Comrades of the social network, I feel the need to share this beautifully observed

cartoon by Comrade Stuart McMillen which compares and contrasts the concerns of
Comrades Aldous Huxley and George Orwell. Perhaps when you have read this, you
might consider which of these dystopian scenarios will be on the menu for Vietnam?
Hmmm. . . it could go either way, or do you really think we are in for the Huxley Pie?

Vietnam is a far cry from Orwell's scenario of a society completely "deprived of

information". Recent "Cimigo" statistics would have it that Vietnam has experienced
one of the fastest growths in internet use in South East Asia, outdoing it's neighbours
like Thailand and the Philippines. 50 percent of urban Vietnam is regularly online and
the figure is higher in Hanoi. 70 percent of web users use emails frequently to
communicate and half of the users, aged between 15-24, use chat on a daily basis.
Blogging has become extremely popular in Vietnam , despite the risks of arrest. People
from Hai Phong or Hanoi, we are told by "Cimigo", use blogs and forums most often.

"Zing" leads the way in online entertainment in Vietnam. 1 in 4 users have used "Zing"
websites: nearly half among the 15-24 age group again. "Yahoo" is the preferred
communication provider, while "Google" maintains a high-profile-post-Chinese-bad-boy
status as the most popular search engine.

Half of Vietnamese web users think that they can buy a wide choice of products on the
internet yet only around 15% think that it is safe to buy products online. However in an
Orwellian twist, the internet is regarded as less reliable than the newspapers. They
search, they see but they don't believe in the Brave New World just yet. How many of
you Comrades can use "Facebook" here in Vietnam, incidentally?

"The infinite appetite for distraction" is loud and clear, Comrades- but is it the kind of
distraction that can suddenly dissipate social disparity, poverty, discrimination, poor
health and lack of education? Can the trivialities of this new culture numb society to
such an extent that they are indeed going to be lost in "a sea of irrelevance"? It is at
once impossible and easy to imagine, Comrades. Difficult to imagine from the point of
view of the have-nots here in Vietnam but all too possible from that of those who have.
Do you see what I mean, Comrades? The menu is going to have to be both Huxley and
Orwell here for a good while yet.

I wonder if this dystopian forecast for Vietnam, has parallels with the microcosm of my
world at 'The Ministry' here? Just recently 'The Ministry' has issued its thrice yearly
pamphlet: "Speculum", which delves into some of the activities and initiatives achieved
during the last administration period. Through this particular organ, the propaganda
machine of the Central Committee and the Politburo succeeds in representing the
glossy world that the elite, young Party recruits enjoy at 'The Ministry'. One of it's aims
is to increase membership, increase subscribers to 'The Ministry's' diet, and win new
sympathisers and contacts. And like a thin veneer, it does a very convincing job.
Alas real life at 'The Ministry' is both Huxley and Orwell serves in equal measure. Just
as Huxley envisaged, many of the young recruits model the very top end leadership's
example of reducing experiences to "passivity and egotism". It seems that we cannot
accomplish 'real' achievements unless we are indeed photographed, videoed or
interviewed as we set about trying to achieve them. An expectation which is
perpetuated by the self -satisfied General Secretary and the Politburo Head. Our
Politburo Head practically wets himself when a new issue of "Speculum" is released,
never mind his literary pamphlet "Navel (Gazing)". However in weird juxtaposition, this
pair of senior Party figures still live in "1984" it seems, as their treatment of 'The
Ministry' staff without whom such organs could not exist at all, is as about Orwellian as
you can get. Through nepotism, coercion, cliques, ostracism and intimidation, Party
members negotiate their career paths and somehow remember to tow the Party line.
Sound familiar Comrades?

I think it was Harry Truman who once said: "It is amazing what you can accomplish if
you do not care who gets the credit".