George Orwell was only

[hyphenate]

off by 22 years. Doublespeak, being watched by Big Brother and all the rest of the cautionary tales of "1984" and there you have it. Talk about a psychic seeing the future--I wonder how Orwell felt about being so astute?

[CrazyOrangeCat]

1. From what I remember reading . . .

. . . twenty-five years ago, he was a very lonely, haunted man. Lived his last years in an isolated place in Scotland. Had TB.

He certainly understood the cruelty of humanity.

[omega minimo]

2. Not at all

This started with Reagan.

Orwell was spot on.

[Squeech]

5. Plenty of blame to go around

The surveillance state was already in effect when he wrote the book; J. Edgar Hoover was spying on Americans for political blackmail.

Nixon was probably the first president to compile an explicit enemies list and unleash the federal bureaucracy against them. As an old Red-baiter, he also knew the political benefits of two minutes hate type propaganda campaigns.

Early in his term, Reagan allowed politics and ideology to dictate policy-- tax cuts for the coupon-clipping class, covert action against Iran and Nicaragua, expensive saber-rattling aimed at the so-called Evil Empire (benefiting the military-industrial complex), etc. But he wasn't too blinkered to change course.

The really unprecedented feature of BushCo is their determination to ignore the facts. When we begin bombing Tehran, Rummy will confidently assert that we have always been at war with Eurasia, and Iraq and Saddam will just spin down the memory hole, as Al Qaeda and Osama have already. When America's inner cities erupt in bread riots, the headlines will all be about the Dow kicking ass (in inflated dollars).

And we'll all be in Room 101-- which reminds me, Republicans have been objectively pro-atrocity since Henry Kissinger.

[tatertop]

6. Rummy will confidently assert that we have always been at war with Eurasia

Yes he will. And dumbmericans will come to remember it just that way.

[omega minimo]

7. The US never diverged from the course Reagan set

"But he wasn't too blinkered to change course."

...and the Memory Hole was instituted with his role in the White House.

...which leads directly to:

"The really unprecedented feature of BushCo is their determination to ignore the facts."

Too many folks apparently think only in terms of Big Brother and his policies and not enough about the effects BB's BS has on the public. Orwell wrote about THAT.

[PassingFair]

3. Just came across this while cleaning my desk....

"In a time of universal deceit; telling the truth is a revolutionarly act.

--Geo. Orwell

[pretzel4gore]

4. read 'Burmese Days'....

Sir George sure knew the freeper mentality

[tabasco]

8. I still have to read Animal Farm.

Orwell was apparently a brilliant man.