Prohibition failed because it allowed the bootleggers of the underground to fully monopolize their trade without having to abide by any legal restrictions. If a business no longer has the threat of ramifications for questionable acts, then the questionable acts increase exponentially.
That can be two-way though. Cracking down only builds a stronger underground, which is where I see the entire surveillance issue going. As with all other ails in society, the ones with the power to effect real change are precisely the ones who would suffer most by said change. So it won't happen. Petitions, demonstrations, appeals courts, etc, are all useless. And there could never be a massive, singular pro-privacy effort as there is no money to be made. The NRA and big pharma have huge lobby groups playing with billions of dollars because there's billions more to be made.
So what? It's harder to combat guerrillas than a standing army. There's not always safety in numbers, sometimes that just results in a bigger target. So what if the Feds can tap into the larger encrypted anythings, give them a thousand tiny encryption outlets to deal with instead. Not a united cause, but a million different efforts. OWS failed bigtime because there were too many cooks in the kitchen. Aligning forces means individual voices get lost in the shuffle of the crowd. And Prohibition aligning with the Suffrage movement only resulted in the Suffrage movement being falsely placated to as a new target for Capitalism. Sell them ladies some cigarettes! Sell them some clothes-washing machinery! Let them know how much we respect their struggles by giving them things to go broke on!
(Apologies for any lack in logic- still working on 1st pot of coffee.)
I know what this site is and I can use it for my own purposes. But having to see popups or god knows whatever other eyesores would no longer make it worthwhile even in such minimal regards. I could care less about startups or especially anything relative to marketing or investment. But the factoid linkages are the real gold. I only care about information, not Capitalism. Not in the slightest.
Cash primarily, though I cash checks at non-chain pawn shops as needed. I've been getting lucky in the last year or so with trading goods and services- such as covering my hosting fees by proofreading/script doctoring/ghostwriting for others, etc. Even lawncare for groceries in the funner months. It is not easy, but I watched Turk182 waaay too much when I was a kid.
I believe that abuse of power in general, and illicit surveillance in particular, is nothing new, especially for the United States. This does not make any of it kosher of course.
But in an age where the courts can literally, retroactively re-write the laws to serve their own interests, protests and petitions are as evocative as a breeze.
I suspect that portions of every generation feels that things will get worse before it gets better. I believe that other portions of every generation believe theirs to be the ultimate showdown, the Armageddon. All said, I don't see how we can be backed any further into a corner. I've been running daily news aggregation articles at my website:
And every day's post makes me feel more and more like a sadomasochist. I see no easy solutions. I think we will all need to go without many things that we've been taking for granted, before life will look anymore hopeful for future generations, even the next generation.
Edit to add:
I have not had a bank account since the big bailout of '07, and have never owned a credit card. I pay only sales taxes. I do not vote. I boycott freely and widely. These and other small battles make for a truly awkward lifestyle, but I think it the best way to buck the system- by not enabling any of it. Take the power away from the Powers That Be. The People own the gov.