You don't suppose that VA contributes to this database whenever they do labs on Vets seeking medical help do you?
I remember reading 1984 when in high school in 1966 and feeling a chill run up my spine and thinking,"This shit can't happen."
Turns out old George was a few years off, but not by much.
As we continue progressing into the future, the one thing that people MUST be aware of is the growing disparity of force between governments and the populations that they rule over.
During the Middle Ages all the way up the end of the 19th century, that is not much of a problem. Even the totalitarian monarchies of the Renaissance had their powers highly limited because the peasantry and the general population can go toe to toe with them conventionally. The crossbow and the longbow were the great equalizer of the time, both in Europe and China. Any pikes, swords and halberds that the kings can put to use in subjugating the populace can and is often met by pike, sword and halberds from the common citizen alike.
The governments of that time simply DID NOT hold a monopoly over industry, thus their powers were severely curbed.
This changed with the advent of firearms and factories in the 19th century. Unlike earlier projectile weapons, the more advanced the firearm designs became, the more impossible it is for the average citizen to be able to manufacture a gun himself, unlike bows, swords and spears. Samuel Colt may have made men equal, but as it turns out, those who can control industrial production is more equal than others. Gun factories can easily be monopolized and controlled by governments, thus enabling them to completely restrict their supply to the hands of the ordinary civilians.
The year 1934 marks the startling and apparent growing disparity between the rulers and the subjects. With the passing of the National Firearms Act, we have seen just how easy it is for a government, with one single stroke of a pen, make items that were once common into highly illegal contraband overnight and turn ordinary citizens into felons.
Today, while monarchies and theocracies are no longer in vogue in the Western world and East Asia, it is far more easier for "democracies" and "republics" to become totalitarian to degrees we cannot even imagine, simply because of the disparity of force between the rulers and the subjects. Even in many regions of the United States, where most people can own semiautomatic rifles and standard capacity feeding devices, there is still a considerable gap between the armed citizenry and government entities, the latter which can field armored vehicles, drones, satellites and machine guns at will.
As we continue to go forward, this disparity between the rulers and the subjects will only increase. We have seen how easy it is to wipe out targets with surgical precision from a drone whose operator can be thousands of miles away. Likewise, we have seen how easy it is for governments and corporations to employ electronic surveillance on every corner of their domains and maintain up to date databases on entire populations.
Many dystopian science fiction stories have already predicted this abuse of power, and as the ability to monitor and control people and deliver overwhelming firepower at the click of a button continues to get better and better, it is only natural that these things WILL be used against people.
The fact that the citizens can still be armed with weapons similar to that which is used by government forces in most areas of the United States and certain other countries help keep would-be tyrants in constant hesitation. As technology continue to widen the disparity of force between governments and their subjects, the ONLY thing that will keep people safe is the ability to KILL the armed agents sent by governments to brutalize them. Robert A. Heinlein has stated that violence, sheer naked force, have solved more problems than anything else in history. And THAT will remain true, no matter how distant in the future we go to.
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