THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS

‘T,

Tallying Up '1984'

(Continued from Page 1) have raised the standards of
states. Orwell's main char- living of their populations
acter, Winston, lives in more and they have lent
Oceania, a euphemism for themselves to a natural
what is today England and evolution toward democ-
Western Europe. But the racy — even in countries
rest of the world is incorpo- which had limited or no
rated into two mega-police democratic traditions.
Whenever people have
states, Eurasia (Russia) and
had
a choice, they have
Eastasia (China?).
In all these areas, overwhelmingly chosen the
technology has allowed more democratic option.
the government to de- Thus, the Indians voted to
velop total control of in- resume democracy after In-
formation flow and con- dira Gandhi's seizure of
tinual monitoring of the power; the Argentinians
individual citizens. chose Raul Alfonsin rather
Everywhere, power has than a Peronist option with
become faceless and life its threat of new dictator-
has turned gray, as the ship and so on. Castro's
citizens are manipulated model has not caught on in
for the purposes of the Latin America in part be-
shadowy privileged cause people have seen the
group which rules in price his system brings in
poor productivity and
their name.
In all three areas, history internal oppression.
Within the dictator-
is continually re-written
and language turned inside ships, resistance to to-
out. In all, "Slavery is Free- talitarian control has
dom" and "War is Peace" is proven powerful, tenaci-
drummed into the minds of ous and able to link into
the inert population. The other forces to offset cen-
clear implication is: to- tral power. The popular
talitarianism is so powerful revolts in Czechos-
and difficult to resist that by lovakia, Hungary and
1984 the democracies will Poland which tapped
have been forced into defen- into nationalism and
sive reorganizations. Their religion have been sup-
societies will inevitably end pressed by armed might
up being as power corrupted from outside forces. But
and centrally controlled as the revolts have won
the Soviet Union was in concessions and denied
1948. The technology of the government the total
mass production and com- control it sought.
Even in Russia, the dissi-
munication (and control)
dent movement and the
seemed to Orwell likely to
lend itself to abuse, i.e., Jewish revolt have proven
mass control. That technol- that the human spirit is not
ogy was growing faster in so easily destroyed. True:
force has won; the govern-
the advanced industrial
West than in somewhat re- ment is crushing the opposi-
tion. But the recrudescence
tarded Eastern Europe.
Now, 36 years later, 1984 of resistance shows that to- •
talitarian control is not
is here. To what extent have
Orwell's predictions come simply internalized. Indeed,
the dullness of life, the cyni-
true?
The technology needed cism, the endemic drun-
for total control has clearly kenness and corruption is in
outstripped Orwell's proj- itself testimony to the re-
ections. Television and fusal of the human spirit to
accept the fact that slavery
radio are everywhere,
worldwide. The growth of is freedom.
It is too early to predict
computers and data banks,
the
outcome of China's
of picture phones, surveil-
amazing transformation,
lance satellites and satellite
but it can be argued that
transmission, of mind-
altering drugs, has given even in that country of
potential oppressors more strong traditions of social
control and group values,
tools than Orwell projected.
the force of individualism
Secret police torture is
and desire for participation
more widespread and has fractured the central
more irresistible than party grip repeatedly — de-
ever before in human his- spite Mao's all-out efforts at
tory. Yet the most strik- brainwashing.
ing fact is that democ-
Even in technology, con-
racy, individualism and tervailing forces have as-
free enterprise have pro-
serted themselves. If mass
ven to be far more power-
printing lends itself to
ful and resilient than Or- propaganda, then Xeroxing
well's generation could lends itself to samizdat and
imagine.
underground literature.
Economically speaking: Television lends itself to
since 1948, capitalism, uniformity; but cable tele-
democratic socialism and vision and video recorders
individual enterprise have have enabled a wide range
decisively outproduced cen- of cultural and social mod-
tral goverment and els to flourish. There are
dictatorially-controlled
controls over use of com-
economies. Within the non- puters and data banks.
totalitarian world, the
of
balance
The
fastest-growing Third
World economies have been technology and values
has often broken down in
in such places as Taiwan,
abuses but the reasser-
Singapore, Ivory Coast and
tion of control and
Kenya where there has
checks has come just as
been greater freedom for in-
predictably. In the West,
dividual enterprise than in
the resurgence of indi-
India or Tanzania.
Non-totalitarian societies
(Continued on Page 20)

Friday, January 13, 1984 19

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