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But that arguing would clearly be flawed. I could thing of a lot of weapons that I would not want to see in the hands of everybody I meet on the street. I think
by chki 11y ago
But that arguing would clearly be flawed. I could thing of a lot of weapons that I would not want to see in the hands of everybody I meet on the street.
I think it is partially correct to say that about certain information based "tools" (like encryption or information in newspapers) but sometimes that is not true as well, for example with certain malware
- CamperBob2 11y agoHistorically, though, the real threat is usually a state actor -- often one's own government -- that has been granted (or has seized) a monopoly on such tools. In particular, the modern notion that the state is the only rightful wielder of force has an unlimited downside. Terrorism is pretty far down the list of things that frighten me.
- pcunite 11y agoExcellent point and what many people miss. Look at history.
- chki 11y agoThe problem with having everybody possess potentially deathly tools is not terrorism, but crime in general. I, for myself, can think of a lot more crimes committed by normal people than the government. The historical argument is of course not completely unreasonable, but there are also an awful lot of discrepancies when looking at states government today and 300 years ago. At least in Europe, where I live, the government can be trusted in a lot of issues --- especially it is highly likely that they _try_ to do what is best and are no "evil emperors".
- CamperBob2 11y agoAt least in Europe, where I live, the government can be trusted in a lot of issues --- especially it is highly likely that they _try_ to do what is best and are no "evil emperors". The Europeans are fond of reminding Americans that we think 200 years is a long time. So, how long ago was the Stasi disbanded, again?
- chki 11y agoYou can not compare our situation to that of the DDR. If there is more surveillance going on than we currently know, it is certainly not as much as in that time -- a big chunk of the population were reporting to the "Ministerium für Staatssicherheit" directly, which was a well known fact.
- CamperBob2 11y agoI believe this is known as the "Special Pleading Fallacy." Of course, you could play the "Slippery Slope Fallacy" card against my argument... but we're not dealing with logical entities, are we? We're dealing with often-irrational human beings and governments composed of them.