What do you think?
Rate this book
The Cosmic Eye
Morris should have functioned perfectly in the rigid totalitarian society of the future where every thought, evey word, every action was controlled by the superstate. A state where everyone was watched night and day by the Great Eye of the internal security forces,It was a strange, in many ways inhuman world, but the rewards were great for those who belonged to the right caste.Morris belonged to the master class which ruled the entire world by brain power or brutality depending on which was needed. Morris was born right at the top - he had everything the Technate Society could provide - and yet he didn't belong.Nonconformity could mena liquidation, but he was prepared to take the risk.
- GenresScience FictionFiction
157 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published September 1, 1969
1 person is currently reading
56 people want to read
About the author
Mack Reynolds
509 books43 followersDallas McCord "Mack" Reynolds was an American science fiction writer. His pen names included Clark Collins, Mark Mallory, Guy McCord, Dallas Ross and Maxine Reynolds. Many of his stories were published in "Galaxy Magazine" and "Worlds of If Magazine". He was quite popular in the 1960s, but most of his work subsequently went out of print.
He was an active supporter of the Socialist Labor Party; his father, Verne Reynolds, was twice the SLP's Presidential candidate, in 1928 and 1932. Many of MR's stories use SLP jargon such as 'Industrial Feudalism' and most deal with economic issues in some way
Many of Reynolds' stories took place in Utopian societies, and many of which fulfilled L. L. Zamenhof's dream of Esperanto used worldwide as a universal second language. His novels predicted much that has come to pass, including pocket computers and a world-wide computer network with information available at one's fingertips.
Many of his novels were written within the context of a highly mobile society in which few people maintained a fixed residence, leading to "mobile voting" laws which allowed someone living out of the equivalent of a motor home to vote when and where they chose.
He was an active supporter of the Socialist Labor Party; his father, Verne Reynolds, was twice the SLP's Presidential candidate, in 1928 and 1932. Many of MR's stories use SLP jargon such as 'Industrial Feudalism' and most deal with economic issues in some way
Many of Reynolds' stories took place in Utopian societies, and many of which fulfilled L. L. Zamenhof's dream of Esperanto used worldwide as a universal second language. His novels predicted much that has come to pass, including pocket computers and a world-wide computer network with information available at one's fingertips.
Many of his novels were written within the context of a highly mobile society in which few people maintained a fixed residence, leading to "mobile voting" laws which allowed someone living out of the equivalent of a motor home to vote when and where they chose.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
October 26, 2020
review of
Mack Reynolds' The Cosmic Eye
- tENTATIVELY, a cONVENIENCE - October 23-25, 2020
For the full review go here: https://www.goodreads.com/story/show/...
Anyone who reads my SciFi reviews will realize that Mack Reynolds can do no wrong. In fact, I openly invited him to cut me in half with a chainsaw. Fortunately for me he's dead. That invitation was only for him & doesn't extend to anyone else so don't get any ideas. The opening epigraph:
"When four sit down to conspire, three are police spies and the other a fool.
—Old European Proverb" - p 5
I'm not convinced that's really an "Old European Proverb" b/c I'm not sure how long such a situation has existed. It certainly applied to the Stasi, the East German secret police, who were still in existence when The Cosmic Eye was written — although perhaps the 4th person was less of a fool than the proverb states.
"One of the Stasi's main tasks was spying on the population, primarily through a vast network of citizens turned informants, and fighting any opposition by overt and covert measures, including hidden psychological destruction of dissidents (Zersetzung, literally meaning "decomposition"). It arrested 250,000 people as political prisoners during its existence."
[..]
"By 1995, some 174,000 inoffizielle Mitarbeiter (IMs) Stasi informants had been identified, almost 2.5% of East Germany's population between the ages of 18 and 60. 10,000 IMs were under 18 years of age. From the volume of material destroyed in the final days of the regime, the office of the Federal Commissioner for the Stasi Records (BStU) believes that there could have been as many as 500,000 informers. A former Stasi colonel who served in the counterintelligence directorate estimated that the figure could be as high as 2 million if occasional informants were included."
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stasi
I've been told by German friends that the underground literary culture in East Berlin was mostly secret police informants. I wonder if their writing was any good?
The society of The Cosmic Eye is highly stratified.
