In George Orwell’s 1948 novel, 1984, the concept of “Big Brother” became the universal slogan for the surveillance state. Orwell used very little actual science fiction technology in his novel. But there was one prominent exception: the telescreen. Every home had a device that sent information (or disinformation) and also spied on the dwellers. This permitted the government, through this network, to not only gather intelligence, but to manipulate and control the people. Even though it was crude and simple, Orwell’s imagination seems to have truly brought him close to how governments would adapt to communication technology. Exhibit A: the Pentagon and Social Media. Joe Wolverton writes at the New American: While Cornell University continues denying that it received any money from the Pentagon to pay for its study of emotional manipulation on Facebook, turns out that it is taking Defense Department dollars to conduct similar studies. According to a story published online by The Atlantic, the Pentagon is paying Cornell researchers to conduct “analysis of social network posts for “sentiment,” i.e. how people are feeling, in the hopes of identifying social “tipping points.” The list of “tipping points” on the website for the Pentagon’s Minerva Initiative includes “the 2011 Egyptian revolution, the 2011 Russian Duma elections, the 2012 Nigerian fuel subsidy crisis and the 2013 Gazi park protests in Turkey.” Why is the military so interested in identifying these tipping points? The Minerva Initiative website offers this explanation: The Department of Defense is interested in innovative frameworks and new data that may assist policymakers in developing improved methods for anticipating and identifying potential areas of unrest, instability, and conflict. Insights may inform strategic thinking about resource allocation for defense efforts and humanitarian aid as well as insights for national policy and engagement with both state and non-state actors…. For those unfamiliar with the globalist jargon, “non-state actors” are individuals and groups not associated with official governments. In other words: you and I. Read more at politicaloutcast/2014/07/independence-day-thirty-years-pentagon-big-brother-side-screen/#UboItiQshzxtCHH8.99
Posted on: Sat, 05 Jul 2014 18:18:09 +0000
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