No, because I already know AA's opinion as it was forming. I get the argument, but he takes it too far and asserts that there is never populism. Honestly, if that were the case, Democracy as a weapon wouldn't even be used as a method of control. It's pretty clear that if politicians are panicking over twitter spats, manipulating the general sentiment is a big deal. Losing control of it means losing power.
Fundamentally: power is illusory. It only works when people agree to let it work. As such, manipulating sentiment is a critical component to any tyranny.
No, because I already know AA's opinion as it was forming. I get the argument, but he takes it too far and asserts that there is never populism. Honestly, if that were the case, Democracy as a weapon wouldn't even be used as a method of control. It's pretty clear that if politicians are panicking over twitter spats, manipulating the general sentiment is a big deal. Losing control of it means losing power.
Fundamentally: power is illusory. It only works when people agree to let it work. As such, manipulating sentiment is a critical component to any tyranny.