The Overton Window, named after policy analyst Joseph Overton who developed the concept in the 1990s, describes the range of ideas and policies that are politically acceptable to the mainstream public at any given time. It distinguishes between ideas that are within the window of legitimate political discourse and those outside it that are considered too radical, extreme, or unthinkable to receive serious consideration regardless of their merits. The window is not static but moves over time as cultural norms shift, making ideas that were once unthinkable gradually acceptable and eventually mainstream consensus, while ideas that were once mainstream consensus...