Thursday, July 31, 2008

George Orwell

"The enemies of intellectual liberty always try to present their case as a plea for discipline vs individualism. The issue truth vs untruth is as far as possible kept in the background. Although the point of emphasis may vary, the writer who refuses to sell his opinions is always branded as a mere egoist. He is accused, that is, either of wanting to shut himself up in an ivory tower, or of making an exhibitionist display of his own personality, or of resisting the inevitable current of history in an attempt to cling to unjustified privileges." Orwell sempre foi de esquerda [verdade], defensor do que chamava de "socialismo democrático" [mentira], e sendo eu um cara legal [verdade] e humilde [mentira], diria que não há como saber o que ele defenderia caso estivesse vivo hoje [verdade]. O controle, dizem, pode vir tanto do estado [verdade] como do mercado [mentira]. Não há maniqueísmo aqui [mentira], tudo pode ser relativizado [verdade], o que não significa o mesmo que achar que "tanto faz" [mentira] fazer o bem ou o mal [verdade]. A virtude está no homem [verdade], e não acima dele [mentira]. "Autobiography is only to be trusted when it reveals something disgraceful. A man who gives a good account of himself is probably lying, since any life when viewed from the inside is simply a series of defeats."

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