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​Andy B

Many things in life appear similar. For instance, a [|stone] ( forget the crab) and a [|stonefish] (here is a link to a picture of a [|stonefish]). One is an inanimate object and the other an extremely poisonous animal that can kill with one misplaced step. Much is the same with the books //Little Brother// by Cory Doctorow, and //1984// by George Orwell. //Little Brother// is about a kid who is arrested for supposedly being a terrorist. After release, he groups up with other kids and tries to take down the Department of Homeland Security. Once again, he gets arrested but his efforts don't go unnoticed. He is rescued and all of his friends held captive by the DHS are released. //1984// is about a guy named Winston who lives in a totalitarian state where the people have absolutely no rights. After realizing this he meets up with a woman named Julia. They then secretly search for a rebelling organization called the brotherhood. They arrested for "Thought Crime" and tortured. Upon examination, two reoccurring and contrasting ideas have appeared repeatedly during the course of the two novels which are the consequences of having too much governmental power and the affects it has on the lives of ordinary civilians and the the causes of such a government.

One way the government can have too much power is in the use of technology and its effect on civilians. The effect of technology on civilians is almost at exact oppsites in each book. In //Little Brother,// the X-net constantly makes the national news and is blamed for all the mischief going on in San Francisco. The government is constantly trying to catch and arrest people using the X-net regardless if they are doing bad or not. In //1984,// the government's use of technology really doesn't affect people’s daily roitune significant way except when they are suppose to exercise in front of the telescreen (a type of camera that can be one way or two way) in the morning. This is only about how technology really affects the protagonist in the books. In //Little Brother,// the X-net really affects the common person's day in the sense that the DHS tries harder to find the X-netters. In //1984//, there is really no effect because the common person has no technology. Another important fact is the way that technology helps people communicate on both fronts (the government's side and the civilian's side). In //Little Brother// for instance, Marcus uses the X-net to help organize rallies and meetings with friends to plan their next actions. The X-net really helps him because without it, he wpuld have to call his friends and since the DHS is so intent on watching him, his phone is probably [|bugged]. The X-net to Marcus is the only way for him to talk to his friends with out the DHS knowing that it is him talking. In //1984//, the only technology that is high-tech is the telescreen. That can be used to communicate, but in a different way. First, the guy behind the telescreen hears everything that the guy being spied on is saying and takes note on all of his valuable information. Then, he calls the thought police,if nessary, and they come and arrest the guy being spied on. Of course, in the book, this process takes only a couple of minutes and demonstrates how easily arrests like this can be done with the aid of technology. The type of technology used by the government and the civilians also varies from book to book. For //Little Brother//, the DHS can spy on people with small cameras, bugs ( for computers and phones), and can digitally track everything someone may do. In //1984//, however, the only real use of technology is the [|telescreen]. Many things can be learned from this. One such thing is that the government can spy on people with the methods that are so hard to catch that civilians could go their whole lives without even knowing. Also, the government raids people’s privacy without their consent and knowing. One example of this is airport security. Every time someone walks though a metal detector-like machine, there is a camera that takes full body pictuers ( naked pictuers) to see if there are bombs on the person. Even still, in tests, 9 out of 10 fake bombs made it on to the plane regardless of the scans. By knowing these facts, many people’s opinions have changed about giving up their rights to privacy for the false sense of security. The idea of giving up rights for a false sense of secruity is part of the background ideas that the books //Little Brother// and //1984// are based off of.

