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Title: Big Brother was watching George Orwell for 'communist views'
Source:
This is London
URL Source: http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/ ... views'/article.do?ito=newsnow&
Published: Sep 3, 2007
Author: staff
Post Date: 2007-09-03 20:55:41 by Eoghan
Keywords: None
Views: 241
Comments: 11
His chilling portrait of the Big Brother state in the novel 1984 is lauded as visionary. But it seems George Orwell was under extensive surveillance himself years before he chronicled the fictional ordeal of Winston Smith at the hands of the Ministry of Truth. Secret files released by the National Archive yesterday reveal that MI5 and Special Branch suspected the writer of harbouring 'advanced communist views' and kept him under close scrutiny. From the newspapers he read to his style of dress, few aspects of his life escape the microscope. There is little recognition of the literary talents of the author, whose real name was Eric Arthur Blair. In a Special Branch report written by a Sergeant Ewing in 1941, eight years before the publication of 1984, he is dismissively described as having 'written a few books under the name of Orwell'. At this stage of his career, these would have included Down And Out In Paris And London, The Road To Wigan Pier and Homage To Catalonia, all now classics. The report focuses on his time working at the BBC in London, producing news for India. It says that, prior to joining the corporation, Orwell 'eked a precarious living as a freelance journalist'. "This man has advanced communist views, and several of his Indian friends say they have often seen him at communist meetings. "He dresses in a bohemian fashion, both in his office and in his leisure hours." Even his first wife Eileen comes under suspicion, and was heavily vetted when she applied for a job at the Ministry of Food in 1942. A Whitehall official telephoned Special Branch to seek clarification on Orwell's political beliefs, and wrote of his findings in 1942. "I spoke to Inspector Gill of Special Branch asking whether his sergeant could elaborate on the question of Blair's 'advanced communist views',' the civil servant reports. Mr Gill explained that his sergeant thought Orwell was 'an unorthodox communist' holding many of their views but not subscribing fully to the party's policy. Orwell was also tracked in Wigan where he wrote The Road To Wigan Pier. A report by local police says: "It would appear from his mode of living that he is an author, or has some connection with literary work as he devotes most of his time in writing. "He has collected an amount of local data, eg number of churches, public houses, population, etc, and is in receipt of an unusual amount of correspondence. "He had also been asking about local mines and factories." 66; A nudist magazine provided diverting reading for British intelligence officers hunting wartime spies, the files reveal. Hans Larsen, a Nazi agent captured in Sweden, was suspected of sending messages to his spymasters by writing with a toothpick dipped in heated wax on the pages of The Naturist. Agents were said to have made several enthusiastic attempts to find the messages on a copy of the magazine found in Larsen's possession, but were unsuccessful. They did discover, however, that Larsen sent messages in invisible ink in letters to his wife. If a letter included a secret communique he would spell out the date in full, such as 20th April 1945. If it did not he would abbreviate it to 20.4.45. Poster Comment: The still classified info is what happened to Blair for him to start spilling Bolshevik insider methods...
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#7. To: Eoghan (#0)
In my last year of High School I had a friend tell a recruiter off by saying that America should stop invading nations that most people can't find on a map (He was referencing the Balkins mess) A few weeks later his brother, who was in the ROTC and working at a recruiting office, pulling his file and found the caption (Anti-Government Communist. Do not call again) next to his name. Funny, Commies love government and spreading their ideals at gunpoint. Orwell was no more a communist than my friend. In the 1930's Orwell fought for the Anarchists in Spain and there came to despise the oppressive nature of the USSR and began to critizise them openly.
I find it the height of hilarity that gubmint loving reichwinger lickspittles call those who dislike the Federal Government to be "communists". In reality- American reichwingers differ very little from Russian Stalinists. Both worship a central government and identify patriotism with obeying that auhtority. Both are childishly militaristic- fetishizing all things military and warlike. Both esteem the secret police and romanticize them with inane fictions like Jack Bauer. That recruiter should have labeled your brother "anti government patriot" and called himself what he is- a gubmint man- a stooge- a bureaucrat- a parasite.
It wasn't me It was my friend who had his brother pull the file for a lark. It worked, though. After that none of the 4 branches ever called him again. I'll tell you one thing, I'm not worried about a draft and I have right here the quickest way to get rid of recruiters. Just tell them you are overweight (which in the late 1990's I had plenty more extra fat than I do now) I only ever took one phone call from a recruiter and when I told him I was rather hefty he said "I'm sorry" in the same tone that someone would say they were sorry your entire family was burned alive in a plane crash. Forget running to Canada or shooting yourself in the foot. Just go on a Big Mac binge. Of course I do know one guy, who after being drafted for Vietnam, showed up at the induction center with a head full of LSD. Needless to say They booted him back out the door 5 minutes later and never called him back again. I still remember those ASVAB tests my Jr. or Sr. Year. We all thought they were a big joke, but both the staff and the Military Jackboots there to administer them made it crystal clear we had no choice in the matter. Joke is on them. Most of my friends and I made sure to answer as many questions wrong as we could. Even at 17-18 years old we were all smart enough to know that those tests could come back to haunt us in the event of a draft. If I had it to do over again I would have refused the test (which they said we could not do) and told the nearest G.I. that in the event of a draft the first guy to knock on my door better be wearing a flak jacket.
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Top • Page Up • Full Thread • Page Down • Bottom/LatestSecret files released by the National Archive yesterday reveal that MI5 and Special Branch suspected the writer of harbouring 'advanced communist views' and kept him under close scrutiny.
#10. To: Pissed Off Janitor (#7)
#11. To: Burkeman1 (#10)
That recruiter should have labeled your brother "anti government patriot" and called himself what he is- a gubmint man- a stooge- a bureaucrat- a parasite.
Replies to Comment # 11.