On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century

The author embraces the ideology of Larken Rose; that tyranny happens when people stand by and do nothing about injustice or oppression. He repeatedly used examples of 2016 presidential campaign deception, while glibly pointing to an earlier President's propagandistic reference to NWO objectives which he takes out of context. He clearly has a party leaning in his views and fails in his treatise to observe his own failures at seeking factual information. Truth in, on or around politics? “It would wreck the very foundation on which our political government is run ... If you ever injected truth into politics you'd have no politics … Even the ministers are denouncing it now … Humanity is not yet ready for either real truth or real harmony.”-Will Rogers There's several proverbs about Truth; "Tell the Truth and people will bash in your head", Tell the Truth and run!" “Tell the truth and you stand alone.” Mine is, "If you intend on standing up in defense of Truth, you better be prepared to be chopped at the knees." The Truth in American politics is that we have never had a President who did not have tyrannical leanings. While the author intends well, much of his admonition is unwise. More insight into the prevention of Tyranny can be had in Eric Hoffer's The True Believer, (mass movements are the seedbed of mass tyranny) and Elias Canetti's Crowds and Power. The main thing the author does not grasp is that no government of any form avoids descent into tyranny. The Antifederalist Jackson Main wrote: "Taxation is the necessary instrument of tyranny. There is no tyranny without it." The most fundamental purpose of taxes in any government is support of a full-time military. Bertrand de Jouvenel said: “[Democracy] Conceived as the foundation of liberty, it paves the way for tyranny. Born for the purpose of standing as a bulwark against Power, it ends by providing Power with the finest soil it has ever had in which to spread itself over the social field.” The root of tyranny lies in everyone's heart who has the notion, "There ought to be a law..." Tyranny is inevitable when humanity is characteristic of 2 of 3 tendencies: 1)Be told what to do, 2)Tell others what to do, 3)Leave others alone, pursuing a path of self-governance.

I’m honestly exhausted with the recent political climate, as I think many of us are. This book has short, to the point chapters for people (like me) who want to DO something, but may not have the time to read long extensive books, or be having trouble concentrating due to anxiety. Resistance comes in many forms, and this book helped me take steps.

Prof. Snyder's professional experience has taken him deep into the history of 20th century European fascist movements. As he accurately points out, again and again, the parallels between those movements and the movements of our time are striking. Specific enough for every contemporary American to get the message; universal enough to be timeless. 5/5 stars.

Fantastic introduction to authoritarianism and what to be on the look-out for in our current political climate. Snyder draws parallels from history but let’s the reader decide what they’ll make of it… challenges the individual to action and is a clear guide for what seems, sadly, too relevant to today.

Clearly written about the subtle Democracy's slide into a fascist state; it is happening with this administration. He explains how other Democracy's turned into fascist states and what every American citizen should be on the lookout for; clear everyday examples and historical examples make this a hell of a must read. Read it and give it to a friend or even a nice stranger.