We all know that governments can’t be trusted. This is an absolute certainty in an otherwise uncertain world. Strange, isn’t it? When the only thing you can absolutely trust is the distrust in your enemies. Enemies you said? Precisely. Enemies. Proof? Sure!. Read for example the article “The US intelligence agency NSA introduced a weakness in a cypher” the Slovakian newspaper SMEsk published today.
In summary, the RSA company (a giant encryption conglomerate) warned that the Dual Elliptic Curve Deterministic Random Bit Generation algorithm may have been contaminated with a backdoor by the US National Security Agency. The details of how this may have happened are anecdotal and fun, but ultimately irrelevant.
Let’s be clear. The goal of any government is to have Total Awareness of everything you do. As this goal is unlimited (there is always more information to be had), their thirst for information is insatiable and endless. This means that no matter what they get today, they will get more tomorrow. There is no end; and you thought that Orwell’s 1984 was bad. The difference is that this is real and they are playing with your life. Comfortable yet?
Then, we have the usual misguided and well intentioned clowns who think they can fix this is…. hold on for effect….laws!!! ROTFLMAO!!!
OK. OK. Let’s take a deep breath and continue.
Take for example the Digital Due Process Coalition. A US people’s initiative seeking to update the US ECPA (Electronic Communications Privacy Act) to current standards. Actually, to any standards, to be precise. But that’s another story.
- Let’s take a look at what they want:
- Technology and Platform Neutrality: all information is equal in the eyes of the law
- Assurance of Law Enforcement Access: preserve due investigative process
- Equality Between Transit and Storage: all places where information can be found have equal rights
- Consistency: data old and new follow the same due process
- Simplicity and Clarity: clear new rules
- Recognition of All Existing Exceptions: retain existing exceptions to the ECPA
Or, more specifically
- Government must get a search warrant to obtain any information
- Government must get a search warrant to track a person through digital devices
- Government must demonstrate that data is required in an authorized criminal investigation before obtaining access to it, including when multiple unidentified users are involved
Right!
Nice and sweet. Simple and clear. Useless and distracting, it’s what it is.
All these do good people are fun to watch, if it would not be by the fact that they are distracting everybody else from the truth. They are being used without even knowing it.
Their plan has only one tiny flaw that’s worth exploring:
Who watches the watchers? In other words, even if by some sort of political miracle these reforms were to pass, what assurances do we get that the government will actually fulfill the law? Judicial? Give me a break! The President or the Dictator-du-jour will simply override law with an Executive Order.
Don’t you believe us? If this law were to pass, the domestic division of the NSA would simply have to shut down. Do you actually believe that this is going to happen? Of course not! Never. It will never happen until the government is cancelled.
The truth is that for as long as governments exist, privacy is dead. This is so for economic reasons. As long as governments make profitable for companies to gather user data and sell it to them, privacy is dead. For as long as governments have unlimited budgets to spy on people, privacy is dead.
But don’t unbuckle your seat belt yet. The trip is not yet over. Do you honestly believe that even in the ridiculous case that the “War on Terrorism” is won, government will stop gathering your data? Of course not! Information is power. Is that simple.
This is precisely why the “War on Terrorism” will never be won. It’s not that it is impossible to win (which it is, by the way) but because it is the justification that keeps giving. Governments need an ongoing crisis to keep gathering data. A war is too short, economic troubles are too low profile, but terrorism is just right! Yeah! That’s the ticket! (as the Yanks would say).
In an Absolute Austro-Libertarian system there is some degree of privacy, and this degree is determined by the contracts you agree to with companies or other people. You know what your data is going to be used for. You control your data. You are in control, not some nameless, faceless government bureaucratic drone.
Now you know. Control your life or not. It’s your choice.
Note: please see the Glossary if you are unfamiliar with certain words.
