[hblanks]

If you haven't read it, you may find Hannah Arendt's Origins of Totalitarianism a worthwhile read. She offers a lot of analysis on the rise of a classless society, paired with a deep sort of aimlessness in state leadership.

It doesn't end well.

[killjoywashere]

If you like Arendt, check out Snyder's On Tyranny and Mesquita's The Dictator's Handbook.

[dredmorbius]

Snyder's "Politics and Prose" talk is up on YouTube. Recommended.