I think calling it a "large" footprint is an understatement.
My conspiracy buddies are going nuts with the idea that its the government trying to convince us to hand over our internet freedom to them. I wish i could laugh at them with confidence
Well said. I'm not completely convinced this isn't the government, and I'm definitely not normally a tinfoil-hatter. I think the most likely scenario is that, like the ATF's blind eye toward gun-runners on the Mexico border, an agency or agencies have been ordered to turn a blind eye for now.
The chickens are coming home to roost on the ATF thing and I sincerely hope that, if my suspicions are true, they do the same on this.
I'm not sold on this being one gigantic government conspiracy. I wouldn't doubt the existence of this being one giant social engineering tactic, but something in the back of my head tells me otherwise. I stand by the belief however that this group is just further enabling the US and other nations to take actions against internet freedom by their tactics against it.