Greetings good citizen, today's topic is yet another tale crafted long ago along the banks of the famous ancient river in Egypt known the world over as 'Denial'.
In a 'too clever by half' move (popular with most authors) he anagramed the current year to come up with the one used as the title of the work.
What began as a 'cautionary tale' about the masks adopted by tyrants seems to have morphed into a blueprint for the subjugation of our species via technology.
Orson Welles 'demonstration' of the public's gullibility was not lost on either Orwell or Huxley...nor should it be lost on you!
Orwell's thinly veiled 'state' was locked in a perpetual state of war, with enemy and ally switching places as needed. [unnecessarily reinforcing the gullibility of the average citizen.]
So, where am I going with this?
First ingredient is 'perpetual war'. For the first time in history good citizen we are at war with an IDEA [wherever it may be found.] Worse, the STUPID among us fail to recognize that it only takes a change in perspective and THEY go from being Patriots to Terrorists themselves! [The inference being you're either with us or against us!]
[Hard to choose whether this would be an 'Oh' or a 'Duh' moment?]
The Global War on Terror is as stupid as the guy that started it...but the none too smart public, conditioned to believe whatever they receive from the 'eye that never blinks' just went along with it!
Not EVERYBODY (obviously) but 'most people'.
Orwell's protagonist falls into the latter category but he 'learns' he's being fed a steady diet of BS due to his job as opposed to growing up knowing something is wrong with the current picture.
[Just like the majority of us today!]
The thing I want to point out good citizen is those of us that possess the knowledge that things weren't always like this are a rapidly dwindling resource. Before we hit the middle of this century there will be nobody alive that remembers we weren't always at war...and by then 1984 will be 'banned' for being 'heresy'.
So much for 'good intentions' eh?
Listen to me, here I am postulating what life will be like long after we have run 'civilization' off a cliff!
Which is to opine that Orwell's cautionary tale remains just that, cautionary because it didn't account for two other critical variables in play, overpopulation [colliding with automation] and the pending exhaustion of 'cheap, abundant energy'.
Um, in a 'they're doing it wrong' revelation, I suspect both Orwell and Huxley were of a mind that the frequent (mindless) wars fought among the 'idiot powers' were their way of combating 'overpopulation'...but millions died during WWII and we still doubled the planet's [human] population right on schedule!
Few lives have been lost [relatively speaking] in the GWOT, Hundreds of thousands have been maimed but the dead are a tiny fraction of what past wars have produced.
Thereby taxing resources at a, er, 'shocking' rate.
While the alarmists among us say we need 5 Earths to maintain our current lifestyle...[a lifestyle a majority of us would LIKE TO become accustomed to] the reality is if we don't learn how to 'eat dirt' (and keep it in our pants) we will soon overrun the 'carrying capacity' of the planet.
And again I belabor the obvious when I quibble: 'Well, not ALL of us!'
But when there's nothing to eat and you find yourself on the 'not so fussy's' menu, you won't have either the time or the energy to fight your way into the gated and well-defended compounds of the uber rich...
But once again, I digress.
The other 'parallels' of both stories that are mirrored in today's reality are the 'shadowy nature' of government and the futility of resistance.
Yes, you got that last part right. I said 'resistance is futile'.
In the end of both works the protagonist kills themself...because the alternative is wiping out every politician and their minions in existence! [Tell me, what else do you do with 'professional liars'? How would we know when they had been 'rehabilitated'? Short answer, we wouldn't.]
If you want to skewer that fact with a bit of irony, it may explain why we find ourselves stranded halfway across the galaxy on a forgotten planet, killing one another over our superstitious beliefs!
Which is to opine we already had our 'IQ's' tested and we came up short. So here we sit, 'free' to think whatever we please!
A bit humbling to consider we are so stupid we're dangerous but take a good look at what we've wrought and the 'truth of the matter' will slap you silly!
But that's just crazy talk! Almost as crazy as believeing mankind has been able to evolve enough [somewhere else] that they developed the ability to cross thousands of light years of space using GOLD of all things!
Something that by now is 'old school' but since they didn't leave any of this technology behind we ourselves remain ignorant...save that funny prayer they taught us to repeat.
"Our Father, who art in Heaven, hallowed be they name..."
Ever wonder if that place really exists? I personally can't wrap my mind around 'perpetual happiness', sounds like being lobotimized to me.
[Probably how I wound up here in the first place.]
So, 1984, a cautionary tale about the media's power to manipulate opinion and A Brave New World, a tale about eugenics and the 'search for utopia' that still exists in the fever dreams of those with too much power and their fear of losing [or worse, being held accountable for] that power!
Thanks for letting me inside your head [and remember, just because we don't see it everywhere we look it doesn't mean Big Brother ISN'T watching YOU!