""Well you ought to remember Elizabeth Mihm. You met her the other night at Technician Philip's party at the Elite Room. Her husband used to be Prime Technician of the Transport Functional Sequence. Good friend of mine. Since he passed on, Lizzy has devoted a good deal of her time to entertaining. Her apartment is quite a center, quite a place for you to make contacts, my boy. She has the Supreme Technician himself to her soirees, quite often."" - p 6
& the very rich even complain about their robot servants.
""Butter," she was saying indignantly. "My dears, I simply don't know what to do about the servant problem. Real whale butter, mind you, for greasing herself and there's no breaking her of it. She's one of the old family robos, one of the very early models that I've had all my life and my mother before me. So what can you do? You can't just have her reconditioned, what would everyone say? But she uses butter. Heaven knows how my grandparents could have afforded it. I know I can't. Butter, my dears, three thousand erg units a pound. What I mean is . . ."
""Servants!" one of the other ladies said, casting her eyes ceilingward." - p 8
Ah.. & then there's self-censorship, a favorite topic of mine, aka allowing the ruling elites to occupy your mental real estate.
"Paula Klein said expressionlessly, "I believe Lizzy rather insists on no politics or religion, no sex, no criticisms of current institutions, no race or other controversial subjects, and above all . . ."
"Rex chimed in with her and together they chanted, "No criticism of the government."
"They both laughed, but then both cast their eyes quickly about their vicinity. No one seemed close enough to have eavesdropped." - pp 13-14
Not surprisingly, in this climate there're speakeasies. Have any of you ever been to one? They exist in the US@ & in CacaNada. I don't know whether they're operating in the QUARANTYRANNY. I had a friend in CanaNada who had a Speak in his rented home adjacent to a junk yard. They had all-night parties. I played there. I was very unpopular. One guy offered to produce me but explained that he was a sadist & that he made the people he produced suffer. I declined his offer.
""But how do we know? I am sorry, sir, but this is a private establishment, and . . ."
"Paula snapped, "This is Techno Rex Morris, son of Hero of the Technate Leonard Morris. Now is that enough for you?"
"There was a long moment of silence.
"Then the voice said, an element of apology there, "Welcome to the speakeasy, Techno Morris."
"Paula snorted and led the way to where a heavy, padded door was sliding open.
""Speakeasy!" Rex blurted." - pp 18-19
The speakeasy is ostensibly a place for freedom of speech. Remember that? That was something that hypothetically was possible not that long ago. Nowadays, just try expressing an opinion contrary to the MONOLITHIC NARRATIVE around the THOUGHT POLICE & see how quickly they try to shoot you down w/ regurgitations of PARTY LINE.
""Come over here," Paula said to him, her dark eyes sparking. And then, under her breath, "There is only one fast rule. You're not to take exception to what anyone says—no matter how extreme. You're allowed to say anything you wish, but so is everyone else."" - p 20
Likely story.
"One of the older men took his pipe from his mouth and said softly, "The fact that we cannot answer your question doesn't mean there is no answer. Perhaps to the Deity the answer is a very obvious one. Perhaps, for some reason, he does not want us to know why he created us. Perhaps we are fated never to find out."
"Rex Morris drew Paula Klein back a few yards from the table. His lips were dry. "Look here," he whispered, "if the Temple knew about this conversation, these men would be apprehended and would probably lose status. They might even be exiled from the Technate. Or . . . or even . . ."
""Be imprisoned or meet violence," Paula finished for him." - p 22
The novel is set in a total surveillance society. Nonetheless, I'm not sure it isn't outdone by our current one.
"Rex said, "Well, of course, I realize that rank has its privileges."
"His uncle was still nettled by the Security Engineer who had intruded upon his privacy. He said, "Yes, but I'm afraid that even they are being eroded away in what has become a truly naked society, a society without privacy. When the early founders of the Technate took their initial steps against non-conformists, I wonder if they ever expected to go this far."
""Uncle Bill!"
""Oh, don't be such a ninny, my boy. It's one thing, watching yourself at a place like one of Lizzy Mihm's parties, but I'm your uncle and here we are in the privacy of my home. We are both members of the Technician caste. If we can't discuss serious matters, who can?"" - p 35
"["]The secret ballot came in later, when citizens began to be afraid to let their boss, their neighbors, or whoever, know how they had voted, for fear that they might become discriminated against as a result."
