Long ago, in what seems another lifetime, one of my early boyfriends introduced me to a faux-Latin phrase: “Illegitimi non carborundum.“ It is translated as, “Don’t let the bastards wear you down”; and while I no longer recall the context in which he said it, over the years it has proven to be good advice.

Eric Arthur Blair — better known to the world as George Orwell, author of the dystopian classic “1984” — wrote of a world in which survival depended upon infinite patience and the ability to resist authoritarian control and a constant barrage of lies and propaganda.

In “1984” — a futuristic novel published in 1949, the year before his untimely death from tuberculosis — the world as he imagined it might become is described as follows:

“Every record has been destroyed or falsified, every book rewritten, every picture has been repainted, every statue and street building has been renamed, every date has been altered. And the process is continuing day by day and minute by minute. History has stopped. Nothing exists except an endless present in which the Party is always right.”

– George Orwell, “1984”

He may well have been foretelling the state of the Soviet Union in the second half of the 20th century. But consider also the United States in 2025, where:

. . . records have been destroyed or falsified (think of the Epstein files, among others);

. . . “offending” exhibits are being removed from the Smithsonian Institution;

. . . “woke” programming is being eliminated from the Kennedy Center;

. . . buildings — again, including the Kennedy Center — are being emblazoned with the leader’s name;

. . . statues and portraits of “unacceptable” historical figures are being torn down;

. . . facts are being haphazardly erased or misquoted; and

. . . lies are being spouted as gospel.

All as foreseen by George Orwell more than 75 years ago.

If you have never read “1984,” you should, before it’s too late. (The book is infinitely better than the film versions.) And even if you have read it, read it again. After three-fourths of a century, Orwell’s stark warnings ring truer than ever.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
12/21/25