Gegner
In a 'too clever by half' move (popular with most authors) he anagramed the current year to come up with the one used as the title of the work.
What began as a 'cautionary tale' about the masks adopted by tyrants seems to have morphed into a blueprint for the subjugation of our species via technology.
Orson Welles 'demonstration' of the public's gullibility was not lost on either Orwell or Huxley...nor should it be lost on you!
Orwell's thinly veiled 'state' was locked in a perpetual state of war, with enemy and ally switching places as needed. [unnecessarily reinforcing the gullibility of the average citizen.]
So, where am I going with this?
First ingredient is 'perpetual war'. For the first time in history good citizen we are at war with an IDEA [wherever it may be found.] Worse, the STUPID among us fail to recognize that it only takes a change in perspective and THEY go from being Patriots to Terrorists themselves! [The inference being you're either with us or against us!]
[Hard to choose whether this would be an 'Oh' or a 'Duh' moment?]
The Global War on Terror is as stupid as the guy that started it...but the none too smart public, conditioned to believe whatever they receive from the 'eye that never blinks' just went along with it!
Not EVERYBODY (obviously) but 'most people'.
Orwell's protagonist falls into the latter category but he 'learns' he's being fed a steady diet of BS due to his job as opposed to growing up knowing something is wrong with the current picture.
[Just like the majority of us today!]
The thing I want to point out good citizen is those of us that possess the knowledge that things weren't always like this are a rapidly dwindling resource. Before we hit the middle of this century there will be nobody alive that remembers we weren't always at war...and by then 1984 will be 'banned' for being 'heresy'.
So much for 'good intentions' eh?
Listen to me, here I am postulating what life will be like long after we have run 'civilization' off a cliff!
Which is to opine that Orwell's cautionary tale remains just that, cautionary because it didn't account for two other critical variables in play, overpopulation [colliding with automation] and the pending exhaustion of 'cheap, abundant energy'.
Um, in a 'they're doing it wrong' revelation, I suspect both Orwell and Huxley were of a mind that the frequent (mindless) wars fought among the 'idiot powers' were their way of combating 'overpopulation'...but millions died during WWII and we still doubled the planet's [human] population right on schedule!
Few lives have been lost [relatively speaking] in the GWOT, Hundreds of thousands have been maimed but the dead are a tiny fraction of what past wars have produced.
Thereby taxing resources at a, er, 'shocking' rate.
While the alarmists among us say we need 5 Earths to maintain our current lifestyle...[a lifestyle a majority of us would LIKE TO become accustomed to] the reality is if we don't learn how to 'eat dirt' (and keep it in our pants) we will soon overrun the 'carrying capacity' of the planet.
And again I belabor the obvious when I quibble: 'Well, not ALL of us!'
But when there's nothing to eat and you find yourself on the 'not so fussy's' menu, you won't have either the time or the energy to fight your way into the gated and well-defended compounds of the uber rich...
But once again, I digress.
The other 'parallels' of both stories that are mirrored in today's reality are the 'shadowy nature' of government and the futility of resistance.
Yes, you got that last part right. I said 'resistance is futile'.
In the end of both works the protagonist kills themself...because the alternative is wiping out every politician and their minions in existence! [Tell me, what else do you do with 'professional liars'? How would we know when they had been 'rehabilitated'? Short answer, we wouldn't.]
If you want to skewer that fact with a bit of irony, it may explain why we find ourselves stranded halfway across the galaxy on a forgotten planet, killing one another over our superstitious beliefs!
Which is to opine we already had our 'IQ's' tested and we came up short. So here we sit, 'free' to think whatever we please!
A bit humbling to consider we are so stupid we're dangerous but take a good look at what we've wrought and the 'truth of the matter' will slap you silly!
But that's just crazy talk! Almost as crazy as believeing mankind has been able to evolve enough [somewhere else] that they developed the ability to cross thousands of light years of space using GOLD of all things!
Something that by now is 'old school' but since they didn't leave any of this technology behind we ourselves remain ignorant...save that funny prayer they taught us to repeat.
"Our Father, who art in Heaven, hallowed be they name..."
Ever wonder if that place really exists? I personally can't wrap my mind around 'perpetual happiness', sounds like being lobotimized to me.
[Probably how I wound up here in the first place.]
So, 1984, a cautionary tale about the media's power to manipulate opinion and A Brave New World, a tale about eugenics and the 'search for utopia' that still exists in the fever dreams of those with too much power and their fear of losing [or worse, being held accountable for] that power!
Thanks for letting me inside your head [and remember, just because we don't see it everywhere we look it doesn't mean Big Brother ISN'T watching YOU!
Gegner
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