The Brink - of Totalitarianism?

"In an ever-changing, incomprehensible world the masses had reached the point where they would, at the same time, believe everything and nothing, think that everything was possible and nothing was true… The totalitarian mass leaders based their propaganda on the correct psychological assumption that, under such conditions, one could make people believe the most fantastic statements one day, and trust that if the next day they were given irrefutable proof of their falsehood, they would take refuge in cynicism; instead of deserting the leaders who had lied to them, they would protest that they had known all along that the statement was a lie and would admire the leaders for their superior tactical cleverness" - "The Origins of Totalitarianism". Hannah Arendt

http://www.openculture.com/2017/01/hannah-arendt-explains-how-propaganda-uses-lies-to-erode-all-truth-morality.html

Hannah Arendt, (1906 - 1975), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hannah_Arendt published this in 1951. 

She escaped from Europe in the Holocaust & her publications & theories were a direct result of her experience as a Jewess. She described herself as a Political Theorist. What she has to say reflects on the rise of Nazism, Racism & Fascism. But it is remarkably prescient & entirely relevant to what is happening now all over the world, but particularly in the rise of the "Populism" movement.

You could argue that the world today is much more incomprehensible & polarised. Political Truth is actually "alternative truth", propaganda & lies. We could be on the brink of Totalitarianism if we don't exercise our huge brain power, looking for reliable evidence & really thinking for ourselves.

Even if we do that it requires courage to "Tell Truth to Power" & deal with the consequences.