Trend Watch

Brennan: Your 'Kakistocracy' is Collapsing

Former CIA Director drives lookups 13,700%

Kakistocracy was among our top lookups on April 13th, 2018, rising 13,700% after its appearance in a tweet by former CIA Director John O. Brennan.

The word is pronounced \kak-uh-STAH-kruh-see\, and means “government by the worst people.” The plural form is kakistocracies. Our earliest evidence for its use comes from 1644, when it was used by Paul Gosnold to warn about transforming “our well-temperd Monarchy into a mad kinde of Kakistocracy.” Following this the word had a period of relative inactivity, and reappeared in the early 19th century.

Whether this partakes more of an aristocracy, or caucocracy, or rather Kakistocracy, is a problem, in the solution of which, he may find some amusement and employment of his genius.
The Weekly Aurora, (Philadelphia, PA), 31 Oct. 1815


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