It is hard to imagine a more appropriate and revealing application of that truism than the use of George Orwell's Animal Farm to illustrate what is going on in America today. The parallels between Orwell's characters and the current elements of government, other political institutions, and assorted enablers are eerily and precisely striking. It is almost as if Orwell was sitting at a keyboard only yesterday, writing about a 21st century farm, America, instead of at a typewriter in 1943-44, addressing the Russian Revolution of some ninety years ago.
Although it would be a highly interesting exercise to identify and thoroughly develop the 2009 characters, my intent is to only provide the definitive answer to an exercise generated by Bernard Goldberg a few days ago, namely, what the best name for today's media, which clearly no longer is reflective of main stream America.
Well, Mr. Goldberg, I submit for your consideration the term Squealer Incarnate, or Squealer for short, as the perfect name for the collective socialism enablers at NBC, CBS, ABC, MSNBC, CNN, AP, NY Times, Washington Post, etc.! etc.! etc.!
The evidence to support my recommendation follows in the form of character descriptions from two sources. I have bold-ed the parts of their descriptions/summaries that I feel are particularly pertinent:
- From *sparknotes :
"Squealer
Throughout his career, Orwell explored how politicians manipulate language in an age ofmass media. In Animal Farm, the silver-tongued pig Squealer abuses language
to justify Napoleon’s actions and policies to the proletariat by whatever means
seem necessary. By radically simplifying language—as when he teaches the
sheep to bleat “Four legs good, two legs better!”—he limits the terms of debate.
By complicating language unnecessarily, he confuses and intimidates the
uneducated, as when he explains that pigs, who are the “brainworkers” of the
farm, consume milk and apples not for pleasure, but for the good of their
comrades. In this latter strategy, he also employs jargon (“tactics, tactics”) as
well as a baffling vocabulary of false and impenetrable statistics, engendering in
the other animals both self-doubt and a sense of hopelessness about ever
accessing the truth without the pigs’ mediation. Squealer’s lack of conscience
and unwavering loyalty to his leader, alongside his rhetorical skills, make him
the perfect propagandist for any tyranny. Squealer’s name also fits him well:
squealing, of course, refers to a pig’s typical form of vocalization, and Squealer’s
speech defines him. At the same time, to squeal also means to betray, aptly
evoking Squealer’s behavior with regard to his fellow animals."
"Squealer: Squealer is an intriguing character in Orwell's Animal Farm. He's first
described as a manipulator and persuader. Orwell narrates, "He could turn
black into white." Many critics correlate Squealer with the Pravda, the Russian
newspaper of the 1930's. Propaganda was a key to many publications, and since
their was no television or radio, the newspaper was the primary source of media
information. So the monopoly of the Pravda was seized by Stalin and his new
Bolshevik regime. In Animal Farm, Squealer, like the newspaper, is the link
between Napoleon and other animals. When Squealer masks an evil intention of
the pigs, the intentions of the communists can be carried out with little
resistance and without political disarray. ..."
I suggest that every concerned American read, or re-read, Animal Farm, or at least go to one of these sites and brush up on what George Orwell was saying about totalitarian governments.
And start calling the "MSM" Squealer - it will get under their skin, I'll bet!
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