Governments never believed in privacy. Before they were opening envelopes and tapping phones. Now they are trying to keep up with technology and given the sheer

Governments never believed in privacy. Before they were opening envelopes and tapping phones. Now they are trying to keep up with technology and given the sheer scale of resources, manpower and power at hand operating 24/7 they will prevail. A journalist like Poitras is on all sorts of lists and incessantly harassed. There are secret courts, secret laws and secret processes at play. And beyond this the power of harassment, intimidation, blackmail and bribery. Individuals and even organizations cannot prevail against the array of capabilities. Its nice to think of democratic theory and the rights but these only exist when not exercised as talking points. The moment you start exercising them you end up on all sorts of lists, marked for harassment and basically have a target on your back. Dissent is squashed even before it can formulate.