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Agreed. A better question- how can we build a government which we can trust with unprecedented levels of centralized information? The centralization of informa

Agreed. A better question- how can we build a government which we can trust with unprecedented levels of centralized information? The centralization of information is going to happen one way or another (the powers that be wouldn't have it any other way), and we've already been on this trajectory. So how can we build a system that actually respects privacy and upholds the common good?

artificialLimbs 4y ago
>> respects privacy and upholds the common good? That's not how consolidation of power by a government works.
EVa5I7bHFq9mnYK 4y ago
>> The centralization of information is going to happen one way or another This is not necessarily the case, thanks to encryption, which plays on the side of the weak. A weak can encrypt data that a strong can never decrypt.
- walterbell 4y ago
  > a strong can never decrypt Is "a weak" using an encryption random number generator that was designed by "a weak" or "a strong"?
  - jkepler 4y ago
    One can generate one's private keys by physically rolling dice and choosing words, thus avoiding the problem of rigged random number generators. The government still doesn't control physics (or economic laws, come to think of it!).
    - walterbell 4y ago
      > physically rolling dice Thanks for the reminder to buy (in person) and secure dice against physical tampering!
- int_19h 4y ago
  Encryption can be banned or otherwise regulated. While it wouldn't prevent people "with something to hide" from using encryption regardless, it would deter most regular people, which is good enough from the government perspective for the purposes of this exercise.
version_five 4y ago
That's a dumb question, sorry. We can't. That's why government's powers and role are constitutionally limited, and why the explicit limitations (even though the government is not supposed to have any powers other than those explicitly given to it) need to be updated as technology changes. The idea that we could build a government we can trust is absurd. It's equivalent to suggesting we could build a police force that can monitor everything we do, but will have some kind of structure that makes it not abuse that power. It's not even wrong, it's too ridiculous to even give the time of day to
int_19h 4y ago
You decentralize the government. The result might not be much better on average, but then at least people who believe that privacy is a common good can find a space for themselves and be left alone by the rest.

artificialLimbs 4y ago

>> respects privacy and upholds the common good? That's not how consolidation of power by a government works.

EVa5I7bHFq9mnYK 4y ago

>> The centralization of information is going to happen one way or another This is not necessarily the case, thanks to encryption, which plays on the side of the weak. A weak can encrypt data that a strong can never decrypt.

walterbell 4y ago
> a strong can never decrypt Is "a weak" using an encryption random number generator that was designed by "a weak" or "a strong"?
- jkepler 4y ago
  One can generate one's private keys by physically rolling dice and choosing words, thus avoiding the problem of rigged random number generators. The government still doesn't control physics (or economic laws, come to think of it!).
  - walterbell 4y ago
    > physically rolling dice Thanks for the reminder to buy (in person) and secure dice against physical tampering!
int_19h 4y ago
Encryption can be banned or otherwise regulated. While it wouldn't prevent people "with something to hide" from using encryption regardless, it would deter most regular people, which is good enough from the government perspective for the purposes of this exercise.

version_five 4y ago

That's a dumb question, sorry. We can't. That's why government's powers and role are constitutionally limited, and why the explicit limitations (even though the government is not supposed to have any powers other than those explicitly given to it) need to be updated as technology changes. The idea that we could build a government we can trust is absurd. It's equivalent to suggesting we could build a police force that can monitor everything we do, but will have some kind of structure that makes it not abuse that power. It's not even wrong, it's too ridiculous to even give the time of day to

int_19h 4y ago

You decentralize the government. The result might not be much better on average, but then at least people who believe that privacy is a common good can find a space for themselves and be left alone by the rest.