George Orwell predicted a bleak dystopia in his classic novel 1984. It was a dark world where the truth was fluid and malleable; a plaything to be bent to the Party’s will. But how fantastical is this nightmare? Are we already doomed to this bleak existence?
“Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past.” -George Orwell, 1984
Most Americans are aware that current regime lies and bends the truth to its breaking point. It can be seen in the president’s rhetoric around his poll numbers. In response to his declining poll numbers, the president threatened to sue pollsters for reporting their results accurately. This is an assault on the truth. Without a free press, protected by our First Amendment, how are we supposed to discern truth from fiction?
Recent History
The regime rewriting history is not a new thing. Let’s examine the last election and compare a few of the lies told to sway the opinion of the electorate:
- Lie – Biden’s open border caused an immigration crisis.
- Reality – Biden kept the previous administration’s Title 42 in effect, causing only 1 in 3 asylum seekers to qualify for the asylum process and the rest were scheduled for immediate deportation.
- Lie – Kamala Harris supported trans rights.
- Reality – During her presidential run, Vice President Harris did not make trans rights part of her platform in any way, shape, or form. The LGBTQ+ community was not represented by Harris campaign.
- Lie – Immigrants are eating cats and dogs in Springfield, OH.
- Reality – Springfield’s economy was resurrected by its immigrant community. Disease and crime went down, spending increased, and communities were improved.
- Lie – Trump was the candidate for peace.
- Reality – Trump is currently planning military action against Iran, supporting ongoing genocide, threatening action against our allies, and has actively performed a coup in Venezuela.
“If you kept the small rules you could break the big ones.” – George Orwell, 1984
What Can We Do About It?
Push back on obvious lies. Fact check your sources. Is your source a meme or a headline? That’s not good enough. I recommend using a service like Ground News to improve and hone your media literacy. Ground news breaks down stories by factuality and political bias, so you can understand what point of view is being represented in the coverage and cut through the propaganda.
Remember, knowledge is power, and power is liberation. Do not chain yourself to a party, do not believe propaganda, and examine everything with a critical eye.
“But if thought corrupts language, language can also corrupt thought.” – George Orwell, 1984
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