George Orwell
Ever since I read 1984, I've been amazed with Orwell's capacity to "see the future". It's frightening how many similarities can be seen between what he wrote there and the "real world" of today.
And yesterday, I ran into the preface to Animal Farm which he wrote, but wasn't published because of reasons that will become obvious after you've read it. It's fascinating how many of his points remain valid today.
Quote of choice:
If liberty means anything at all it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear.
