George Orwell’s timing may have been off by a bit, but his vision was true enough. Call it what you will, novel or prophecy, but 1984 is certainly approaching fast. Yet, there is an eerie complacency amongst the populace that has not been demonstrated in regards to The Patriot Act. I find that odd, to say the least.
On the one hand, we have an act of Congress, albeit at the behest of the President, that is very large in scope and was enacted in direct response to one of the worst attacks perpetrated against us in this countries history. On the other, we have a creeping encroachment on the very liberties we hold dear and yet, the alleged champions of such have been largely silent. I have yet to hear one peep of protest from the ACLU or any of the myriad individual plaintiffs who have continually been heard mourning the loss of privacy as a result of the Patriot Act.
The Patriot Act was designed to protect us from further attack. The arguments against the act were that we should never surrender liberty for security. Fine, that is a completely reasonable ideology. So why is it ok to fulfill the prophecy of 1984 to accomplish the same goal on a smaller scale? There’s the rub; smaller scale equals under the radar. Cancer doesn’t suddenly knock you down and kill you; it begins undetected and slowly spreads until you die. Government has been studying…
Did I neglect to identify the creeping encroachment? Ah yes, I believe I did. Let’s get to that, my apologies.
The District of Columbia has begun monitoring live cameras around the city. New York City is already working on installing surveillance cameras throughout the cities parks. How far behind the rest of the country may be is anyone’s guess but the question remains; why is this being ignored? Why are the masses content to bask in the security of being watched at every turn for their safety, but incensed when they think someone may be listening to their phone calls?
Again, it’s all about baby steps. Baby steps that will stomp us flat when the child matures. It’s easy to spot an imposing figure and assume he is a threat to your well being. No one suspects any such thing from the toddler. Nor do they usually expect the worst from that nagging pain, the pain of cancer working its magic.
-Woody
