What is Digg?82 Comments
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -1/+42It seems like Bush and Cheney read 1984, but instead of seeing it as a cautionary tale, they used it as a blueprint for our current government. Some striking similarities:
1. An endless, constant war
2. Secret Prisons
3. Government-sanctioned torture
4. Government surveillance
4. An all-powerful ruling party
5. Treason=ultimate crime
6. Criticism=treason
7. Doublespeak, i.e. "When we're talking about war, we're really talking about peace." -G.W. Bush
8. And my favorite, the Ministry of Truth: Fox News. - TheLastProphet, on 10/12/2007, -5/+43I just updated this, apparently college students are historically illiterate...
"he who controls the present controls the past."
Never mind the history of Israeli, Hezbollah attacked them out of the clear blue... right?
Never mind the history of the Federal Reserve, they're a government agency... right?
Never mind the history of Al Qaeda and the ISI, they're terrorist who hate freedom... right?
Never mind the history of false-flag operations, 9/11 was terrorist... right?
Never mind the history of the Third Reich, the Patriot Act was patriotic... right?
Never mind current events, Saddam is Al Qaeda and Iraq had WMD's... right?
"Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it." - TheLastProphet, on 10/12/2007, -1/+21Excellent! Thanks for that.
EVERYONE should read or re-read this book! - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+19
http://tmh.floonet.net/books/1984/1984toc.html - crombenevolant, on 10/12/2007, -2/+15doublePlusGood
- Jwymon, on 10/12/2007, -2/+15Of course there are parallels...Orwel's 1984 was simply his personal political commentary of what he saw wrong with government at the time, it's only becoming more clear today.
Fiction is based upon reality folks, otherwise none of us could relate to it. - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -1/+13@vandread "Come on people, we live in a democracy..."
Thats amusing. - OnlyShawn, on 10/12/2007, -0/+10@plarp....
have you read 1984, man? not tryin' to be an ass, but, that's one of the main things ABOUT the book...history is always being revised, you see a photograph, and the caption will be changed, depending on how we're now 'at war' with....not quite 'knowing where you stand'. - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -2/+12I don't necessarily think that anybody believes that Bush and Cheney rigged up the building and masterminded the entire project. There are much smarter people in government other than the delinquents that we see flashed on TV all the time. Our government has proven itself at being very good at carrying out complicated operations leaving only a minimal number of people with the big picture of whats going on.
Look at the Manhattan project for example, 10,000+ scientists and engineers working around the clock for years and less than 10 people actually knew what the goal of the project was.
The imprisonment of 120,000 Japanese Americans during world war II wasn't revealed until almost 2 years after the imprisonment.
Its called "compartmentalization".
And no, I don't believe that Bush and Cheney crew have the IQ to carry out a 9/11. - nreynolds, on 10/12/2007, -6/+16hey, i'm in 11th grade and we read that last year.... probably 1 of my favorite books of all time.
- pintomp3, on 10/12/2007, -0/+9actually the point of 1984 is that you don't know the wool is pulled over your eyes. we aren't so far apart.
- merreborn, on 10/12/2007, -0/+9You'd be surprised how quickly Britain's headed down the path to realizing 1984.
http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/story?id=2508521&page=1
"Britain stands guard with more than 4 million security cameras, or CCTVs, as they call them over here. That's one for every 14 people in the country. The British are among the most-watched people on earth....."
With our fredoms being systematically stripped away domestically, you have to wonder if we aren't headed the same direction. - Brad12088, on 10/12/2007, -2/+10When you look a little deeper, alot of the similarities between the book and real life current events are rather worrying.
- ardenr, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7Go back to sleep America... go back to sleep. All is well. Watch American Gladiators.
- Langford, on 10/12/2007, -1/+8Mostly a good article. A couple little spots seemed a little tin-foil hat, but mostly a good article. It would seem that a lot of the nations ills could be remedied, at least a little, if history and literature were taught better in schools.
- hcl40u, on 10/12/2007, -1/+8WAR IS PEACE
FREEDOM IS SLAVERY
IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH
One and two appear to be true so far. The War against Terror is supposed to make us safer. Our freedom comes with a price; privacy. - drizek, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7i read it on my own but for others in my school it was on a list of possible books to read in senior year of high school.