"Rex yawned and said, "What a ridiculous manner in which to select a nation's rulers. Voting."" - p 36
"Rex said lazily, "What's all this got to do with avoiding controversial questions?"
""It's related, I suppose. It's all a part of the evolution of the gutless wonder, the modern American. Don't rock the boat. Don't say anything that might cause umbrage. Avoid politics and religion in your discussion, no matter how much they cry to be discussed. Talk about wishy-washy things."
""Makes for easier living," Rex murmered, sipping at his coffee." - p 37
"William Morris went back to worrying his theme. "But I suppose it was the coming of the miniaturized bug that finished us off. That and the National Data Banks and every citizen having a dossier into which every vital bit of information about him was recorded by the computers. His vital statistics, including his criminal record, if any, his medical record, his data pertaining to the Internal Revenue Department, his credit rating, his I.Q., and other educational data. From cradle to the grave, everything that pertains to you goes into your dossier. All phone calls are monitored, in this naked society of ours, and if there is any reason, whatsoever, the Security Functional Sequence has the ability to bug any room, any car, and public restaurant or other meeting place. They have the ability to pick up your conversation from half a mile away, even though you are walking along the street. No wonder our people, with this hanging over their heads every moment of their lives, are circumspect in everything they say."" - pp 37-38
This novel was published in 1969. It basically describes an earlier version of where we're at today in 2020. Maybe that doesn't bother you, maybe you're comfy in your privileged position where you think such things will never work to your disadvantage. Keep in mind that there's now face recognition software that can search huge databases to find where you were at just about any time & place. Sure, there're limits.. but maybe not for long. & what about criminal records? Oh, but you're not a criminal so why should you worry? Believe me, all it takes is a few well-placed half-truths or downright lies to create a web-presence of your 'criminality' regardless of how 'real' it is. It takes about as much to permanently create a legal criminal record for you of equally dubious 'reality' & this record can prevent you from getting jobs, etc..
Take the example of a friend of mine. He was fire-twirling at a political rally. He was arrested for possession of an incendiary device or some such. The police knew full-well that this wasn't a bomb but when they presented their completely & deliberately fake case to the mass media & to the court they used what I call 'police theater' to dramatize the situation as if they'd been put at great risk. He was found guilty but, fortunately, not imprisoned. Sometime later, he tried to get a job as a fireman. He was denied because of this record. He's since been denied every job he's applied for. It's been decades, decades of being prevented employment because of a deliberate falsehood on the part of the police. Why should they care? They're not their victims. It can happen here & it IS happening here more often than people realize. Those of you who think that the Surveillance State won't be any threat to you at all might be right — but maybe you should try giving a flying fuck for those that it definitely already is a threat to.
"At the peak was the Supreme Technician, head of the Congress of Prime Technicians and carrying a veto power over its decisions. His position held for life and upon his demise the Prime Technicians elected from their number a new incumbent of the office." - p 40
Ok, we aren't there yet, fortunately — but what about those Governors declaring Emergencies & then exercising dictatorial powers even after their powers are legally voided by more democratic process? Take Governor Wolf in Pennsylvania as an example. Take Governor John Bel Edwards in Lousiana. Perectly legal attempts have been made to reduce their dictatorialness but because their grab for power has been of such legally unprecedented ferocity they still continue to dictate. How long before the precedent that these people set turns into the type of non-democratic hierarchy imagined by Reynolds?
"his uncle had introduced him to the automated reception desk in the lobby and from then on the computer connected screens at the entrance, on the elevator banks, and at his uncle's door all recognized him and passed him. He knew, however, that there were limitations on his movements, as there were on those of anyone else in the 200 floor high-rise apartment building which contained in all, counting all three towers, more than ten thousand apartments.
"In the way of experimentation, he had once requested the elevator to take him to the 65th floor. Within seconds a voice had said, "Techno Rex Morris, your residence is on the 185th floor. What is your purpose in stopping at the 65th floor? If you are visiting someone on that floor will you please reveal his name so that we may check if you are expected?"
"Rex had thought, "I'll be damned. I'd hate to have to try and burglarize this building." But aloud he said, "Oh yes, excuse me, I was thinking about something else. 185th floor, please."" - pp 43-44
We're not there yet.. but how many of you would have no problem with living in a world where your movements are so much under surveillance that any attempt to get off an elevator somewhere other than where your apartment is would come under immediate scrutiny? Personally, I like having the freedom to spontaneously do things that might include discovery, perhaps a 'random' encounter with an interesting stranger. & what about words & our freedom to use them?
