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country of an actual Ministry of Truth.
However, the slow accumulation of such lies, carefully orchestrated for
the sake of political expediency, is a plausible notion. It would
attract little attention and lead to the same result, even without a central
agency controlling the process. Remember that The History Channel,
as well as all libraries, universities, book publishers, newspapers, magazines,
and broadcast entities operate under the authority of licenses granted
by the government. Licenses can be revoked. The power to license
is the power to control.
The pervasiveness of licensing in this country points to yet another fact that has been lost along the way, and replaced by lies.
That simple fact was the truth during the era of World War II. Nobody remembers it today and the dictionary is getting old. The lies that have slipped into its place are that fascism was defeated at the end of the war and that the world was made safe for liberty. If Americans can be made to believe that women were drafted and sent into combat in World War II, if they can be made to believe that the Soviet Union existed prior to 1869, then Reality Control is plausible. It will then be possible for Americans to believe that terrorism has always been our greatest threat, that we have more liberty in this country than exists anywhere else in the world, that we must sacrifice that liberty to protect it, that our standard of living is continuously rising, that our government is always good and protects us from evil, that our economy can grow forever, that we have an obligation to pay taxes, that the judges are honest, that the regulations are fair, and that the doctors know what's good for us. Who controls the past, controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past. When no written record and no spoken word ever acknowledge a different past than what is recognized by the authorities, when no living human being remembers any other past than that, then the lies will have slipped into history and will have become the truth. Letter to the Editor In regard to your comments about "Victory at Sea" -- You know that I have had a long-time fascination with Eva Peron. I own three video documentaries purporting to tell her life story. None of them are uncontestably accurate but all of them are quite careless about matching visuals with spoken commentary. I know from my research what kind of hairstyle she was wearing at what year, and what some of photo-ops were when she was filmed. Anyone who saw only ONE of these documentaries might think that they were getting a historically accurate view of certain events described in the commentary, when in fact, they are not. (Or at least, not always) In relation to Eva Peron, there's an incident that very much relates to your topic of an oft-repeated lie being accepted as truth. In October of 1945, Juan Peron was arrested and thrown in prison. The established labor leaders of Argentina organized a massive strike, which brought thousands of workers to Buenos Aires. The government, fearing civil war, released Peron, and allowed him to run for the Presidency. Eva was Juan's mistress at the time, and exactly what she did during the period in which he was in jail is almost anybody's guess. She may have spoken at some union meetings, but she certainly did not organize the strike, or play any major role. A few years later, after Peron was elected President, he had a falling out with the union leaders who helped him into office. To cover up this change, the Peronist propaganda machine exaggerated the role played by Eva Peron, making her out to be this fantastic rabble rouser who almost single handedly brought out "the people" to save her man. This wonderfully romantic, melodramatic story was picked up by most textbooks and encyclopedias. It is repeated in the Madonna film "Evita". The problem is that it really never happened. Only now is the real story being very slowwwwly disseminated. After all, who wants to think that their favorite source of information is wrong? — Sir Donald the Elusive
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Actual Dialog of a Former WordPerfect Customer
Support Employee
Original Source Unknown. Forwarded by SantaClara Bob "Ridge Hall computer assistance, may I help you?" "Yes, well, I'm having trouble with WordPerfect." "What sort of trouble?" "Well, I was just typing along, and all of a sudden the words went away." "Went away?" "They disappeared." "Hmm. So what does your screen look like now?" "Nothing." "Nothing?" "It's blank. It won't accept anything when I type." "Are you still in WordPerfect, or did you get out?" "How do I tell?" "Can you see the C:\ prompt on the screen?" "What's a sea-prompt?" "Never mind. Can you move the cursor around on the screen?" "There isn't any cursor. I told you, it won't accept anything." "Does your monitor have a power indicator?" "What's a monitor?" "It's the thing with the screen on it that looks like a TV. Does it have a little light that tells you when it's on?" "I don't know." "Well, then look on the back of the monitor and find where the power cord goes into it. Can you see that?" ......"Yes, I think so." "Great! Follow the cord to the plug, and tell me if it's plugged into the wall." ......"Yes, it is." "When you were behind the monitor, did you notice that there were two cables plugged into the back of it, not just one?" "No." "Well, there are. I need you to look back there again and find the other cable." ......"Okay, here it is." "Follow it for me, and tell me if it's plugged securely into the back of your computer." "I can't reach." "Uh huh. Well, can you see if it is?" "No." "Even if you maybe put your knee on something and lean way over?" "Oh, it's not because I don't have the right angle. It's because it's dark." "Dark?" "Yes, the office light is off, and the only light I have is coming in from the window." "Well, turn on the office light then." "I can't." "No? Why not?" "Because there's a power outage." "A power... A power outage? Aha! Okay, we've got it licked now. Do you still have the boxes and manuals and packing stuff your computer came in?" "Well, yes, I keep them in the closet." "Good! Go get them, and unplug your system and pack it up just like it was when you got it. Then take it back to the store you bought it from." "Really? Is it that bad?" "Yes, I'm afraid it is." "Well, all right then, I suppose. What do I tell them?" "Tell them you're too stupid to own a computer." Old Timer's Lore
Stray Thoughts
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Acknowledgments My thanks to the following: SantaClara Bob; Lady Jan the Voluptuous; my mother; and Dewey and Betty. — editor
Children's Books Not Recommended by the National Library Association Original Source Unknown. Forwarded by Don G.
Classes for Men Original Source Unknown. Forwarded by Don G.
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