SEND ORWELL to CONGRESS! BOOKS for BOZOS! CONTRIBUTIONS WELCOME

From an unsigned editorial in the Oakland Tribune December 23rd:

".... We think it's time for Congress to heed the warning of George Orwell.
"To that end, we're asking for your help: Mail us or drop off your tattered copies of "1984." When we get 537 of them, we'll send them to every member of the House of Representatives and Senate and to President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney.
"Feel free to inscribe the book with a note, reminding these fine people that we Americans take the threat to our liberties seriously. Remind Congress that it makes no sense to fight a war for democracy in a foreign land while allowing our democratic principles to erode at home.
"Remind President Bush that ours is a country of checks and balances, not unbridled power. Perhaps our nation's leaders can find some truth in this fiction and more carefully ponder the road we're traveling.
"Bring or mail your books to the Oakland Tribune, 401 13th St., Oakland CA 94612. Doors are open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m."

I finally replaced my rummage sale, falling apart copy of "1984" (BTW, anybody know how to underline or italicize text on Blogspot?) with a newer paperback. It shouldn't be that much trouble to do this directly.
Poor George Orwell/Eric Blair must keep spinning in his unquiet grave. Everyone wants to claim him. This is relatively easy to do, if you only read the parts that you want. Myself, I'm including him in The Lungers' Hall of Fame, a sort of Valhalla where I'll play cards with Blair, Doc Holliday, Dashiell Hammett, O'Neill, Proust, Mimi and Camille, and all the other tuberculars and asthmatics of history. Why do we cough so much? Because the world is suffocating us.

1 comment:

Michael Fountain: Blood for Ink said...

Man, I've tried ctrl/i, ctrl/u, I've done everything except buy it a hooker and the breakfast special at Denny's, and I can't get this thing to underline or italicize novel and film titles. maybe that's what the bracket i command is for... no, I guess not.
Mike