[xg15]

> I will say that 'classified' has often become a way to hide actions that governments and individuals don't want the public to see instead of hiding things in order to protect the public.

You can probably rationalize anything as "protecting the public" with the magic phrases "national security" (no exposing shady government operations), "ensuring order and stability" (no political protests) and "ensuring innovation and prosperity" (no resisting anything the private sector wants to do).

[jmward01]

Yes, you can, but that doesn't mean there isn't a real need in some, if not many, cases. The big questions are how do we balance the real need to protect national security with the actual harm to public interest and how do we eventually address the actual harm to public interest that occurred when something was classified.

[hedora]

One possibility would be to criminalize over classification.

[flappyeagle]

That would have its own unintended consequences

[blackeyeblitzar]

Don’t forget about the “safety of children”.

[yehabut]

Don’t forget about “rights of man”; those only exist as babbles philosophy not immutable physics

Perhaps you have no special rights as an individual since you are not that meaningful to its success or existence…

…it’s trivial for someone else to do what you won’t and turn the mirror around for you. Your semantics games can be played on you.

“Adults” sure act afraid of kids. Good. They should be afraid of getting old and having the kids revolt on them.

The other billions aren’t trapped in here with you … you’re trapped here with them. Stop trying to look clever arguing semantics. Do your job and pay your taxes or start conflict and be ended. See what they do to college kids? Why care about the walking dead?

[skeeter2020]

or justification with just "9-11" - is that still the ultimate rejoinder?

[yehabut]

Generalized churn of physics continues and yet some of you think specific things the media tells you about had some outsized impact on your life.

Perhaps you’re just paranoid from reading paranoid opinions all the time.

[throwaway290]

This is pretty much how they call these laws in China...