The purpose of all of them was to arrest progress and freeze history...

[4_Legs_Good]

...at a chosen moment. The familiar pendulum swing was to happen once more, and then stop. As usual, the High were to be turned out by the Middle, who would then become the High; but this time, by conscious strategy, the High would be able to maintain their position permanently.

The new doctrines arose partly because of the accumulation of historical knowledge, and the growth of the historical sense, which had hardly existed before the nineteenth century. The cyclical movement of history was now intelligible, or appeared to be so; and if it was intelligible, then it was alterable. But the principal, underlying cause was that, as early as the beginning of the twentieth century, human equality had become technically possible. It was still true that men were not equal in their native talents and that functions had to be specialized in ways that favoured some individuals against others; but there was no longer any real need for class distinctions or for large differences of wealth. In earlier ages, class distinctions had been not only inevitable but desirable. Inequality was the price of civilization. With the development of machine production, however, the case was altered. Even if it was still necessary for human beings to do different kinds of work, it was no longer necessary for them to live at different social or economic levels. Therefore, from the point of view of the new groups who were on the point of seizing power, human equality was no longer an ideal to be striven after, but a danger to be averted.

Orwell - 1984

We are the dead

david

[knowbody0]

1. they froze indian history

determined to "civilize" the savage.

[4_Legs_Good]

3. Yeah, but indians were just a bunch of barbarians

running around smoking dope!

Or so my history book says...

What who controls the present controls the past.

david

[moof]

2. the three most important developements of the last century

1. The spread of democracy.

2. The spread of corporate propaganda.

3. The use of corporate propaganda to protect corporations
from the spread of democracy.
--------------------------

Speak up soon or become another Winston Smith

Long Live Octafish

[Algomas]

4. More Orwell...

"Always, at every moment, there will be the thrill of victory, the sensation of trampling on an enemy who is helpless. If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face-forever."

[4_Legs_Good]

5. My favorite line EVER!