Peterson Defines Totalitarian State as Universal Lying Rather Than Top-Down Oppression

What was said

"A totalitarian state isn't run by psychopathic thugs. A totalitarian state is the state that exists when every single person in the society lies to themselves and everyone else, including those they love, about absolutely everything they think, say, and do. And the more comprehensive that grip, the more thorough the totalitarian state."

Peterson redefines totalitarianism not as a political structure imposed by elites but as a condition created when every citizen participates in comprehensive self-deception and deception of others. He argues that when lying becomes universal, including to loved ones, no atrocity is beyond the population's capability. This shifts moral responsibility from regime leaders to individual participants who maintain the lie.