We have written about this topic in several other articles but very few people, if any, are aware as to just how much of our privacy is gone. No, we did not say going; we said gone. As in bye-bye. As in you don't have any left.
SNOOPING AS A WAY OF LIFE
Government bureaucrats, politicians and the power elite that control them have been salivating since the advent and practicality of mass computing. It is not just faster computers they are interested in, but in massive parallel data process, sift and automated analysis. This enables them to read through and classify massive amounts of digital information in almost real-time. If it is communication and it is digital, somebody, somewhere in some country is reading it, besides its intended recipient. We know that. We have known that for quite some time. Secret Military Operations and the snooping organizations of the "Intelligence Community" have been doing this since the 60's and it has never ceased. On the contrary. The means are now more powerful but they have also been turned into our countries. They still spy on their enemies, friends and allies, but they now massively spy on you and us. We are the target. Every one of us. No matter where we (or you) reside. Paranoid? You are not paranoid if there are people out to get you. All this is common knowledge which has surfaced to the light through several leaks. We know that. But we also know that this information is usually restricted to those who "need to know", which by now is the entire "Intelligence Community" and friends… and also enemies with whom they trade. Nothing new so far.
THERE IS A NEW INSULT IN TOWN
However, all this is changing rapidly. Many governments have decided to implement indiscriminate snooping on everybody by anyone in power and for any reason, no matter how ridiculous and insulting this concept may be. Information, your information, is no longer the exclusive hunting ground of government apparatchiks with the ill-defined "need to know" but it is now an open frontiers & open season on killing anyway they may see fit. In the past, hunting was only allowed on reservations and with certain weapons. This is no longer the case. Most people "in authority" can now hunt anywhere and anyone they wish and they can use automatic assault rifles and bazookas if they feel like doing so. That's right. New laws are coming online.
In order to see an example as to just how mindboggling these new laws are, we can travel no farther than Canada. That's right. The perennially polite, generally neutral, well-behaved, kind, multicultural and understanding Canada. Well, no longer damit! According to the current government they need to know exactly what all Canadians are doing all the time and for whatever reason. But not to worry, it's all for their good… or national security… or to persecute child molesters… or to fight against corruption… cyber bullying… or something… we will let you know later.
The Canadian government is so bent over backwards to accommodate the wishes of the power elite that they don't even bother keeping appearances any longer. The old saying "the outcome justifies the means" is no longer used. A new era of naked power; i.e. "because we say so" is here. One of the most obtuse and obscene laws ever proposed in the Canadian parliament is the bill C-13. In essence, this bill means that any "public officer" or "peace officer" can request, obtain and use data that was provided to them "voluntarily" by any company. And why would any company "voluntarily" hand over data? Because if they do so they are automatically given immunity. And what is the proper procedure to "request" this data? In a word? None. Any non-descript "public officer" or "peace officer" can simply pick up the phone, call any company and demand they hand over all your info.
Due process? Give us a break. That's obsolete!
Privacy? Though luck buster!
Warrant? Pleeeeaaaassse don't make us laugh!
Any government apparatchik will be able to know anything about you that is somewhere in any private database. Sure, "Intelligence officers" can do it, "police officers" can too, but what about city mayors? Yes. And what about deputy mayors? Probably. Department heads? Likely. Supervisors? Arguably. But where does it end? We guess that with janitors simply because the hierarchy ends with them.
You can read all the filthy details in the article "How federal bill C-13 could give CSIS agents - or even Rob Ford - access to your personal online data" published by the newspaper National Post from Canada.
OUR VERY OWN KGB
In the old USSR the KGB was feared for two reasons:
- They had access to all the information, nothing was private.
- They could arrest, incarcerate, torture, disappear and kill at will.
We have now crossed the first barrier and the second is not that far away.
Wherever you live, take a look at the laws in your country. We are very sure that something like the bill C-13 is in the books or being cooked. Something like the KGB already exists or it is being formed. What is sad is that the motives do not matter any longer. Nobody from the government bothers providing half-reasonable excuses any longer. Anything goes. However, reasonably speaking, the most important question to be asked is why? Why are these mammoth government powers required now? Where is the threat? Not even during WWI or WWII had the government such powers. Why now?
Answer: silence.
We challenge you to ask your government why? Why is that these powers are required now. Where is the threat. The real threat this is, not something half-made up that cannot be seen, proven or commented about for… national security reasons.
CONCLUSION
Our privacy is dead. Governments made sure of it. This is one of the biggest tyrannical measures unleashed on people. You can no longer go where you please to escape political persecution because border controls. You can no longer keep the means to live in peace because banking secrecy is gone. And now, you can no longer express and share your ideas. If they would have the technology to read your mind, rest assured they would use it. Is then a surprise that so many people choose freedom in the form of illegal migration, black markets and technological anonymity? This is nothing but off-grid living. And this is good. This is the next revolution. If a few thousand people ignore the government, this is their problem. But if a few million ignores the government, it's an insoluble government problem. Through this perennial, pervasive and perverse search for ultimate control, they are fostering the exact opposite. The more control they try to impose, the more people will simply fight back by ignoring rules and regulations. In ultimate analysis, it is a self-defeating strategy and this is good news indeed. Governments are getting desperate and desperate organizations do stupid things. If it would not be for all the death and destruction this will bring before it collapses, we would be ecstatic. But that's just us. You may feel otherwise. Just remember that the tide of history cannot be argued with or stopped. It will drown you whether you like it or not. The time to choose sides is now.
Note: please see the Glossary if you are unfamiliar with certain words.
