The two greatest visions of a future dystopia were George Orwell’s “1984” and Aldous Huxley’s “Brave New World.” The debate, between those who watched our descent towards corporate totalitarianism, was who was right. Would we be, as Orwell wrote, dominated by a repressive surveillance and security state that used crude and violent forms of control? Or would we be, as Huxley envisioned, entranced by entertainment and spectacle, captivated by technology and seduced by profligate consumption to embrace our own oppression? It turns out Orwell and Huxley were both right. Huxley saw the first stage of our enslavement. Orwell saw the second.

We have been gradually disempowered by a corporate state that, as Huxley foresaw, seduced and manipulated us through sensual gratification, cheap mass-produced goods, boundless credit, political theater and amusement. While we were entertained, the regulations that once kept predatory corporate power in check were dismantled, the laws that once protected us were rewritten and we were impoverished. Now that credit is drying up, good jobs for the working class are gone forever and mass-produced goods are unaffordable, we find ourselves transported from “Brave New World” to “1984.” The state, crippled by massive deficits, endless war and corporate malfeasance, is sliding toward bankruptcy. It is time for Big Brother to take over from Huxley’s feelies, the orgy-porgy and the centrifugal bumble-puppy. We are moving from a society where we are skillfully manipulated by lies and illusions to one where we are overtly controlled.

Orwell warned of a world where books were banned. Huxley warned of a world where no one wanted to read books. Orwell warned of a state of permanent war and fear. Huxley warned of a culture diverted by mindless pleasure. Orwell warned of a state where every conversation and thought was monitored and dissent was brutally punished. Huxley warned of a state where a population, preoccupied by trivia and gossip, no longer cared about truth or information. Orwell saw us frightened into submission. Huxley saw us seduced into submission. But Huxley, we are discovering, was merely the prelude to Orwell. Huxley understood the process by which we would be complicit in our own enslavement. Orwell understood the enslavement. Now that the corporate coup is over, we stand naked and defenseless. We are beginning to understand, as Karl Marx knew, that unfettered and unregulated capitalism is a brutal and revolutionary force that exploits human beings and the natural world until exhaustion or collapse.

“The Party seeks power entirely for its own sake,” Orwell wrote in “1984.” “We are not interested in the good of others; we are interested solely in power. Not wealth or luxury or long life or happiness: only power, pure power. What pure power means you will understand presently. We are different from all the oligarchies of the past, in that we know what we are doing. All the others, even those who resembled ourselves, were cowards and hypocrites. The German Nazis and the Russian Communists came very close to us in their methods, but they never had the courage to recognize their own motives. They pretended, perhaps they even believed, that they had seized power unwillingly and for a limited time, and that just round the corner there lay a paradise where human beings would be free and equal. We are not like that. We know that no one ever seizes power with the intention of relinquishing it. Power is not a means; it is an end. One does not establish a dictatorship in order to safeguard a revolution; one makes the revolution in order to establish the dictatorship. The object of persecution is persecution. The object of torture is torture. The object of power is power.”

The political philosopher Sheldon Wolin uses the term “inverted totalitarianism” in his book “Democracy Incorporated” to describe our political system. It is a term that would make sense to Huxley. In inverted totalitarianism, the sophisticated technologies of corporate control, intimidation and mass manipulation, which far surpass those employed by previous totalitarian states, are effectively masked by the glitter, noise and abundance of a consumer society. Political participation and civil liberties are gradually surrendered. The corporation state, hiding behind the smokescreen of the public relations industry, the entertainment industry and the tawdry materialism of a consumer society, devours us from the inside out. It owes no allegiance to us or the nation. It feasts upon our carcass.

READ MORE http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/2011_a_brave_new_dystopia_20101...

Views: 55

Comment

You need to be a member of 12160 Social Network to add comments!

Join 12160 Social Network

"Destroying the New World Order"

TOP CONTENT THIS WEEK

THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING THE SITE!

mobile page

12160.info/m

12160 Administrators

 

Latest Activity

Doc Vega posted a blog post

How Did the Soviets First Discover the SR-71 Blackbird?

Although President Lydon Johnson announced the development of the Lockheed SR-71 in 1964 which…See More
15 hours ago
Doc Vega commented on Burbia's blog post Disgraced Former CNN Anchor Don Lemon Arrested
"Personally, I don't consider Don Lemon or people like him to be journalists at all. They are…"
18 hours ago
tjdavis posted photos
yesterday
tjdavis favorited Doc Vega's blog post The Forbidden Canyon and It’s Residents
yesterday
tjdavis posted a video

The Farmer vs the Billionaire — Jeremy Clarkson Says NO to Bill Gates’ £100 Million Deal | UK News

OFFICIAL NOTICE: This channel is NOT Jeremy Clarkson, is not affiliated with him, and does not represent his official views or Diddly Squat Farm. This is an ...
yesterday
Doc Vega posted a blog post

The Forbidden Canyon and It’s Residents

 Chapter OneSituated 10 miles from Mount Jefferson in the Oregon wilderness a forest researcher…See More
yesterday
Less Prone commented on Doc Vega's photo
Thumbnail

G_LrzqtXMAAhT7w

"He would never do that. Mosques and Synagogues are out of the question, only Christianity is free…"
Saturday
Less Prone favorited Doc Vega's photo
Saturday
Less Prone favorited Burbia's blog post Disgraced Former CNN Anchor Don Lemon Arrested
Saturday
Burbia posted a blog post

Disgraced Former CNN Anchor Don Lemon Arrested

No longer an employed journalist, Don Lemon had been seen with far left agitator, Nekima Levy…See More
Friday
Burbia's blog post was featured

The Illusion of Fuck You Money

The United States use to have this idea that once you make enough money, you.can do as you want.…See More
Friday
tjdavis's blog post was featured
Friday
Doc Vega's 4 blog posts were featured
Friday
tjdavis posted a video

The Human Antenna - OFFICIAL FILM

THE HUMAN ANTENNA - Can We Reverse The Trans Humanist Agenda?MORE INFORMATION: → www.humanantennafilm.com ← MASTERPEACE: https://mphcs.com/PrimeEarthHuman En...
Thursday
Doc Vega posted a blog post
Wednesday
cheeki kea commented on Burbia's blog post A Masterclass Is Being Played Out For Those Who Have The Eyes To See
"PS Not sure this video will last much longer."
Wednesday
cheeki kea commented on Burbia's blog post A Masterclass Is Being Played Out For Those Who Have The Eyes To See
"  Deflection ~ Away from Themselves ! example. -->…"
Wednesday
tjdavis favorited Burbia's blog post The Illusion of Fuck You Money
Jan 24
tjdavis posted a video

Hi-Rez & Jimmy Levy - This Is A War (Official Video)

Disclaimer: The views, information, opinions and/or activities expressed in this video are solely those of the individuals appearing in the video, and do no...
Jan 24
Doc Vega posted photos
Jan 23

© 2026   Created by truth.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service

content and site copyright 12160.info 2007-2019 - all rights reserved. unless otherwise noted