"The scientist snorted contempt of that. "Controversial words, controversial words! For the love of God, how can a word be controversial? Ideas can be controversial, but words are merely tools to convey ideas. How this confounded tendency ever began, I'll never know. It seems to have started as far back as the middle of the 20th century. All of a sudden terms such as socialist, left, communism, propaganda, Marxism, agitator, revolution, and such became dirty words to which one reacted automatically and negatively without thought. You could no longer discuss such subjects because a mental iron curtain went down as soon as the words—not the reality behind—were used."" - p 54
Do any of you see any similarity to that & what's happening in our world now? The author was obviously commenting on the era of the War Against Communism that he was alive during — but what about the War Against COVID-19? Are there any similar mental iron curtains in place? I think there are. Try getting someone brainwashed by their unquestioning belief in the PANDEMIC to consider the well-researched opinions of people taking an opposite viewpoint. The result will be a completely reflexive naysaying that isn't even based in any understanding of the alternative position at all.
For the full review go here: https://www.goodreads.com/story/show/...
Mack Reynolds' The Cosmic Eye
- tENTATIVELY, a cONVENIENCE - October 23-25, 2020
For the full review go here: https://www.goodreads.com/story/show/...
Anyone who reads my SciFi reviews will realize that Mack Reynolds can do no wrong. In fact, I openly invited him to cut me in half with a chainsaw. Fortunately for me he's dead. That invitation was only for him & doesn't extend to anyone else so don't get any ideas. The opening epigraph:
"When four sit down to conspire, three are police spies and the other a fool.
—Old European Proverb" - p 5
I'm not convinced that's really an "Old European Proverb" b/c I'm not sure how long such a situation has existed. It certainly applied to the Stasi, the East German secret police, who were still in existence when The Cosmic Eye was written — although perhaps the 4th person was less of a fool than the proverb states.
"One of the Stasi's main tasks was spying on the population, primarily through a vast network of citizens turned informants, and fighting any opposition by overt and covert measures, including hidden psychological destruction of dissidents (Zersetzung, literally meaning "decomposition"). It arrested 250,000 people as political prisoners during its existence."
[..]
"By 1995, some 174,000 inoffizielle Mitarbeiter (IMs) Stasi informants had been identified, almost 2.5% of East Germany's population between the ages of 18 and 60. 10,000 IMs were under 18 years of age. From the volume of material destroyed in the final days of the regime, the office of the Federal Commissioner for the Stasi Records (BStU) believes that there could have been as many as 500,000 informers. A former Stasi colonel who served in the counterintelligence directorate estimated that the figure could be as high as 2 million if occasional informants were included."
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stasi
I've been told by German friends that the underground literary culture in East Berlin was mostly secret police informants. I wonder if their writing was any good?
The society of The Cosmic Eye is highly stratified.
""Well you ought to remember Elizabeth Mihm. You met her the other night at Technician Philip's party at the Elite Room. Her husband used to be Prime Technician of the Transport Functional Sequence. Good friend of mine. Since he passed on, Lizzy has devoted a good deal of her time to entertaining. Her apartment is quite a center, quite a place for you to make contacts, my boy. She has the Supreme Technician himself to her soirees, quite often."" - p 6
& the very rich even complain about their robot servants.
""Butter," she was saying indignantly. "My dears, I simply don't know what to do about the servant problem. Real whale butter, mind you, for greasing herself and there's no breaking her of it. She's one of the old family robos, one of the very early models that I've had all my life and my mother before me. So what can you do? You can't just have her reconditioned, what would everyone say? But she uses butter. Heaven knows how my grandparents could have afforded it. I know I can't. Butter, my dears, three thousand erg units a pound. What I mean is . . ."
""Servants!" one of the other ladies said, casting her eyes ceilingward." - p 8
Ah.. & then there's self-censorship, a favorite topic of mine, aka allowing the ruling elites to occupy your mental real estate.
"Paula Klein said expressionlessly, "I believe Lizzy rather insists on no politics or religion, no sex, no criticisms of current institutions, no race or other controversial subjects, and above all . . ."
"Rex chimed in with her and together they chanted, "No criticism of the government."
