Online Discussion

"Post Truth"

This is very good task that expand our mental horizon. Unconsciously we always aware about "post-truth", but we never attempt to think in a deep way. This task provide us that opportunity.

" post-truth" which become the word of 2016 by Oxford dictionary is very much relevant to our time. Politics has had always a close relationship with lies. Politics and truth can not go well together. Political leaders alway convince us through their cob-web of lies. And the people emotionally drown by their speeches. People are merely puppet in the hands of politician. 

As US and UK wake up to this new era, it's worth noting that the world's largest democracy 'India' has been living in a post truth world for years. From education to health care and economy India can be considered a world leader in post-truth. Elections of Narendra modi in 2014 can be as a significant inflection point. He has such speech power that he can easily captured the minds of people. 

The dichotomy of India's current post truth experience was nicely summed up by 'Arun shourie' an influential former minister from modi's own party. He disagrees with the prime minister just as many Republicans share sharp difference of opinion with president Trump.

Modi's government has shown how key decision can be completely divorced from the everyday lives of Indian citizens, but spun to seem like they have been made for their benefit. 

'Harold Pinter' in his Nobel prize in literature lecture in 2005 spoke on "Art, truth and politics" and argued " The majority of politician on the evidence available to us are interested not in truth but in power and in the maintenance of that power. To maintain that power it is essential that people remain in ignorance, that they live in ignorance of the truth. Even the truth of their own lives what surrounds us therefore is a vast tapestry of lies, upon which we feed." So the fundamental thing in politics is people should remain in ignorance of truth. 

In contrast there was Gandhi for whom politics was primarily defined through truth. Gandhi also showed how a fundamental engagement with truth could lead to profound political action. This engagement with truth and politics was very much a part of the freedom movement in India. And also of early stage of politics in our country. 

A report by an advertising agency with inputs from the US, UK and India in 2012 found that 72% in these three countries agreed that truth was hard to find in politics these days. 

In 1967 the philosopher 'Hannah Arendt' wrote an influential essay in the new Yorker titled "Truth and politics" she powerfully articulated the problem in the following manner " No one has ever doubted that truth and politics are on rather bad terms with each other, and no one as far as I know has ever counted truthfulness. Among the political virtues. It may be in the nature of the political realm to be at war with truth in all it's forms". 

The word post-truth become the word of year because of the election of Donald trump and according to fact checking website politifact as much as 70% of his statements were false or mostly false.

Truth can be created by repetition of lies for example in t.v advertising one ade repeated constantly, so people are convinced that this is true, though it is not true. 

So what really is the problem between politics and truth today? Is truth really anathema to politics? Perhaps politics has nothing to do with truth. The main purpose of politics seems to be only to convince others. 

Our fight gets out of control because we make it a fight about two opposite truths and not about two opposite opinion.

So, this are my findings from various websites about post-truth.