- ardenr, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7Yeah, go back to watching American Gladiators people. Meanwhile Goatboy and I will be moving to Europe... Wait I am in Europe. HAH! thousands of miles away from your head. Which is clearly up your own arse.
- headzoo, on 10/12/2007, -1/+8History has a GOTO 10 on line 50. It's stuck in an infinite loop. The things that happened in Orwell's time are happening today, and they will happen again tomorrow. The reason parallels between 1984 and "now" are cliched, is because they are always partially true. People in Clinton's administration could have found parallels, and so could people during Regan's administration, or Nixon's.
Again, history keeps repeating itself, and the underlying theme in 1984 is always prevalent. Orwell was not a "futurist", he was a historian.
And it's the degree to which the parallels match that matters. They appear to match very strongly with the current administration. It's frightening. - hnic1185, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6Maybe you are the idiot for believing that administration (with the global power they possess) ISN'T capable of pulling off a stunt like that. It's well beyond the realm of possibility, it's just a matter of weather you're willing to think "outside the box" and ask the question "What if?" Which apparently you're not.
- wurzelgummage, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6I wonder if sticking your head in a rat cage is under Bush's definition of torture?
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -6/+12I thought this book was banned from most high schools. I didn't even get a chance to read it until I was well into my junior year in college..and that was independent reading.
In any case, there are many people who live in this country today who have only heard of references to this book, but have never read it. My GF, not from this country, finally read it after I explained some of the parallels to today's society. She is 29.
Just because some books in the U.S./europe are classics and widely known, does not mean that people everywhere on this earth have heard of or read them. - bede, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6Last time I read 1984 I was struck more by the parallels of the present day to Emmanual Goldstein's 'book within a book' in terms of what he says about how the power blocs of the world operate and the reasons for (and even location of!) wars. It always seems to be the Big-brother/telescreen/room 101 stuff that people remember and concentrate on rather than the long political analysis in the middle.
- revenge7, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5You mean American Idol. Or Dancing With the Stars.
Most people care more about who wins on reality shows than who wins the election.
Plus, I don't think American Gladiator is on anymore. - ardenr, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5Of course not, that's traitorspeak citizen. After all, we don't know if the rat will eat your face or not.
- dorothys, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4It's not necessarily a conspiracy, but a mindset:
See quote from Orwell:
"It's not a matter of whether the war is not real, or if it is, Victory is not possible. The war is not meant to be won, it is meant to be continuous. Hierarchical society is only possible on the basis of poverty and ignorance. This new version is the past and no different past can ever have existed. In principle the war effort is always planned to keep society on the brink of starvation. The war is waged by the ruling group against its own subjects and its object is not the victory over either Eurasia or East Asia but to keep the very structure of society intact." - Urusai, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5Bush detonated the WTC because he wanted to make sure the terrorists were dead!
- Eicos, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Excellent point.
- BAJABOY, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3During these turbulent times, we all concerned Americans should reflect upon the post World War II recollections of Martin Niemoller, who said, "In Germany they came first for the Communists, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Communist. Then they came for the Jews, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist. Then they came for the Catholics, and I didn't speak up because I was a Protestant. Then they came for me, and by that time no one was left to speak up."
I suppose that some things are more comfortably viewed with 20/20 hindsight. - shinynew, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3@OnlyShawn
if you got to the end it shows how people are finnally broken in, It shows that now he belives anything and everything big brother throws at him, the perfect citizen. - bede, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Except it was more than just fiction I think. Orwell was trying to say something about the political climate at the time when he wrote it - 1948, pushing the ideas he saw at work in the world and seeing where they could lead. I see lots of things which are fairly close to what he was saying, which is not surprising as much of the political landscape of today was formed in that post-war period.
- somnus, on 10/12/2007, -0/+31984 is required reading in grade 10 in most Canadian schools, as far as I know from experience and friends across the country.
- guine, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3"We had the same types kicking and screaming of the Nazi type ruling class government" - well that obviously shows that we shouldnt be complaining about the horrible things that our government can do if the people complaining are the same types that complained about the Nazis
- zeth, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Hey, I'm reading the book right now. Don't spoil it for me.
- Web_Weasel, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2You might want to avoid the news while you're reading it. That would definitely spoil it.
