The influential British historian Niall Ferguson is the sort of polymath intellectual prone to painting historical narratives with broad-brush strokes. Still, as Ferguson points out, “For most of human history, life has been hierarchical. But “order” was restored with a new hierarchical “balance of power” between a “pentarchy” of five great powers — Britain, France, Germany, Russia and Austria — after Waterloo. Complementing Ferguson’s big-theme tour d’horizon are profiles of private networks whom conspiracy theorists believe were secretly pulling the strings behind the scenes. But it bears consideration given current concerns with issues such as the interference in elections by state and non-state cyber bullies.

Source: thestar January 26, 2018 11:26 UTC