Parallels can be drawn but this was an allegory, probably quasi-historical event that got exaggerated or otherwise embellished by a good storyteller, for political loyalty tests the likes of which are common throughout history. It's not much different thant the story of the Emperor's New Clothes in a sense but they point at different aspects of the similar issue that people will believe that which they know to be false if there is a good reason to.

Should be noted the idiom is not at all common in modern Japanese but the Japanese word for idiot (馬鹿) is itself derived from the idiom.

The modern trans movement shares some elements in the sense it is used as a political loyalty and litmus test, but the dynamics are a bit different imho. I think the modern American political landscape works more like a religious movement (or rather a pair of them) and the adherents are constantly trying to out maneuver others in their movement to show who is the "most pious", trans issues once they got noticed in this, the culture war as it were, get incorporated into the creed.

The right in the US has similar issues with demanding ideological feality in certain ways but doesn't seem quite as strong at the moment. Though recently I made the mistake of mentioning to someone in an argument recently that "The Bible is not a recognized legal document in US courts." which set off a stupid argument and a number of mea culpas from my opponent as they prostrate themselves before God and continued to chant that the US legal system was based off of the Bible, which wasn't the argument, nor the substance of my statement.