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134 upvotes but only 34 contributors. If you truly support privacy rights, please support those fighting for them. Donate.

darkchasma 13y ago
I support the cause, as I believe all people should have the right to privacy. However, I'm not American, and we have our own battles. Increasing awareness and visibility however, is something we all can do.
wazoox 13y ago
It asks me to log in with Facebook (oh, the irony). I don't have an FB account, and I suppose I'm not alone among the potential supporters.
- bdg 13y ago
  Super. I'll just neatly put my name next to a list of people (which the NSA has connected to) who oppose the surveillance state ... and hope I don't get black bagged to your fancy Cuban torture prisons if I ever cross into the USA.
  - deleted 13y ago
    [deleted]
  - deleted 13y ago
    [deleted]
  - mjolk 13y ago
    >"and hope I don't get black bagged to your fancy Cuban torture prisons if I ever cross into the USA." Oh give me a break with the hyperbole. The NSA likely doesn't give a fuck about your activity of pissing and moaning on hacker news.
    - bandushrew 13y ago
      How do you know? or do you mean that you hope the NSA doesn't give a fuck?
      - mjolk 13y ago
        Because you're not dangerous or a threat. Not that I love the idea of someone awkwardly thumbing through content that my mind has created, but why would the NSA care to detain a foreign national over being smug?
        bandushrew 13y ago
        I dont know. That is rather the point though, isn't? There are many other countries whose authorities would absolutely care to detain foreign nationals over being smug. What makes you believe that some individuals within the NSA are not of that type of person?
        mjolk 13y ago
        >What makes you believe that some individuals within the NSA are not of that type of person? Because the NSA just records the information, they don't get to make the call on detention. Gitmo isn't full of people that called the government a bunch of jerks or complained about wiretapping/taxes/etc. In my humble opinion, the greatest abuse that could come from this wiretapping is much more mundane and offensive - NSA employees cyberstalking and mining data of sexual interests/current partners.
        betterunix 13y ago
        We have already seen a much greater abuse of this data: cooperation between the NSA and law enforcement agencies, along with a conspiracy to lie to judges, defense attorneys, and even prosecutors about how evidence was collected. If this were limited to spying on former love interests, it would be creepy; "parallel construction" is dangerous.
- oth3r 13y ago
  You're not required to use Facebook to donate. I just signed up and donated without using Facebook at all.
- mattermill 13y ago
  I wasn't required to login with Facebook. It allowed me to donate anonymously.
mkr-hn 13y ago
In marketing terms, 25% [1] is a great conversion rate for something with non-obvious and far off benefits. [1] Probably closer to an ordinary 5-15% once page views are factored in
ewillbefull 13y ago
I would happily donate bitcoins.
oscardelben 13y ago
One thing that really puts me off is the emphasis on protecting privacy for american people. Why should privacy be a luxury of people who just happened to be born in a particular piece of land? Why is it ok to spy on everyone else?
- Xylakant 13y ago
  Easy enough: only american people (or people in america) enjoy the legal protection of the american constitution. So the only fight that can be fought here is for americans. You'll need to convince your own government to fight for your rights. please note: IANAL, but that's what I gathered so far.
  - oscardelben 13y ago
    I'm not sure convincing my government would make any difference since I'm connecting to an american server right now just to type this (I'm also working in the US). It's like saying that if you're connecting to a german server and they're violating your privacy then you should fill a complaint with your own government.
    - betterunix 13y ago
      Am I the only one who sees this and thinks, "Why are international borders so important on the Internet?" Maybe we need to be thinking in terms of protocols and designs that do not allow the government to violate privacy rights regardless of where particular computers happen to be located...
  - ataggart 13y ago
    The US Constitution doesn't "protect" anyone except insofar as it mandates/prohibits actions of the Federal and State governments, and those mandates/prohibitions apply wherever agents of the state act under constitutional authority.
    - anExcitedBeast 13y ago
diminoten 13y ago
How am I to know if Lavabit is actually supporting privacy rights in its court case?
asdbkasjdhjka 13y ago
Yeah. Fund this project, not some silly thing on Kickstarter.