"They both laughed, but then both cast their eyes quickly about their vicinity. No one seemed close enough to have eavesdropped." - pp 13-14
Not surprisingly, in this climate there're speakeasies. Have any of you ever been to one? They exist in the US@ & in CacaNada. I don't know whether they're operating in the QUARANTYRANNY. I had a friend in CanaNada who had a Speak in his rented home adjacent to a junk yard. They had all-night parties. I played there. I was very unpopular. One guy offered to produce me but explained that he was a sadist & that he made the people he produced suffer. I declined his offer.
""But how do we know? I am sorry, sir, but this is a private establishment, and . . ."
"Paula snapped, "This is Techno Rex Morris, son of Hero of the Technate Leonard Morris. Now is that enough for you?"
"There was a long moment of silence.
"Then the voice said, an element of apology there, "Welcome to the speakeasy, Techno Morris."
"Paula snorted and led the way to where a heavy, padded door was sliding open.
""Speakeasy!" Rex blurted." - pp 18-19
The speakeasy is ostensibly a place for freedom of speech. Remember that? That was something that hypothetically was possible not that long ago. Nowadays, just try expressing an opinion contrary to the MONOLITHIC NARRATIVE around the THOUGHT POLICE & see how quickly they try to shoot you down w/ regurgitations of PARTY LINE.
""Come over here," Paula said to him, her dark eyes sparking. And then, under her breath, "There is only one fast rule. You're not to take exception to what anyone says—no matter how extreme. You're allowed to say anything you wish, but so is everyone else."" - p 20
Likely story.
"One of the older men took his pipe from his mouth and said softly, "The fact that we cannot answer your question doesn't mean there is no answer. Perhaps to the Deity the answer is a very obvious one. Perhaps, for some reason, he does not want us to know why he created us. Perhaps we are fated never to find out."
"Rex Morris drew Paula Klein back a few yards from the table. His lips were dry. "Look here," he whispered, "if the Temple knew about this conversation, these men would be apprehended and would probably lose status. They might even be exiled from the Technate. Or . . . or even . . ."
""Be imprisoned or meet violence," Paula finished for him." - p 22
The novel is set in a total surveillance society. Nonetheless, I'm not sure it isn't outdone by our current one.
"Rex said, "Well, of course, I realize that rank has its privileges."
"His uncle was still nettled by the Security Engineer who had intruded upon his privacy. He said, "Yes, but I'm afraid that even they are being eroded away in what has become a truly naked society, a society without privacy. When the early founders of the Technate took their initial steps against non-conformists, I wonder if they ever expected to go this far."
""Uncle Bill!"
""Oh, don't be such a ninny, my boy. It's one thing, watching yourself at a place like one of Lizzy Mihm's parties, but I'm your uncle and here we are in the privacy of my home. We are both members of the Technician caste. If we can't discuss serious matters, who can?"" - p 35
"["]The secret ballot came in later, when citizens began to be afraid to let their boss, their neighbors, or whoever, know how they had voted, for fear that they might become discriminated against as a result."
"Rex yawned and said, "What a ridiculous manner in which to select a nation's rulers. Voting."" - p 36
"Rex said lazily, "What's all this got to do with avoiding controversial questions?"
""It's related, I suppose. It's all a part of the evolution of the gutless wonder, the modern American. Don't rock the boat. Don't say anything that might cause umbrage. Avoid politics and religion in your discussion, no matter how much they cry to be discussed. Talk about wishy-washy things."
""Makes for easier living," Rex murmered, sipping at his coffee." - p 37
"William Morris went back to worrying his theme. "But I suppose it was the coming of the miniaturized bug that finished us off. That and the National Data Banks and every citizen having a dossier into which every vital bit of information about him was recorded by the computers. His vital statistics, including his criminal record, if any, his medical record, his data pertaining to the Internal Revenue Department, his credit rating, his I.Q., and other educational data. From cradle to the grave, everything that pertains to you goes into your dossier. All phone calls are monitored, in this naked society of ours, and if there is any reason, whatsoever, the Security Functional Sequence has the ability to bug any room, any car, and public restaurant or other meeting place. They have the ability to pick up your conversation from half a mile away, even though you are walking along the street. No wonder our people, with this hanging over their heads every moment of their lives, are circumspect in everything they say."" - pp 37-38
This novel was published in 1969. It basically describes an earlier version of where we're at today in 2020. Maybe that doesn't bother you, maybe you're comfy in your privileged position where you think such things will never work to your disadvantage. Keep in mind that there's now face recognition software that can search huge databases to find where you were at just about any time & place. Sure, there're limits.. but maybe not for long. & what about criminal records? Oh, but you're not a criminal so why should you worry? Believe me, all it takes is a few well-placed half-truths or downright lies to create a web-presence of your 'criminality' regardless of how 'real' it is. It takes about as much to permanently create a legal criminal record for you of equally dubious 'reality' & this record can prevent you from getting jobs, etc..
