Al Franken straight talk about our present predicament.

[SleeplessinSoCal]

Al Franken explains why MAGA Republicans are as dangerously 'Orwellian' as the Kremlin

“.....Trump lied thousands and thousands of times throughout the presidency, from the size of his inaugural crowd all the way through to the Big Lie that the election was stolen,” Franken explains. “And of course, he has no intentions to stop. Now, here’s the thing: Two-thirds of Republicans now believe the Big Lie.”

The right-wing media ecosystem, according to Franken, has as blatant a disregard for the truth as state-operated Kremlin media in Russia.

“What strikes me now at this moment — this horribly tragic moment in Ukraine — is that what we are seeing in Russia, where its people are being told and believing that their army is fighting Nazis, is not that far from the Big Lie,” Franken warns. “How far are we really from ‘1984,’ where one of our two political parties attempts to overturn an election with an act of political violence…. How far are they away from Orwell’s thought police and the ministry of truth? How far is 2022 from ‘1984?’

https://www.alternet.org/2022/04/al-franken-explains-why-maga-republicans-are-as-dangerously-orwellian-as-the-kremlin/

[Boomerproud]

1. Many of us have been referencing 1984 since 2015.

It started before that but not in such ferocity. 😥😡

[SleeplessinSoCal]

2. "1984" is a guidebook for despots.

Just as "All in the Family" wound up a rorschach test. Archie was an idiot bigot to the libs. And a regular guy dealing with his woke daughter and husband to repubs.

[iluvtennis]

5. Good analogy. n/t

[DENVERPOPS]

4. I have thought

that ANIMAL FARM, especially the characters, more closely followed the Trump years..........LOL

I have felt for many years that Orwell had it mostly right in 1984. But felt, especially in recent years that it wasn't the people vs government as portrayed in 1984, but in reality we were facing people vs Corporations (and THEIR accelerating control over government)

In 1963, when I was in the eighth grade, our Social Studies teacher made four books required reading. Animal Farm, 1984, The Jungle, and The Ugly American. He almost got fired for it. He pounded civics into our brains. He made us memorize the preamble to the constitution?, the bill of rights?, the opening of the Gettysburg address?, and the beginning of the declaration of independence?
I think that is right, it has been quite a few years ago...... Interestingly, we were in his class when a messenger came in with the news of JFK's assassination.

Believe it or not, that teacher was a Republican I found out in later years when I had HIM in class for a Continuing Education class HE had to take. I complimented him heavily in front of all the other teachers for all the History & Civics that he had drilled into our heads.

[no_hypocrisy]

3. Trump not only lied. He made opinion into fact.

Yesterday, I spent an entire period stressing to my fifth grade class the differences between fact and opinion.

Trump would bloviate his misguided opinions and then those opinions would be presented as verified facts.

No wonder 75% of the GOP believed/believes him.

[2naSalit]

6. +1