population NEVER votes or participates in civic life. They are the "silent majority" every politician claims to represent.
This is a good thing because these people are who keeps it all going. They do their jobs, raise their kids, pay taxes and complain about it, and just want to be left alone.
Controlling them and the wealth they generate is what the other 60% fight over.
It takes about 30% to gain control over a society. Civil Wars happen when the 60% polarizes into 30/30 splits.
The difference between successful Civil Wars and ones that fail?
In successful ones, the winning 30% kills the other 30%. Depopulation by about 30% is the hallmark of Civil Wars and Revolutions that stabilize and go on to become "legitimate" governments.
It's about American Mythology
