United Kingdom
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I would probably argue that China is a little different to the UK, given that China is a one-party state.
Yeah maybe the UK government shouldn't be able to spy on Apple messages sent anywhere in the world. But maybe UK agencies like GCHQ should be able to get the messages of specific individuals who threaten the UK, with a court warrant, like how law enforcement has been able to bug the phones of criminals with a court warrant.
I dunno. Maybe I should educate myself more on encryption and how it all works.
My understanding is that the Stasi were very repressive - "using torture, intimidation and a vast network of informants to crush dissent". I'm not aware of the UK government using torture to crush dissent.
I don't think the public should be spied on all the time. But if there is some way that illegal communications (like planning murder) could be intercepted, without spying on others, that would be good.
There's a quote by Benjamin Franklin which apparently is: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety". I always thought that quote was a bit weird though, because humans do give up some form of liberty in return for safety. E.g. we give up the freedom to murder other people without legal consequences, because in return we get some safety: protection from being murdered by others.
Fair points. That open letter is interesting. I didn't mean to be annoying with my responses, I was just giving my view.
I do think the oligarchy in the US is pretty worrying. As for encryption, I should probably learn more about it. I guess my understanding at the moment is only pretty basic.