Decades Ago, Noted Scientist Carl Sagan Warned About a ‘Charlatan’ Who Could Come to Lead the United States

Bust of Carl Sagan

“One of the saddest lessons of history is this: If we’ve been bamboozled long enough, we tend to reject any evidence of the bamboozle. We’re no longer interested in finding out the truth. The bamboozle has captured us. It’s simply too painful to acknowledge, even to ourselves, that we’ve been taken. Once you give a charlatan power over you, you almost never get it back.”

~ Carl Sagan

There are times when something - or perhaps someone - you liked as a child turns out to mean more to you as an adult.

Such was the case with Carl Sagan. As a kid, I enjoyed Cosmos, and hearing him talk about fascinating things, particularly space. He had a distinct voice, and I found the impressions of him saying "billions and billions" hilarious. It was enjoyable to hear him talk, and always reminded me of my childhood.

But then I grew up and, at some point, kind of rediscovered Sagan long after he died. There were these incredible quotes which suggest, quite astonishingly, that he saw everything that has come to pass in our modern world, and particularly here in the United States. He spoke of the dumbing down of the country over time, that we would, without our quite fully noticing the alarming trend, slip back to mythology and unproven opinions instead of facts. Also, he said that a charlatan could come to power very easily in the United States.

Man, how right he was.

Below is a link to an article which reveals just how he warned about a charlatan rising among us who could (and as it turns out, would) come to be the leader of our now very troubled land. Highly recommended, so take a look:

Carl Sagan tried to warn us that a ‘charlatan’ leader could easily take over the U.S. by  Tod Perry   By  Upworthy Staff  Aug 26, 2025:

While astronomer Carl Sagan would likely be the first to scoff at the idea of him being a fortune teller, the man certainly had a prescient way of looking ahead during his lifetime. Sagan was the original host of “Cosmos” back in 1980 and it became the most watched show in public television history. Few…   

https://www.upworthy.com/carl-sagan-warns-of-charlatan-leader-ex1/

Carl Sagan tried to warn us that a 'charlatan' leader could easily take over the U.S. - Upworthy