[arpstick]

defaults absolutely matter, which is why surveillance being the default is deeply troubling to me. I do not care what the justification flavor of the day is, it's not a good trend to normalize. all it takes is another donald trump type figure to abuse this for evil. hell even a 3rd party could if this was implemented poorly, which is an all too common occurrence.

In the USA, nothing is more permanent than a temporary government program, keep that in mind.

[aww_dang]

Critics of the current US administration have been labeled as white supremacists and terrorists. Many of them are currently held in solitary confinement. Most are held on the misdemeanor of trespassing in the Capitol Building.

>"...was beaten by a prison guard and left with permanent eye damage."

https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2021/05/13/capitol-rio...

https://www.politico.com/news/2021/04/19/capitol-riot-defend...

That's the current climate surrounding a single politically charged incident. There's a long history of abuse, from the COINTEL program, extraordinary rendition, torture and current events. Yes, we should absolutely be concerned - regardless of the partisan takes.

>"...Arar protested that he only had a casual relationship with Almalki, having once worked with Almalki's brother at an Ottawa high-tech firm..."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maher_Arar

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/COINTELPRO