Posted by jsm on June 11, 2001 at 08:50:54:
Lord forbid that anyone attempt to discuss George Orwell on this homework assignment discussion board :)
However, I was wondering if any of the regulars would be interested in a short colloquium on the latest addition to the front page. Personally, although it is entirely clear what GO would have thought of the overall politics of the gang at "Stentorian", I can't help but think that he would not becessarily have disagreed with some of the points they make. Orwell was distinctly anti-totalitarian; it's difficult to see how he would not have been opposed to firearms regulation in the USA. The only references for the contrary case I can think of are in "Raffles and Miss Blandish", where he sets out an _aesthetic_ distaste for the "Stentorian" kind of person.
The comparison between the more self-serving wing of the Civil Rights movement (specifically, Rev. Jesse and his Rainbow money-gathering organisation, or Dees and the SPLC) and Squealer's protestations about the possible return of Jones, also strikes me as well-drawn.
What do others think?