Thursday 22 May 2008

1984, 20 Years After - Mind Conrol In The US


The KGB with their magnetic tape reel based telephone eavesdropping system and a creaking network of volunteer informers could never even start dreaming of this extent of mind and soul penetration. These paragraphs read like a cyber-punk sequel of Orwell's 1984:

"As Michael Turk, the Bush-Cheney e-campaign director in 2004 explained, the Republicans were able to mobilise their supporters through a combination of email lists and internet 'data mining'.

They identified potential Republican supporters in every precinct around the country, using technology which predicts voter preferences on the basis of commercial data on car ownership, magazine subscriptions, and the like.

And then they sent their campaign volunteers detailed instructions on who to visit, including local maps of the area and walking routes, and issues that each potential voter was likely to be most concerned about."

Truly, the winner takes on the worst qualities from the defeated.

No comments: