As Spartacus Before Us

Gone are the days of writers such as Romain Rolland, the lonely voices of reason, who stood against wars, lies, and slavery of thought. This is the age of novelists (who shall remain nameless here) who cheer degenerate policies of our "leaders", of aggression in all forms, and of mass blinding of populations by doublespeak. It was why this chance encounter with the now obscure, but once revered writer was such a refreshing read: The Yellow Cross, by Andrzej Strug is as enjoyable a suspense, as it is thought-provoking in its strong antiwar message. The novel can be summarized in this short snippet:

"As Spartacus did in the ancient time, when he organized the slaves to rise against Rome, so shall we, the soldiers, rise up today against our generals."

I'm not sure whether the novel is available in the English language - it should be, as it is well worth a read.

###END OF POST###
www.SPYWRITER.com

Omnipresence of spies and informants

On the occasion of last month's 50th anniversary of construction of the Berlin Wall the press published pieces on the omnipresence of spies and snitches for dictatorial regimes, such as that of East Germany's, taking aim at Stasi. Its spies and informants penetrated every aspect of society, from professional groups to the bedrooms:

"Just to have an idea of the magnitude of interference, the Stasi used a network of informants in a ration of one in ninety East German citizens."

To illustrate the pervasive nature of Stasi's spy network, the Washington Post quoted the Cold War bureau chief of Associated Press, who doubled as a spy for U.S. intelligence...

Ah, the pervasiveness of spies and informants in dictatorial countries!

Source: http://communities.washingtontimes.com/neighborhood/israel-goodwill/2011/aug/15/berlin-wall-and-stasi-most-powerful-espionage-serv/