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Yet, this one part of the book that I don't hear discussed as much as others (though it probably is) keeps coming back to me. 

The protagonist, Winston, has by this point been arrested (he's read banned literature, kept a diary and had an affair, among other crimes against the Party) and is in a detention holding area. In the same room is his neighbor, Parsons, which comes as a shock because the neighbor was a proud and, frankly, blind supporter of the Party and Big Brother. Parsons was zealously involved in community events designed to express fealty to the Party and even shows that he's quite happy not thinking too deeply about it. In essence, the character is used as a window into how the Party is able to maintain control over the populace. 

How could the ultimate loyalist wind up in jail next to Winston? 

Parsons explains that he muttered "Down with Big Brother" in his sleep, and his own children, who overheard, turned him in for thought crime. 

That's always stuck with me as a warning about how far things will go once people give up their voice or, worse, enthusiastically opt all in on authoritarianism, flags flying the whole way. Loyalty of that type is blind in more ways than one. 

For instance, President Donald Trump's announcement that he's deploying the National Guard in Washington to tamp down on rampant crime, when in fact, crime is down, is an obvious move to create fear, provide an opportunity for government-sanctioned violence and crush dissent. Even if you buy into the argument that violent crime is up, this should be an alarming move. Many supporters, however, either see it as justified or don't care if it's unjust, as long as the boot is being placed on the neck of the opposition. Trump could very well try this in other large cities viewed as liberal hotbeds with sizable populations that aren't entirely white, straight and Christian.  

Aside from the obvious authoritarian power grab, there's another disturbing element to this that many Trump supporters aren't considering, because it seems inconceivable to them. The truth is, authoritarian regimes eventually put everyone under the thumb. If you think they won't come for you because you have flags in your yard and you're not an immigrant or a person of color, you are sadly mistaken. 

We've already seen this, to some extent. Look at all the examples of Trump voters who have lost their jobs and are shocked because they thought the administration was only going to cut "waste, fraud and abuse." Look at those loyalists who have had a significant other or friend or family member deported, and are horrified and confused because they thought the administration was only going to deport "the worst of the worst." 

What do you think will happen if these trial runs at police states in large cities are allowed to succeed? What will happen if no one stands up for the rights of the marginalized? Do you honestly think it will stop there? 

No one was a stronger supporter of Big Brother than Parsons, and yet he wound up in a cell because of something he muttered in his sleep. What's truly devastating in the book is that Parsons is proud of his children, who are more loyal to Big Brother than their own father, for turning him in. The Party, enabled by the blind complicity of those like Parsons, has successfully exterminated critical thought or any sense of individual rights among the masses. 

Once control is completely leveraged by a particular group or person, those who blindly enable eventually wind up in the same place reserved for those deemed radicals, because, in time, just about everything becomes an offense.