Too often we are so wrapped up in our own lives to realize and analyze the significant changes that are going on around us. And I’m not talking about smelling the roses on your way to school or that type of thing, I’m talking about shocking new events that, in a way, we’ve come to accept.  We’ve become too compliant, too ignorant, too 1984 if you ask me.

Recently, I began reading 1984 by George Orwell, a politically charged novel, written as a warning against totalitarian government in the wake of World War II and the oppressive governments arising throughout Europe. Orwell portrayed an image of the ultimate Utopia for authoritarian society in which Big Brother, the ultimate leader of the party, was idolized and was responsible for the surveillance that kept track of every citizen in Oceania at every moment of the day and even had intelligence about the people’s thoughts in order to control any potential uprising. There was a telescreen at their job, at their homes, in restaurants, in local bars, annihilating any possibility of privacy. When I read this, I was quite frankly creeped out by how close the government kept watch over everyone, but then it struck me that in a way it’s already part of our everyday lives and, yes, “Big Brother is watching you”.

I’m sure we all heard how whistleblower Edward Snowden blew the N.S.A.’s  cover and leaked out important information detailing how the agency’s has been at work for  quite some time – collecting information about cell phone calls, email messages, and on people’s friends and contacts from people in the U.S and around the world. Allied with Facebook, Google, Yahoo, Verizon, and a series of other companies, they were keeping tally of our every move, spying into everyone’s lives. What’s the purpose for this, why is the government so interested in what happens in an average citizen’s life?

The N.S.A.’s explanation is that these measures are a necessary precaution in their fight against terrorism. Somehow this struck me as a similar idea as that in 1984, in which Big Brother used the excuse of war in order to make everyone cooperate with the intense scrutiny of everyone’s activities. As long as there was a greater common enemy out there, no one realized that the true enemy that had to be combated was in fact Big Brother.

This has been done before under the Bush administration after 9/11. The executive branch took advantage of the situation to pass a series of laws breaching civil liberties including the Military Commissions Act. A law that deters a constitutional right such as habeas corpus- which includes the right to a speedy trial, justification for detainment and imprisonment, and immunity from ex post facto laws. It also allows for a broad range of harsh interrogation methods. So what does this mean? It basically means that if the government deems you dangerous enough, it can arrest you at any given moment and strip your constitutional rights as a citizen. Once again, I draw a parallel between the authoritarian utopia and the U.S, where Winston Smith like many other people proved dangerous to the party and were arrested, and tortured without any one coming to their aid; it was all for his protection after all.

I’m not trying to sound like a conspiracy theorist here, but I will say that between 1984 and my government class, I’ve opened my eyes to many things that I was blind to before. You don’t have to take my word for it, I’m sure we’re all able to make our own deductions given the appropriate information. The point I’m trying to make here is that maybe reading the fine print before you hit ok on an app, being careful about your comments online, and staying informed about new government measures, might not be such a useless waste of time after all.  Oceania’s mistake was not questioning or analyzing things that didn’t interest them, things they didn’t understand. Let’s not be Oceania, a mass of ignorant and submissive people living in a putrid utopia, let’s stay informed by reading articles that come across your Facebook or Twitter feed, and being alert and aware of what goes on in our society by always questioning why changes are being made or basic rights are being curtailed.