Fridjof Jansen
05-24-2005, 06:07 PM
George Orwell was a genius. I've heard people call him a prophet, but I don't think that's accurate. I think he just had sharp eyes. In 1948 he saw that the way politics were developping in his time would lead to the situation he describes so chillingly in 1984. Something most of us don't even see today - twenty years after 1984. Offcourse, 1984 was a randomly chosen year, but the fact is that we already live in such a world. In reality it is just not as obvious as in the book. But then again, in his book most people don't know anything about how there society has been carefully manipulated either. I'm a high-school student in the Netherlands, were they recently introduced "society lessons" to teach about democracy and the principles of the 'free-market'. I've found the fictional work of Orwell to contain more truth then the propaganda we learn at school. Offcourse, most people swallow the propaganda as if it were the words of God himself.<br><br>Just think about the free market. Thousand of people die from starvation every day, while the multinationals continue to expand and monopolize. Meanwhile, millions of people are working the skin of there bones for a dollar - or less - a day. However, if you suggest that a free market might not be the solution for poverty, you suddenly "oppose freedom". In this context, freedom is indeed slavery.<br><br>Ever wondered why the US has trained the so-called "Moslim-fundementalists"? Most people who're even aware of that fact believe it was to fight against the Soviet-Union during the Cold War. But was it? If that would be true, the Cold War must have really been a war. But the cold war wasn't meant to be won; it was meant te be continues - to quote Orwell. It was meant to empower both the Western world and Russia. And now, they both deal with "terrorism" - so they can fight there globar "war against terror" for eternity.<br><br>I can go on and on about the simularities between 1984 and our modern society, but you really should read it yourself. I find it not just a genius novel, but one of the most important social/political work ever written. It really opened my eyes. Now let it open yours and wake up. We're not cattle, we're people and our free will means more then freedom to choose from what they feed you.