It's hard for anyone, governments included, to give up power. Or any advantages indeed. A small example: I remember that the Dutch government (led by a socialis

It's hard for anyone, governments included, to give up power. Or any advantages indeed. A small example: I remember that the Dutch government (led by a socialist PM back then) imposed a 'temporary' extra tax on gasoline: fl.0.25 extra per liter [1]. This was sold to the people as a temporary measure. Guess what? The tax was never abolished. Don't expect governments to ever give back that they take from you. This goes for freedom and civilian rights, too. [1] http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kwartje_van_Kok http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kwartje_van_Kok (Dutch)