Let's go back to your freshman year of high school. Let's go back to your English class. It's time to read George Orwell's Animal Farm. You remember the pigs and the socialism. You remember the animals revolted against the farmer, and then they set up their own government. You remember that in the end, there was no distinguishing the humans from the pigs who were now in control.
But let's go back and look a little deeper. I'm sure you remember that it was a fable where Manor Farm symbolically represented Russia and the Soviet Union. On a broader level, however, it can represent any government when there are not checks and balances, and when the people do not question or hold their government accountable for their actions.
After the animals overthrew Mr. Jones and took hold of the farm, the animals went on a victory march around the perimeter of the farm. Napoleon, the seemingly benevolent leader, stayed back from the parade. When the animals come back, they notice that the milk is gone, but no one questions it. They are just so excited to have overthrown the evil Mr. Jones.
Without going into a full-on summary of the book, Napoleon takes more and more power from the animals. It's for their own good, he tells them. He's smarter than they are, he says, so he needs to make the decisions. The other animals may make the wrong choices, he tells them. He is so good at gaslighting them, the animals don't question Napoleon; they question themselves. They question their fellow animals. The animals are so terrified of Mr. Jones coming back, or some other threat to their safety, they will do anything to make sure they are safe—even allow Napoleon to tyrannize them. He eliminates his opposition, and he has Squealer, the media, on his side to make sure the animals always feel sufficient fear. Without the fear, they may question Napoleon's power. He institutes various government programs that seem to better the animals and the farm, but he eventually takes absolute power, and he has been corrupted absolutely.
While Animal Farm was written more than 150 years after our Constitution, the framers of our Constitution were well aware of human nature. They knew we were ultimately selfish, and we desire power over others. Any elementary playground can prove this true. The founding fathers built our Constitution with this in mind, and they guaranteed our rights as humans in the Bill of Rights—and that the government should never be able to violate those rights, because they were given to us by our Creator.
What is going on right now in America with the Coronavirus is leading America down a slippery slope of rights violation. What happened in Animal Farm is so hard for our generation to comprehend ever happening in America. It seems ludicrous. We are a free country. Sure, we argue left vs. right, but we're far from tyranny or overthrowing our government. The restrictions are for our own good. Sound familiar yet?
But as an English teacher, I ask the question, "What was Napoleon's first abuse of power?" Many students will say it was when he appointed himself leader, or when he killed a certain animal, or when he took over the farmhouse. That wasn't it. His first abuse of power was when he drank the milk while everyone else was gone. From that moment on, the door was open for him to do whatever he wanted. No one questioned it, and he could take tiny bits of power whenever he wanted—unquestioned.
Our government—federal, state, municipal—drank the milk when they gave the executive orders to shut down private businesses, to prohibit church services, to close schools and parks, and on and on. So few people are questioning where the milk went, much less telling our elected officials they can't drink the milk.
I can hear it now. “But these restrictions are for the public safety!” “If everyone would just do it anyway, we wouldn’t have to have restrictions!” I get it. I do. In many cases, you’re right. People are stupid, and they aren’t taking this virus seriously enough. But governmental control is not the answer. And the last point that I’ve heard cried, “You must want people to die, then!” is so far from the truth. I don’t want people to die—that’s absurd. I am, however, looking past this “pandemic” to what our country could look like after unprecedented power is handed over to the government. If we allow this to happen, millions of people can die from oppression and tyranny.
Everyone is in fear of Mr. Jones coming back—or in this case, of catching the Coronavirus—that some people are shoving the milk in our officials' faces begging them to drink it. Begging for police officers to shut down gatherings of more than a couple people, begging for mayors to shut down city parks, and begging governors to shut down state parks. Begging for streets to be patrolled because people aren’t standing far enough apart.
In many cases, you’re right—these restrictions aren’t really *that* bad. But the problem is that we MUST question it. We *must* stand firm against taking away our freedoms. We must not hand over our rights blindly. Any loss of liberty, however small, is still a loss of liberty. It's a slippery slope, because once officials have drank the milk, they won't give up that power easily.
As Howard Zinn said, "Historically, the most terrible things--war, genocide, and slavery--have resulted not from disobedience, but from obedience." And Zinn was a socialist. But he understood that if we don't question our authority, they will take ALL authority.
