5 ms·

all this evil isn't done by some special evil people. It is you or people like you who does it. people like you write the laws mandating backdoors, people like

all this evil isn't done by some special evil people. It is you or people like you who does it. people like you write the laws mandating backdoors, people like you force companies to implement it, people like you actually implement it. After all that, you dare to express displeasure with the thing you done pretty much by yourself to yourself. Man up and take responsibility for your actions. Next time you're groped by a TSA agent, you can find a relief in the thought that you (or your friend working at Google) groped the agent's Gmail account. Tit-for-tat.

hammock 16y ago
Damn I wish more people would realize this. Our brains "need" a clear antagonist, someone to pin the blame on. But that's not how it works, rather it's an agglomeration of many small attitudes that result in an emergent phenomenon known as culture- every time you say "hmm we need this or that!" - or more likely, every time you don't question authority and instead just roll over and accept it- you are feeding into the fucked up system that results in evil. It's not special evil people doing it. It's us.
- jrwoodruff 16y ago
  All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing. It's a great quote because it's so true, and it's happened so many times throughout history.
reedlaw 16y ago
That's simply not true. Even in Nazi Germany there were pockets of resistance and people like Sophie Scholl who gave their lives because of their ideals. I for one am doing my best to resist tyranny in all its forms. I certainly won't write a backdoor or vote for anyone in favor of Patriot Act-style tyranny.
- VladRussian 16y ago
  >Even in Nazi Germany there were pockets of resistance and people like Sophie Scholl who gave their lives because of their ideals. that's exactly the point. Once you really start to not being part of the evil, you live gets really impacted, to put it mildly. >I for one am doing my best to resist tyranny in all its forms. so, how do you refuse to take your shoes off and quietly wait for the TSA agent to complete groping a child ahead of you? You just don't understand what you're talking about. You still have Internet access, and it sounds like you aren't even arrested. You do your best "armchair warrior" style. Have respect and don't mention people who gave their lives in the same paragraph with "your best" >I certainly won't write a backdoor or vote for anyone in favor of Patriot Act-style tyranny. you may have already wrote it, yet you'd not be able to disclose any details about the NSA letter that instructed your so and to avoid committing the crime you must to continue saying "i didn't write a backdoor" :)
  - reedlaw 16y ago
    So far, as far as I know they haven't executed anyone in this country for speaking out again tyranny. I know "my best" pales in comparison to people like Sophie Scholl, but that statement shows my optimism about the current state of affairs. We are on a decline, but still far from outright Fascism.
    - VladRussian 16y ago
      >So far, as far as I know they haven't executed anyone in this country for speaking out again tyranny. and the point is? there is no evil happens? or there is no need to bother until executions start? In Stalin's Soviet Union millions were executed and nobody bothered even then. Anyway, executions are so 20th century. The modern autocracies', like modern Russia for example, have found a way of doing pretty much the same thing without mess of executions. Modern citizens are so tender, they value their comfort and good job so much... >my optimism about the current state of affairs. We are on a decline, but still far from outright Fascism. just for starters, something very easy to understand: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0436364/ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0436364/
    - defroost 16y ago

hammock 16y ago

Damn I wish more people would realize this. Our brains "need" a clear antagonist, someone to pin the blame on. But that's not how it works, rather it's an agglomeration of many small attitudes that result in an emergent phenomenon known as culture- every time you say "hmm we need this or that!" - or more likely, every time you don't question authority and instead just roll over and accept it- you are feeding into the fucked up system that results in evil. It's not special evil people doing it. It's us.

jrwoodruff 16y ago
All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing. It's a great quote because it's so true, and it's happened so many times throughout history.

reedlaw 16y ago

That's simply not true. Even in Nazi Germany there were pockets of resistance and people like Sophie Scholl who gave their lives because of their ideals. I for one am doing my best to resist tyranny in all its forms. I certainly won't write a backdoor or vote for anyone in favor of Patriot Act-style tyranny.

VladRussian 16y ago
>Even in Nazi Germany there were pockets of resistance and people like Sophie Scholl who gave their lives because of their ideals. that's exactly the point. Once you really start to not being part of the evil, you live gets really impacted, to put it mildly. >I for one am doing my best to resist tyranny in all its forms. so, how do you refuse to take your shoes off and quietly wait for the TSA agent to complete groping a child ahead of you? You just don't understand what you're talking about. You still have Internet access, and it sounds like you aren't even arrested. You do your best "armchair warrior" style. Have respect and don't mention people who gave their lives in the same paragraph with "your best" >I certainly won't write a backdoor or vote for anyone in favor of Patriot Act-style tyranny. you may have already wrote it, yet you'd not be able to disclose any details about the NSA letter that instructed your so and to avoid committing the crime you must to continue saying "i didn't write a backdoor" :)
- reedlaw 16y ago
  So far, as far as I know they haven't executed anyone in this country for speaking out again tyranny. I know "my best" pales in comparison to people like Sophie Scholl, but that statement shows my optimism about the current state of affairs. We are on a decline, but still far from outright Fascism.
  - VladRussian 16y ago
    >So far, as far as I know they haven't executed anyone in this country for speaking out again tyranny. and the point is? there is no evil happens? or there is no need to bother until executions start? In Stalin's Soviet Union millions were executed and nobody bothered even then. Anyway, executions are so 20th century. The modern autocracies', like modern Russia for example, have found a way of doing pretty much the same thing without mess of executions. Modern citizens are so tender, they value their comfort and good job so much... >my optimism about the current state of affairs. We are on a decline, but still far from outright Fascism. just for starters, something very easy to understand: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0436364/ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0436364/
  - defroost 16y ago