- silvercatmon, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3"Today, eugenics is a real threat. China is known for its rigid pregnancy laws, but America has its own agenda as well. North Carolina has already started sterilization without consent. ..."
http://www.prisonplanet.com/articles/September2006/070906eugenics.htm
"Already started"? They did in the past, not today! Not anymore!
Is that DoubleThink or BlackWhite? - mwilding, on 10/12/2007, -10/+12This article had me fully engaged and fascinated up until this passage:
"So what more appropriate time to ask: was WTC building 7 a natural collapse or a controlled demolition?"
And suddenly the author's credibility wilted away like a picked flower on a hot dry day. Sure, fighting against the concept of ThoughtCrime involves daring to ask tough questions of our government, but there are tough questions out there that need to be asked not just popular conspiracy theories to be parroted for the sake of making a point. - TheLastProphet, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2I agree, and it will be our fate if we don't act yesterday.
Bush's new Torture Bill is devastating:
See The List of Crimes http://digg.com/users/TheLastProphet/myone
And read PNAC which is an Orwellian sex fest.
PNAC required a "New Pearl Harbor" to make their plans of global domination happen - This is pre-Dubya.
Dubya called 9/11, "the Pearl Harbor of the 21st Century."
And every 'stupid' thing he's done since 9/11 is in perfect concordance with the plans of PNAC.
If it wasn't so obvious, it might be funny. - fatkiduluv, on 10/12/2007, -3/+5Ill re-read this book and then work to change nothing.
- TheLastProphet, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Thanks for your comment,
I would be more than happy to debate the collapse of Building 7.
However, you should really double check YOUR conspiracy theory first... you are backing a belief in the 911 Commission Report which is littered with falsehoods. It quite frankly IS the outrageous conspiracy theory Bush referred to.
That it was a controlled demolition is obvious as well as old news.
I would recommend reading my 911 for Dummies article first.
http://digg.com/users/TheLastProphet/myone
All of my claims can be backed on my website and the hundreds of articles that I source:
http://www.ealchemy.org - ebcreasoner, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2 @ardenr Don't tease the animals. Shove it down their throats
Go back to bed, America. Your government has figured out how it all transpired. Go back to bed, America. Your government is in control again. Here. Here's American Gladiators. Watch this, shut up. Go back to bed, America. Here is American Gladiators. Here is 56 channels of it! Watch these pituitary retards bang their ***** skulls together and congratulate you on living in the land of freedom. Here you go, America! You are free to do what we tell you! You are free to do what we tell you!
Bill Hicks - GlassUser, on 10/12/2007, -3/+4I'm going to have to double this. It starts with some good points, but soon wanders off to a political diatribe, full of absurd conspiracy theories and pet politics. A moderate attempt at history revision, I suppose.
It might deserve a digg in that it demonstrates what it warns against. - bmcnally, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1"Never mind the history of false-flag operations, 9/11 was terrorist... right?"
Congratulations on revealing yourself to be, by and large, a nut.
Muslims are a peaceful, fun loving people who don't have a history of suicide bombings . . . right? - ardenr, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Hahaha, oh man. thanks ebcreasoner, I heard it like he was standing beside me. May he rest in peace.
- newjb, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Yes monkeywizard, it is crazy for us to think that a 767 with a full load of fuel that crashes into a building could start a fire that could structurally fatigue metal. And when this metal gives out the top of the building falls and crushes floors below it on the way to the bottom. Surprisingly, I can accept this as a truthful explanation of what I observed on that terrible day. It does not make for a great conspiracy theory, but sometimes bad stuff is a simple as it seems. Feel free to Digg me down.
- herculez, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH:
How about the religious attacks on science and reason? - Stri, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2An interesting and well written article but I can't help but feel it's a little sensational and not very solid on basis
- AMSRay, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Exactly. The link he included on Eugenics said the program had ended almost 30 years ago, but he's figuring no one will take the time to read it and know that he's just making up the "facts" to support his point of view.
- minime283, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I had respect for this article right up to the moment it suggested "Loose Change" had even the slightest hint of fact.
- Toast1185, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1----
-
Show 51 - 81 of 81 discussions
Digg is coming to a city (and computer) near you! Check out all the details on our 
© Digg Inc. 2009
— Content created and posted by Digg users is