Take the example of a friend of mine. He was fire-twirling at a political rally. He was arrested for possession of an incendiary device or some such. The police knew full-well that this wasn't a bomb but when they presented their completely & deliberately fake case to the mass media & to the court they used what I call 'police theater' to dramatize the situation as if they'd been put at great risk. He was found guilty but, fortunately, not imprisoned. Sometime later, he tried to get a job as a fireman. He was denied because of this record. He's since been denied every job he's applied for. It's been decades, decades of being prevented employment because of a deliberate falsehood on the part of the police. Why should they care? They're not their victims. It can happen here & it IS happening here more often than people realize. Those of you who think that the Surveillance State won't be any threat to you at all might be right — but maybe you should try giving a flying fuck for those that it definitely already is a threat to.
"At the peak was the Supreme Technician, head of the Congress of Prime Technicians and carrying a veto power over its decisions. His position held for life and upon his demise the Prime Technicians elected from their number a new incumbent of the office." - p 40
Ok, we aren't there yet, fortunately — but what about those Governors declaring Emergencies & then exercising dictatorial powers even after their powers are legally voided by more democratic process? Take Governor Wolf in Pennsylvania as an example. Take Governor John Bel Edwards in Lousiana. Perectly legal attempts have been made to reduce their dictatorialness but because their grab for power has been of such legally unprecedented ferocity they still continue to dictate. How long before the precedent that these people set turns into the type of non-democratic hierarchy imagined by Reynolds?
"his uncle had introduced him to the automated reception desk in the lobby and from then on the computer connected screens at the entrance, on the elevator banks, and at his uncle's door all recognized him and passed him. He knew, however, that there were limitations on his movements, as there were on those of anyone else in the 200 floor high-rise apartment building which contained in all, counting all three towers, more than ten thousand apartments.
"In the way of experimentation, he had once requested the elevator to take him to the 65th floor. Within seconds a voice had said, "Techno Rex Morris, your residence is on the 185th floor. What is your purpose in stopping at the 65th floor? If you are visiting someone on that floor will you please reveal his name so that we may check if you are expected?"
"Rex had thought, "I'll be damned. I'd hate to have to try and burglarize this building." But aloud he said, "Oh yes, excuse me, I was thinking about something else. 185th floor, please."" - pp 43-44
We're not there yet.. but how many of you would have no problem with living in a world where your movements are so much under surveillance that any attempt to get off an elevator somewhere other than where your apartment is would come under immediate scrutiny? Personally, I like having the freedom to spontaneously do things that might include discovery, perhaps a 'random' encounter with an interesting stranger. & what about words & our freedom to use them?
"The scientist snorted contempt of that. "Controversial words, controversial words! For the love of God, how can a word be controversial? Ideas can be controversial, but words are merely tools to convey ideas. How this confounded tendency ever began, I'll never know. It seems to have started as far back as the middle of the 20th century. All of a sudden terms such as socialist, left, communism, propaganda, Marxism, agitator, revolution, and such became dirty words to which one reacted automatically and negatively without thought. You could no longer discuss such subjects because a mental iron curtain went down as soon as the words—not the reality behind—were used."" - p 54
Do any of you see any similarity to that & what's happening in our world now? The author was obviously commenting on the era of the War Against Communism that he was alive during — but what about the War Against COVID-19? Are there any similar mental iron curtains in place? I think there are. Try getting someone brainwashed by their unquestioning belief in the PANDEMIC to consider the well-researched opinions of people taking an opposite viewpoint. The result will be a completely reflexive naysaying that isn't even based in any understanding of the alternative position at all.
For the full review go here: https://www.goodreads.com/story/show/...
November 13, 2013
A cross between '1984' and 'The Day of the Jackal' with a touch of Asimov's playful world building (without getting bogged down in info-dumps).
