[mikegagnon]

Exactly. The biggest threat from surveillance and censorship isn't the imposition on average citizens.

Rather, the risk is that surveillance, censorship, intimidation, selective law enforcement, and so on are targeted at specific political opponents --- such as Aaron Swartz, Barrett Brown, Glenn Greenwald, Marin Luther King Jr. and so on.

Such authoritarian harassment presents a straightforward threat to democracy because it stifles political dissent.

Democracy is incompatible with the stifling of political dissent.

[prawn]

Too many people view major, rival parties as opponents. Are they waiting for Democrats to imprison Republicans and vice versa? Those parties are brothers. The opposition includes the names you listed and because they don't have that glossy marketed façade and brand, they're viewed by the majority as crazed or rogues.