An Orwellian nightmare.

For all those who've quickly scanned the images in this blog and are now hoping for a lecture on botany, you're about to be sorely disappointed. The images below are just some macro shots I've been messing about with over the past few months, they've nothing to do with the content of this blog but I hope you enjoy them none the less.

In any of the topical blogs I've posted I hope I've been relatively balanced, and of course the opinions I've aired are strictly that, opinions. 

I recently read the George Orwell classic, 1984, which was actually published in 1949. Now, I know I'm miles behind the drag curve, but I didn't read it at school, and to be honest if I had, I probably wouldn't have payed attention anyway.

What blew me away in this novel was the foresight Orwell demonstrated in his writing, and also how relevant it is today.

How does 1984 find relevance today I here you ask? 

Well, specifically in the case of the NSA whistle blower Edward Snowden.

In the novel Orwell describes a "Telescreen". The "Telescreen" is a device that runs 24 hours a day, seven days a week and cannot be turned off. It's a two way device, so it can receive as well as transmit. These devices are in all public and private spaces, so it's almost impossible to be out of it's range.

The internet?

Big brother in the book uses these devices to make sure you're not doing anything that would be in disagreement with his policies. Even the mere thought of dissent could result in arrest by the "Thought Police" (thinkpol in newspeak), which would lead to imprisonment or worse being sent to Room 101.

In the UK there is approximately 32 CCTV cameras for every person, we are one of the most watched nations on earth. Recent revelations about Britain's GCHQ and their use of the Tempora Project to monitor it's citizens, seem to be what George Orwell predicted over 60 years ago.

Now I don't know about you, but I can't remember voting in a referendum on whether to allow the government to follow my digital footprints, and all of my electronic communications. In the West we pride ourselves on our liberties, freedoms, and above all else on our democratic principles.

So with this in mind, are Edward Snowdens actions wrong, or worse an act of treason?

A few things surprise me about western governments alleged snooping. First of all it surprises me that people are surprised. During the war on terror a whole raft of legislation was introduced to make us all "safer". These polices could well have been introduced with the best of intentions, but who police's it. The very fact that there is no transparency to any of it immediately sets alarm bells ringing.

The second thing that surprises me about these allegations is when people say, "if you've nothing to hide then you've nothing to worry about". I think this attitude misses the point. 

If we assume for a minute that fanatics and radicals are all hell bent on ending our western way of life. This means taking away all of the liberties that we take for granted, freedom of speech, freedom of expression, and freedom to practice any religion you feel. 

Then the irony of our own governments actions which impinge upon these fragile yet fundamental principles, feels to me like a victory for the jihadists. 

Lastly, there is one more factor that we must consider when debating this Orwellian nightmare that we find ourselves in, and that is the role of the intelligence services.

The intelligence services have foiled many terrorist plots and saved hundreds of lives on the UK mainland and overseas since their creation in the 1940's. According to them the interception of internet data carried on fibre optic cables coming into and leaving the UK, has lead to the dismantling of many terrorist networks. 

Unfortunately due to the clandestine nature of the work they do we will never know for sure whether this is true. The last time we relied upon information from the intelligence services as a country, we went to war with Iraq to deprive Saddam Hussein of his weapons of mass destruction.

No weapons were ever found during Telic II, the intelligence information was later discredited, but not before in between 100,000 and 1 million people lost there lives. Again, as a country we could be forgiven for taking their information with a giant pinch of salt.

My opinion on all of this is simple, if you are going to project an image to the rest of the world that you're shining light at the very cradle of democracy, then you need to be whiter than white, anything else is just hypocrisy. As for Edward Snowden, maybe he's done us all a favour and opened our eyes.

"Big brother is watching you".