This kind of future minimalism makes one wonder if we would be better off in a sterile, self-sufficient world with our technological appliances telling us that our commands are "Carried out". (well, out new washing machine is pleased to sing a little song when it's finished a 2 hour wash...so it's a start).
This kind of future minimalism makes one wonder if we would be better off in a sterile, self-sufficient world with our technological appliances telling us that our commands are "Carried out". (well, out new washing machine is pleased to sing a little song when it's finished a 2 hour wash...so it's a start).
January 4, 2021
The Cosmic Eye is a sort of dystopian / utopian suspense-drama, a bit reminiscent of 1984, but perhaps a bit more like Aldous Huxley's Brave New World and Robert Heinlein's Beyond This Horizon. In Reynold's future free speech about any controversial subjects is suppressed, and that and other aspects seem very prescient and relevant to what's going on today with cancel culture and politics in general. For that reason I recommend it to modern readers.
February 4, 2016
Generally a moderate book. There is no top notch storyline, but the ideas which the writer deals with are very good although do not fulfill themselves.
It's a fine read for those who like to reflect of the consequences of what might be if something went that way or another , reminds a little of 1984 but isn't as strong as it.
It's a fine read for those who like to reflect of the consequences of what might be if something went that way or another , reminds a little of 1984 but isn't as strong as it.
August 6, 2025
The Cosmic Eye by Mack Reynolds.
Rex was a young man, born into the highest strata of society, given every opportunity and privilege in a futuristic, all-encompassing technocratic superstate. Moving to the capital city to be assigned a technical vocation, he is introduced to the aristocrats and high flyers. To be a non conformist or subversive rebel would mean losing everything, but principles and pretty young ladies can be compelling...
There was a lot of promise, initially. I liked the world, the society that was built up but the plot fell quite dramatically halfway and never recovered. The reader isn't informed of any of the main characters plans or motivations so some things seem to come out of nowhere and often don't make sense. The ending was awful; rushed and brought to a sudden, unpleasant end that wasn't expected or welcome.
Rex was a young man, born into the highest strata of society, given every opportunity and privilege in a futuristic, all-encompassing technocratic superstate. Moving to the capital city to be assigned a technical vocation, he is introduced to the aristocrats and high flyers. To be a non conformist or subversive rebel would mean losing everything, but principles and pretty young ladies can be compelling...
There was a lot of promise, initially. I liked the world, the society that was built up but the plot fell quite dramatically halfway and never recovered. The reader isn't informed of any of the main characters plans or motivations so some things seem to come out of nowhere and often don't make sense. The ending was awful; rushed and brought to a sudden, unpleasant end that wasn't expected or welcome.
May 1, 2019
All in all a good story although the end seemed a little rushed
April 22, 2017
"Everyone seems to think that he shouldn’t be abridged in his thinking or his speech, but that everyone below his rank should."
"In early post-revolutionary America, when the held an election, the voters - all men, of course, in those days, and all property holders - usually came down to the village square. The candidates would be there and usually a table where a clerk would register the votes as cast. Each voter would step forward and cast his vote verbally. The candidate for whom he voted would thank him and it would be tabulated. Each man was proud to cast his vote and didn’t give a damn who knew for whom he stood. The secret ballot came in later, when citizens began to be afraid to let their boss, their neighbors, or whoever, know how they had voted, for fear that they might become discriminated against as a result."
"A known evil you can keep track of is better than an unknown one. The Security FS knows that a certain element of the population is going to discuss controversial subjects come what may. It’s better to keep track than to try and suppress completely. When some individual goes too far, becomes down right subversive, he’s picked up and dealt with."
"In early post-revolutionary America, when the held an election, the voters - all men, of course, in those days, and all property holders - usually came down to the village square. The candidates would be there and usually a table where a clerk would register the votes as cast. Each voter would step forward and cast his vote verbally. The candidate for whom he voted would thank him and it would be tabulated. Each man was proud to cast his vote and didn’t give a damn who knew for whom he stood. The secret ballot came in later, when citizens began to be afraid to let their boss, their neighbors, or whoever, know how they had voted, for fear that they might become discriminated against as a result."
"A known evil you can keep track of is better than an unknown one. The Security FS knows that a certain element of the population is going to discuss controversial subjects come what may. It’s better to keep track than to try and suppress completely. When some individual goes too far, becomes down right subversive, he’s picked up and dealt with."
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews