To Orwell Today,

Dear Jackie,

Habari za siku nyingi.

Once again I visited your website. I like the news posted there but I suggest you install a search bar on your website. This can help a lot to locate the news that someone wants to peruse through. Another humble suggestion is that your website would allow posting comments directly not necessarily writing to orwelltoday at gmail dot com. For instance, there are some postings I don't agree upon but I don't have an option to post my timely comment -- I understand how much time it takes you to do so, but that could mean a lot to the readers.

A final suggestion is the way you order the news posts -- Don't you think it could be easier for the reader to locate the news in appropriate headings? I mean here like Economy, Society, Peace, Justice, Politics, Business, Tourism, etc... instead of saying that the postings are chosen for their similarity to concepts presented in "1984" from 1 to 45 topics -- My concern is that the website is too much stuffed while the 45 topics may at least be grouped under 8 major headings.

Well, that's my subjective point of view -- you can adopt it in case you find it useful in terms of readers' common interests.

Still, I am proud of your work. I appreciate it so much. Together we can make the neo-liberal capitalist world fair. We can turn profit maximization into human interests, we can turn war funding into peacemaking. We can instead assist the stunting children in the Global South who are dying of hunger; and have the majority of population there have their health needs met. We can sensitize them more to have their numbers of birth reduced by properly practicing birth limitations. We can change the world into a proud, non-discriminating place for everybody (be they Southern or Northern/Western national) to enjoy and feel safe. We may oppose and ban the unequal economic/trade relations created by the hegemonic institutions of the Western governments via the UN, WTO, WB, and IMF. We can convince China to recognize the rights of workers while taking over business in Africa, and the EU to stop spreading one-sided trade partnerships with Africa and Asia.

Thank you for taking my suggestion into consideration.

Nelson Juve Mugarura
The Netherlands

Greetings Nelson,

I recall our previous discussion in the email exchange WORKING FOR ORWELL & JFK.

I agree with you that a search-engine on the website would be helpful and that dividing topics into broader headings could also help readers locate stories of particular interest to them.

However, there are so many topics on ORWELL TODAY that the headings would be hard to categorize, although geographically could be considered, ie Australia to Zimbabwe and everything in between.

I realize that many people who read ORWELL TODAY are interested only in issues related to their particular country or continent of origin and perhaps get frustrated when their little corner of the world isn't in the news under TODAY'S ORWELL.

Your suggestion that I create a forum where readers could write to the website directly, without my having any control over what gets posted, has been made a few times over the years, but is not something I'm considering. I'm not interested in, nor do I have the time, to read posts from people chatting amongst themselves, and wouldn't want to publish email I hadn't read. But if a reader has something to say that contributes value to the discussion - on the hundreds of topics raised on ORWELL TODAY - then they are welcome to write me personally and I'll post their comments for the benefit of all.

I do appreciate your having taken the time to write in with your comments and suggestions - and I'll give some thought to creating a search-engine on the website, something I agree it should have. In the meantime, I suggest people go to the ARCHIVES or COMMENTARY & ESSAYS sections of ORWELL TODAY where they can cursor down until they come to headings of topics that relate to what in particular they're looking for. Articles are listed in chronoligical order - the most recent at the top - and although not the greatest search system, is better than nothing at all. I used to do far more cross-referencing under the 45-Orwellian themes and essays, and under the other categories listed along the left-side of the Home Page. But over the past few years I've let the filing slide somewhat. There's just so much time in the day that can be devoted to upkeep of the website - above and beyond the research, writing and posting of new stories - and some areas don't get the attention they once did.

I am, as Orwell so described himself in "1984" -- "a minority of one" operation. And Orwellian events aren't slowing down, they're speeding up.

Amahoro,
Jackie Jura

RWANDA'S  GOOD  MAN KAGAME

COMMENTARY & ESSAYS & ORWELL TODAY ARCHIVES

Jackie Jura
~ an independent researcher monitoring local, national and international events ~

email: orwelltoday@gmail.com
HOME PAGE
website: www.orwelltoday.com