Political commentators often refer to the wave of populism that has engulfed many of the world’s democracies as ‘Post Truth Politics’. The general definition of this suggests that political decisions in voting and selecting of candidates is now more related to emotional or purely ideological impulses than rational selection based on policies and economics.
Is this in reality anything new and was there ever a time when political pragmatism really influenced the mass of the electorate? Was telling the truth ever more important than getting elected and are truth and political ideology ever compatible?
"Truth": this is another of mankind's malleable code-words for an idea or perhaps inkling that might work effectively in a holistically perceived reality of our world. "Truth" is an idea meant to carry its bearer forward in time to some success, however defined by its user. Its value resides only in our assessment of the "honesty", "veracity", "believableness" and "likableness" [as in like-mindedness] of the person(s)/group(s) we are hearing/reading/witnessing statements made by and, therefore, must accept or refuse as input to our own worldly self-centered assessments or reality in real-time. Fiction novelists have published stories speculating on what might happen to a society IF unfoolable Lie Detectors were used in Courtrooms. Interesting! Then, of course, there's "Anthropotelemetry: Dr. Schwitzzgebel's Machine" HARVARD LAW REVIEW 80: 404-421 (December 1966) nowadays soon to be introduced since technology has advanced so much! Very interesting! I discuss some of this in my first book of 2018--see attached cover-art.
I'm fairly cynical when it comes to politics. The way I have interpreted the term "post truth" is more akin to "post everyone being constrained to believe in the politically correct narrative, truisms, orthodoxy, formulae, of the self appointed elite BSers."
What is "truth," in politics, other than what the politicians claim it is? What gives politicians, or news reporters, the right to claim that political ideas nowadays can be untruthful, just because they go counter to their mantra?
I'll grant that Trump's way of playing fast and loose with the details will lend credence to such self-serving terms as "post truth." But the phony nature of the term becomes obvious when the naysayers seem unable to get beyond minor errors in Trump's ability to get the ultimate decimal fractions exactly right, and get stuck there. Never addressing the main points. Perhaps, they don't even understand the main points?
Enfin bref, "post truth" is a term that can only be used by those self-important individuals who think they have the corner on "truth." Reminiscent of religious fundamentalism. (The press has been unable to get over the idea that the majority of people might feel they are full of you know what.)
A.M. Another way to look at Trump: his Tweets and actions are serving to educate citizens as to the true nature of the USA's professional politicians and their co-conspirators (parasites)! That may not be his actual motivation, but it certainly--as you state--is educative for the American public. Euros have long had much disrespect and doubts about their weaselly politician-overlords, Americans still seem far more gullible, possibly because our Public School system actually promotes "factual" cupidity and incomplete thinking of important matters of life and death.
La définition de la vérité en politique est plus une question pragmatique qu'une question théorique. En fait, la vérité en politique dépend du contexte historique, social et culturel. Nous vivons, à notre époque de globalisation, une période complètement neuve, où toutes les anciennes vérités sont mises en question et doivent l'être. La question de l'immigration, qui, entre autres, est à la base du populisme dans la plupart des pays européens, relève justement de ce nouveau contexte de la globalisation. Parmi les problèmes soulevés : tous les humains sont-ils véritablement égaux en dignité ou non ? Si oui, pourquoi les immigrants "pauvres" ou "pas instruits, pas formés" sont rejetés alors que les riches et ceux qui ont une formation de spécialistes sont partout les bienvenus ?
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