Another consequence of having too much governmental power is the possibility of ignoring the people. This idea is well presented in //Little Brother// (especially with younger generations). The government is raiding people’s privacy and most of the people in San Francisco under 25 don’t agree with the ways of the government. The popular slogan,"Don’t trust anyone over 25” soon appears all over the city. When people start retaliating like that, there obviously is a problem. But the real problem is the government not fixing the problem. They are ignoring the people. In //1984//, the case is much more severe than that in //Little Brother//. If the people even think, yes **THINK,** about speaking their minds, they are arrested, taken away, and killed (for going against the government), after horrible brainwashing techniques. Another well-presented example of a government ignoring it’s people is in //Little Brother//. When Marcus has just gone to a concert where bands playing in a park (like Woodstock) when all of a sudden, the DHS comes and orders the people to “disperse immediately ( Little Brother, Cory Doctrow, 194).” When the crowd refuses, they are gassed with pepper spray and tons of people are arrested and taken away. Unlike //Little Brother//, //1984// has no protesting in it. Any one who even thinks against the government is arrested and taken away. So naturally, the text includes little protest any that is included is very minimal and not even comparable to //Little Brother//. The last important point to make is the unfair treatment of younger generations and political minorities. In //Little Brother//, the government deliberately targets the users of the X-net. They send out white vans specially made to track and find the signals produced by the X-box. The X-netters may not be terrorists, trouble makers or any other kind of bad person. But the fact that they **MAY** be terrorists, trouble makers, or any other kind of bad person is reason enough for the government to put them away for a long time. In //1984//, there are [|classes]. The proles, the party, and the inner party. The government tells the population that they are all treated equal. But, the proles are the lowest in society and are treated as animals. The outer party aren’t treated too well either. They are rationed food and [|basic hygienic needs]. They are given [|victory gin] ( some strange drink that makes people feel better ( more of a drug) poor quality chocolate, and many other items that barley keep them alive. Meanwhile, the inner party gets fine wine, high-quality coffee, chocolate, and housing while everybody else is treated like pigs. After seeing the consequences of an over-powering government, one may still ask, “Why do some people still want to give up some of their freedoms and rights for a false sense of security?” Or “How could a government even become so corrupt?” Or even," How could the people of a nation whos government ignores them tolerate that kind of treatment? Why don't the people try to change the way the government treats them?" These are good questions and the answers may never reveal themselves. There are examples all around the world of failed governments and bad leadership. Some times it’s hard setting a good example now that half the world doesn’t like the way a country runs. But it is usually the countries that outlast the bad conformity that end up coming up on top, prospering and setting a goal for not-so-fortunate governments.

This last point doesn’t really tie in with the overpowering government idea, but is still a really important topic to talk about. All of this essay so far has been about an overpowering government and the consequences of that. But, one may ask, “How would a government become corrupt as the examples in the books?” That is a good question indeed and will be answered soon. In the book, //Little Brother//, there is a very good example of how a government may become corrupt. In the book, a terrorist group blows up a bridge with multiple explosions. The Department of Homeland Security then takes charge in San Francisco. They search people wherever they go. Then, they start arresting suspected terrorists and taking them away to be interrogated. The interrogation could last for months and by that time, they wouldn’t let someone go. This is similar to //1984// where there is a totalitarian government where no resistance is tolerated. If someone even acts strange in any way, even just a little, they can “disappear” and never be heard from again. They could be sent to a forced labor camp, or even killed. Such a government could grow in today’s modern world. If (like //Little Brother//) there is a [|terrible terrorist attack] on a country, the country would probably take measures to ensure that it wouldn’t happen again. Now, what if another [|terrorist attack] occurred of equal measure? The country would lose self-confidence and think that its security wasn’t good enough to protect it’s self. This is a common lie. The country’s safety and security is good. The problem is that there never is a 100% accurate way of catching a terrorist. The real problem comes when the country’s leaders freak out and start really enforcing safety laws that aren’t necessary. In //Little Brother//, the government starts making the police start searching every single person on the streets for bombs and other instruments of terror. There are two problems with this. The first is that if a terrorist knows that they will be searched, then he’ll know not to carry any bombs on him. The second problem is a little more complicated. It is referred to in //Little Brother// as the “[|Paradox of the False Positive] (Little Brother, Cory Doctrow, 128-129).” What it states, is that the chances of finding a terrorist in a huge crowd of people is very unlikely and extremely time consuming. To put it simply, in 1,000,000 people, 1 person is a terrorist. A test is developed to figure out whether a person is a terrorist or not. The test is 99% accurate. Once tested, out of the 1,000,000 people, 10,000 people would show up as terrorists. Now, being smart, the government knows that only one person is the terrorist. So, they conduct the test again and again narrowing down from 10,000 to 100 to 10 to 1. Now, think about how long that would take to just find **ONE** terrorist. It would take forever. It would be a complete waste of time, not to mention the fact that the terrorist might not even be in the 1,000,000 selected for the test. Or (for people who like to ponder such things) crowd control. What the government would really need to do is to just recover and unite. If the country becomes divided by fear, then it is almost like //1984// in which there are extreme social classes and inequality. Not that social classes are bad or anything, but when they are separated to such an extreme, there are the people who practically run the country, the people who just do what they say to stay alive, and the people who are treated like dirt; that’s when a society like //1984// is born.

The idea of the consequences of having too much governmental power is a reoccurring and contrasting idea in both books which also depicts the impact a governmental power on the civilians living under it. There are many consequences that can result from an overpowering government. There are also many ways in which one can be created. By staying away from division when tragedy strikes a country and not letting the terrifying concept of terrorism strike the people of a country from common sense, an overpowering government power can be easily avoided.

Works Cited