Sadly, it looks like Lenin was right...

Vladimir Lenin, noted advocate of the press is quoted as saying:

Why should freedom of speech and freedom of the press be allowed? Why should a government which is doing what it believes to be right allow itself to be criticized? It would not allow opposition by lethal weapons. Ideas are much more fatal things than guns. Why should a man be allowed to buy a printing press and disseminate pernicious opinions calculated to embarrass the government?

So have things changed since he said this? Well, unfortunately, no. TPM Muckracker has an incredibly disturbing story: Bush Admin: What You Don't Know Can't Hurt Us.

Basically, someone noticed that after issuing monthly reports on the number of attacks in Iraq since the war began, DoD suddenly declared these reports "classified" since September of this year. Curiosity as to what triggered this change led, as such things often do, to discovering an extraordinary pattern of conduct when it comes to reports/studies/commissions/etc. that produce (or may produce) data the administration does not want to hear (and/or want you to hear).

Some examples:

When a gov. report showed an increase in global terrorism in 2005, the Admin. announced it would stop publishing the report.

When the Bur. of Labor Statistics reported a significant increase in the number of factory closings in the US, the Admin. announced it would stop publishing information about factory closings.

When the Dept. of Eduction found that charter schools were underperforming, the Admin. announced it would sharply curtail the amount of information it collects on charter schools.

The EPA announced plans to close several libraries used by researchers and scientists. The agency claimed it was a cost-cutting measure...which conflicts with a 2004 report indicating that the facilities *made* the EPA a $7.5MM surplus annually.

And, of course, on November 1st, 2001, President Bush issued an executive order limiting the public's access to presidential records. This order undermined the 1978 Presidential Records Act, which required the release of such records after 12 years. Bush's order prevented the release of "68,000 pages of confidential communications between President Ronald Reagan and his advisers" (some of whom had positions in the Bush Administration).

There are many other examples. It depresses me. I want to rant about it...but lack the energy. I think I will just go reread 1984, curl up into a fetal position and wait for this to be over.