FBI Wants Backdoors in Facebook, Skype and Instant Messaging

want to spy on Walley and the Beaver and the Brady Bunch. They should have better things to do.

Again, must refrain from TOS violating comments.

I don't see anything wrong with making it wiretap-friendly, as long as the original owner of the wire-tap-friendly-software has control and the last word. I guess the last part is where the problem is, not the suggestion.

No. The history of the U.S., perhaps humankind, suggests if you make Linux wiretap friendly, inevitably someone, somewhere, will tap without permission.

I agree with DrGeoffrey. This should be seen as a huge red flag and something to be opposed.

Dr. Geoffrey, I don't think there's any "perhaps" about it.

Census data used to round up undesirable categories of people has happened in many countries over time, letters censored and copied, including the US, even long before computers and electronic communications.

Did the people who advocated the "Trading with the Enemy Act" during World War 1 really expect it to be used to justify blanket wiretapping in 2012? I don't expect so.

Like Caitlyn, I believe the spirit of the 4th Amendment must be fully respected if people are going to have any privacy at all. When some few nefarious types do evil things to others, a warrant can be issued against them and all the resources engaged in uncovering their acts, without anyone else having their privacy invaded to do it.

But that's hard work for peace officers, and police are people too. People generally don't want to work hard.