3 ms·
The difference is that the government can, at least in theory, be expected to be transparent.
by trasz 5y ago
The difference is that the government can, at least in theory, be expected to be transparent.
- throwaway0a5e 5y agoThey also have a lot more ways to abuse people if they choose to do so.
- trasz 5y agoThis is often said. But… what difference does it make if one gets killed by a hired thug, or the military?
- throwaway0a5e 5y agoThere's a heck of a lot more ways the government can make your life miserable before they escalate to force and a great many more of those ways are legally defensible in court. Imagine if the cops had been menacingly tailing these people for an equally BS reason, what would their recourse be?
- trasz 5y agoSo… you’re asking me what would happen if cops did what private companies are already allowed to do?
- throwaway0a5e 5y agoStop being obtuse. The behavior eBay engaged is covered under laws criminalizing harassment or stalking. Try holding the .gov to the same standards and see where it gets you. Even if there isn't a legal carve-out it will be a much more uphill legal battle and the other parts of the .gov you have to deal with along the way will try as hard as they can to avoid enforcement actions against whatever part of the .gov is abusing you.
- amznthrwaway 5y agoCops do these things already, today. They do it routinely to people who’ve made trouble for police in other cities. But reform can’t happen, because Republicans and other right-wingers are absolutely fucking fine with that abuse.
- codr7 5y agoThere is a difference?
- BurningFrog 5y agoWhat theory would that be?
- barry-cotter 5y agoEdward Snowden will die in exile while the NSA, CIA and others spy on US citizens. This will never change. No one in the ruling class is going to change it. You're a subject in a country ruled by people who aren't like you. Things do not change.
- matheusmoreira 5y agoAnd if you try to change things, they will know. You will be labeled a terrorist, stripped of any rights you think you have and placed inside some hell hole nobody knows about so that you can be tortured until you break. Edit: ... Holy shit. I think I just described 1984 without realizing it.
- trasz 5y agoI’ve meant a proper government, not a dysfunctional one.