darkchasma 13y ago

I support the cause, as I believe all people should have the right to privacy. However, I'm not American, and we have our own battles. Increasing awareness and visibility however, is something we all can do.

wazoox 13y ago

It asks me to log in with Facebook (oh, the irony). I don't have an FB account, and I suppose I'm not alone among the potential supporters.

bdg 13y ago
Super. I'll just neatly put my name next to a list of people (which the NSA has connected to) who oppose the surveillance state ... and hope I don't get black bagged to your fancy Cuban torture prisons if I ever cross into the USA.
- deleted 13y ago
  [deleted]
- deleted 13y ago
  [deleted]
- mjolk 13y ago
  >"and hope I don't get black bagged to your fancy Cuban torture prisons if I ever cross into the USA." Oh give me a break with the hyperbole. The NSA likely doesn't give a fuck about your activity of pissing and moaning on hacker news.
  - bandushrew 13y ago
    How do you know? or do you mean that you hope the NSA doesn't give a fuck?
    - mjolk 13y ago
      Because you're not dangerous or a threat. Not that I love the idea of someone awkwardly thumbing through content that my mind has created, but why would the NSA care to detain a foreign national over being smug?
      - bandushrew 13y ago
        I dont know. That is rather the point though, isn't? There are many other countries whose authorities would absolutely care to detain foreign nationals over being smug. What makes you believe that some individuals within the NSA are not of that type of person?
        mjolk 13y ago
        >What makes you believe that some individuals within the NSA are not of that type of person? Because the NSA just records the information, they don't get to make the call on detention. Gitmo isn't full of people that called the government a bunch of jerks or complained about wiretapping/taxes/etc. In my humble opinion, the greatest abuse that could come from this wiretapping is much more mundane and offensive - NSA employees cyberstalking and mining data of sexual interests/current partners.
        betterunix 13y ago
        We have already seen a much greater abuse of this data: cooperation between the NSA and law enforcement agencies, along with a conspiracy to lie to judges, defense attorneys, and even prosecutors about how evidence was collected. If this were limited to spying on former love interests, it would be creepy; "parallel construction" is dangerous.
oth3r 13y ago
You're not required to use Facebook to donate. I just signed up and donated without using Facebook at all.
mattermill 13y ago
I wasn't required to login with Facebook. It allowed me to donate anonymously.

mkr-hn 13y ago

In marketing terms, 25% [1] is a great conversion rate for something with non-obvious and far off benefits. [1] Probably closer to an ordinary 5-15% once page views are factored in

ewillbefull 13y ago

I would happily donate bitcoins.

oscardelben 13y ago

One thing that really puts me off is the emphasis on protecting privacy for american people. Why should privacy be a luxury of people who just happened to be born in a particular piece of land? Why is it ok to spy on everyone else?

Xylakant 13y ago
Easy enough: only american people (or people in america) enjoy the legal protection of the american constitution. So the only fight that can be fought here is for americans. You'll need to convince your own government to fight for your rights. please note: IANAL, but that's what I gathered so far.
- oscardelben 13y ago
  I'm not sure convincing my government would make any difference since I'm connecting to an american server right now just to type this (I'm also working in the US). It's like saying that if you're connecting to a german server and they're violating your privacy then you should fill a complaint with your own government.
  - betterunix 13y ago
    Am I the only one who sees this and thinks, "Why are international borders so important on the Internet?" Maybe we need to be thinking in terms of protocols and designs that do not allow the government to violate privacy rights regardless of where particular computers happen to be located...
- ataggart 13y ago
  The US Constitution doesn't "protect" anyone except insofar as it mandates/prohibits actions of the Federal and State governments, and those mandates/prohibitions apply wherever agents of the state act under constitutional authority.
  - anExcitedBeast 13y ago

diminoten 13y ago

How am I to know if Lavabit is actually supporting privacy rights in its court case?

asdbkasjdhjka 13y ago

Yeah. Fund this project, not some silly thing on Kickstarter.