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GCHQ head says privacy is not an absolute right

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Mr Hannigan is an extremist (Score: 4, Insightful)

by tanuki64@pipedot.org on 2014-11-04 18:31 (#2TWT)

Mr Hannigan is an extremist and proof that better surveillance does not help against extremists.
Everyone who tries to erode civil rights is an extremist. But people are dumb. How many people
die in car accidents every year? According to Wikipedia: 32,999 in 2010 in the USA alone. How
many terroristic acts? How many died in terroristic acts in 2010 in the USA? 15 people.
According to:
http://reason.com/archives/2011/09/06/how-scared-of-terrorism-should
it is four times more likely to be killed by a lightning bolt than by a terror attack.
I doubt that in other countries the ratio is much different.

Would internet surveillance help to prevent terror attacks? Hardly. And I suppose the whole population
has to be monitored to solve, who did the last/next school shooting.

Again: There is only one 'crime' for which an all-over internet surveillance is necessary: Copyright violations.
Ok, to a lesser extend libel. But certainly not terrorism, drugs, or child porn.

Re: Mr Hannigan is an extremist (Score: 2, Interesting)

by wootery@pipedot.org on 2014-11-05 11:35 (#2TX4)

it is four times more likely to be killed by a lightning bolt than by a terror attack.
The counter-argument to this is that the number of people killed by lightning is by nature fairly steady. The realistic worst-case for lightning deaths isn't that scary.
The worst-case for terrorism, however, is extremely serious. A 'bad year for terrorism' might involve abandoned nuclear submarines, poorly secured nuclear weapons, economic disaster, etc.

Re: Mr Hannigan is an extremist (Score: 3, Interesting)

by tanuki64@pipedot.org on 2014-11-05 12:47 (#2TX5)

Not quite true, but also not quite false. Do you think that you can get a terror group, which is capable to utilize an abandoned nuclear submarine or poorly secured nuclear weapons, by snooping around in peoples private lives? Causing an economic disaster without leaving very visible traces, which cannot be followed without a general internet surveillance should be even more impossible.

Btw... terrorism was never as easy as today. One short trip to certain African countries could even the dumbest terrorist provide with enough material to do real damage. But again... Nothing which can be prevented or solved by playing big brother.

Want to save lives? The lightning argument is too weak? Put more cops on the streets. Pay and educate normal police better. 14,772 murder cases in 2010 in the usa. But of course it is much more important to fight to prevent the 15 terror victims a year.

Moderation

Time Reason Points Voter
2014-11-06 15:56 Interesting +1 kerrany@pipedot.org
2014-11-10 06:43 Insightful +1 wideglide@pipedot.org

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