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Lesson 10: Believe in Truth
“To abandon facts is to abandon freedom. If nothing is true, then no one can criticize power, because there is no basis on which to do so. If nothing is true, then all is spectacle. The biggest wallet pays for the most blinding lights.”
Timothy Snyder, “On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons From the Twentieth Century,” 2017
Dr. Snyder mentions Victor Klemperer on numerous occasions in his book as an observer of totalitarianism. (An aside: Do you remember the sitcom Hogan’s Heroes from the late ’60’s? The commandant of the POW camp where Hogan was being held was played by Werner Klemperer, Victor Klemperer’s son). Klemperer cites four indicators or “modes” that are indicators of the decline or death of truth.
The first is “open hostility to verifiable reality.” When this book was written, Snyder had witnessed the 2016 Presidential campaign of Donald Trump. Invented truths and lies became commonplace during the campaign. Snyder noted that at one point in the campaign, an attempt was made to document his statements. Of the statements made during this period, it was found that 78% of his claims were false.
A more recent example is the claim that the 2020 Presidential Election was “rigged” before the election happened. Even in the face of overwhelming evidence that the presidential election was not rigged and after case after case alleging election fraud were ruled against, the former president continued to spread the fake news that he had been cheated in a massive election fraud.
We now have just completed four years of this “open hostility to verifiable reality,” the last example being the “rigged” election story.
Klemperer’s second indicator of the decline of Truth is the use of “shamanistic incantations” where nicknames and depictions of people are repeated ad nauseam in front of crowds and then re-broadcast to media audiences. Hitler used the new video technology to spread his message, now the medium is Social Media. This is a fascist technique used to bond the dictator to his audience. You may remember some of these: “Lyin’ Ted,” “Crooked Hillary,” “Build that Wall,” “Drain the Swamp” and “Lock her up.”
The third indicator of the dying of truth is “magical thinking.” Take Snyder’s example of the former president’s campaign claims that he was going to “cut taxes for everyone, eliminate the national debt and increase spending on social policy and national defense.” A reasoned look at that statement would tell you that these things just don’t fit together. They are “magical” or fictional. You choose the word. After WW2, Klemperer talked to a former Nazi who told him “understanding is useless, you have to have faith. I believe in the Fuhrer.”
The fourth and final indicator is “misplaced faith.” This is the “I alone have the answer,” “I alone can solve this” attitude. Don’t believe anyone else, if you want the truth, come to me. I will give it to you. The so called “Fake News” technique that works so well for autocrats.
Remember Dr. Snyder’s quote: “The biggest wallet pays for the most blinding lights.” Some of the biggest wallet’s belong to Rupert Murdoch at Fox, Christopher Ruddy at Newsmax and Robert Herring at One America News.
Cover your eyes. Keep looking for the truth.