Big Brother is dead. The only serious likelihood of his resurrection lies in reaction to the chaos and disintegration that an era of Little Brothers might bring.
Is this the NYT being out of touch, or are they just showing off their tentaclehood? To me, that reads like a threat against those who oppose the Government Private Agenda.
No, I wouldn't say that. What they're predicting there is that the massive state will die, smaller groups and cults (ala the Assassins) will replace it with non-territorial based fighting, and that the reaction to the abuses of the smaller groups and cults will cause a popular demand for a resurrection of the big Brother-style govt. It's an interesting thought, but I don't see that Big Brother is on his deathbed, which is their starting premise.