The witness who watches a crime and does not report it, is just as guilty as the criminal. The citizens of the United States are both victims and witnesses. Today's Americans, are victims of the unacceptable actions of the American government, but they are also witnesses who refuse to do anything about the injustice. George Orwell’s 1984, portrays life under an oppressive government that constantly spys on citizens, presents misleading media, and is constantly fighting a foreign enemy. Today in 2016, the United States government spies on citizens through technology, allows a media oligarchy, and is constantly in the midst of a never ending war. The unacceptable actions of the government in Orwell’s 1984 and today are eerily similar, and the …show more content…
The people of Oceania in 1984 were constantly under Big Brother’s surveillance, just as citizens of the United States are constantly under the NSA’s surveillance today. In 1984, it was written, “any sound made, above the level of a low whisper, would be picked up by it; moreover, so long as one remained within the field of vision which the metal plaque commanded, one could be seen, as well as heard (Orwell 3). Everywhere in Oceania was monitored, even people’s own homes had telescreens that could see and hear everything. While the United States government has not forced telescreens in the homes of all Americans, they do use the technology that most Americans have, in order to spy. In June of 2013, Edward Snowden leaked classified United States government documents that revealed that the NSA had surveillance programs that collected information on international leaders as well as United States’ citizens (DiLascio, Tracey). The government in the past has ordered Verizon to give their customer’s cell phone metadata to the FBI and NSA on a daily basis, and AT&T facilities had secret NSA rooms that collected router data (DiLascio, Tracey). In order to stop the NSA from spying, Americans need to speak up against and protest government surveillance. During elections, citizens need to investigate the positions of Senators and …show more content…
In Orwell’s 1984, Oceania was constantly at war alternating their enemies and their allies. “Since about that time, war had been literally continuous, though strictly speaking it had not always been the same war” (Orwell 33). Oceania was constantly at war with Eurasia or Eastasia and the fighting never did stop. Similarly, the United States began war in Afghanistan in 2001 ("Afghanistan War" Encyclopædia) and began fighting in Iraq in 2003 ("Iraq War" Encyclopædia). The conflict in Afghanistan lasted 13 years and is the longest and most expensive war in American history ("Afghanistan War" Encyclopædia). The United States has shifted from fighting the Taliban, to Al-Qaeda, and now ISIS. Just as Winston could hardly remember a time when Oceania was not at war, it would be hard for a 16 year old today to remember when the United States was not fighting in the Middle East. There is no easy answer to solve the problem of endless warfare, but the United States either needs to give a full forced effect and citizens need to become more active and engaged in helping the war cause, or the government should not be at war at all. For example, during World War II millions of people worked in factories developing equipment for the armed forces, and vital materials such as fuel were conserved during daily use (“The” Ushistory.org). What have the 323 million