Despite protestations to the contrary on January 23, 1984 by Apple Computer, the rise of the Macintosh has not kept us from moving closer to an Orwellian society, at least in terms of available technology. And now, the war footing threatens to create a situation uncannily familiar to readers of the book ("we have always been at war with Eurasia").

The ACLU has released a report entitled Bigger Monster, Weaker Chains:The Growth of an American Surveillance Society (available here in PDF only), that describes in detail the availability of the technological tools necessary for a 1984-level of surveillance, some potential examples of the misuse of the technology, and their thoughts on the kinds of legislation necessary to keep us from becoming like 1984.

If you don't want to read the entire 23-page document, Wired.com has an article that hits the high-points.