This is very good work. Thank you.

Accepting that there is no basis for unquestioned authority at any level is anathema to most of civilization's favorite tools.

All it seems to take to establish authority, even at the lowest level, is a uniform (real or imaginary). Every abusive parent puts on an imaginary uniform of "righteousness". Every level of authority fits into its own idea of that uniform. "Power corrupts."

We don't need the rest of that aphorism. We need to recognize where power is acting and teach children to be wary of it in all (uni)forms.