Now, as for email? Yes, email is important, but the root of control in email is DNS; the whole system is setup so that it's cheap and easy to own a second-lev

Now, as for email? Yes, email is important, but the root of control in email is DNS; the whole system is setup so that it's cheap and easy to own a second-level domain. Do that. If you own your own second level domain and you host it with google, it's easy enough to move it elsewhere if google shuts down their email. If you host your email on a second level domain you don't control? you are at the mercy of the owner of that domain, be that owner profit-seeking or not. Personally, I think the domain system is actually pretty good right now. If you want a domain more officially controled by the government, you can get a .us second-level domain, if you are from the same country as I am, for rather less than a dollar a month. That, and read up on the registrar/registry setup. Your email, at least the parts of your email I couldn't re-create over the course of a lazy afternoon with some open-source software, really does have some heavy government involvement.