it's called keeping the masses deaf, dumb and blind. a hundred years ago, there would be alot of hangings. now we're just like "oh well, atleast we have our freedom", when there is little freedom to speak of.

someone else found it and wrote a new plot

Between then and now (((some people))) learned that explicit tyranny wasn’t the best way to control people, and that the better way was slow and steady subversion of every major pillar of society.