And the Anchormen Can’t Stop Lying (cont.)
By Thoreau
So, let’s recap: When violence drops to levels seen a few years ago (i.e. it goes from suck to blow), that means the surge is working. OTOH, when violence flares up between the Iraqi government and a rival gang, one that they later reach a truce with, that is also a sign that the surge is working.
I CAN HAZ NEWSPEAK TRANSLATOR?
I always thought that if we ever wound up in 1984 we’d at least be aware of it. I assumed that the residents/victims of Oceania must realize what they’re living in. I had no clue that it would just sort of sneak up on us and trick us into thinking that it’s all good and proper.
The dregs of the Western world, indeed.
Comment by Turkey Turkey Turkey —
April 1, 2008 @ 4:45 am
A really scary comparison of political beliefs comes from looking at how subjects of the old Eastern Bloc viewed media reporting vs. how the majority of Americans (outside of the minority reality based community who get their use from alt/indie/blog sources) view media reporting. In the communist years, most people in the Eastern Bloc knew that their media was pure propaganda but the people had few ways to express this. In contrast, Americans have some degree of free speech but most of them don’t realize that their mass media is mostly propaganda.
Whereas Eastern Europeans demanded reforms as soon as they were able to do so in relative safety, Americans haven’t demanded reforms because the propaganda is so good that few Americans realize anything is wrong. Indeed, the propaganda is so good that efforts to reintroduce reality back into the public discourse are collectively dismissed as nothing more than crazy talk.
In effect, the inmates don’t even know they’re in an asylum.
Comment by Thoreau —
April 1, 2008 @ 5:07 pm
I wonder if even the reporters realize that they’re doing propaganda.
Once you get an idea in your head of what is respectable and what isn’t, the world is all about respectability, not propaganda.
Comment by Barry —
April 1, 2008 @ 6:14 pm
Thoreau, and that’s how one gets most of the way into ‘1984′. After a while, the constant threat of torture and death is needed, but we’ve seen a disheartening demonstration of the power of ultra-soft censorship.
Comment by Thoreau —
April 1, 2008 @ 7:01 pm
Barry,
Thing is, it’s so soft that I don’t even know that we can call it “censorship.” I say that not to excuse the authorities but rather to deny an easy out to the press. Nobody is using force on them (at least in most cases), they are still free to write what they want (at least in most cases). There are still reporters covering the abuses of power, it’s just that you can’t get in the respectable, mainstream outlets and openly call for impeachment or make any other honest statement about the severity of the crimes. Well, you can, but you’ll be treated as “just one of several possible opinions.”
Nobody has been forced to do any of this. They’ve done it because they felt it was popular, not because there was a gun to their heads.
Comment by Kip W —
April 2, 2008 @ 7:07 pm
Schroedinger’s News. Everything that happens is not only reassuring, but shows that we must adopt new extreme measures to deal with the situation. At the same time.