[racbart]

Except that before we reached some kind of protection coming from governments, we lived through thousands of years where governments, kings and lords of any kinds were the masters of life and death of ordinary citizens. Would we have such kind of freedoms and security as we have today if past generations didn't take a stand? I doubt so. If they decided that weapons and violence is the governments thing and resistance is futile, nothing would change.

Rights and freedoms are never granted, they have to be taken. We shouldn't opt-out from our right to privacy and if you stop trying to circumvent governments' spying efforts, you basically opt-out. Even if a single isolated action seems futile, you shouldn't stop doing it, because if you stop, then they'll know that they can do their thing and they can escalate even more.

The only thing that can stop them from escalating, and create enough political or legal climate to change things to grant us privacy, are the actions from ordinary citizens who try to defy, regardless of how futile that seems. If there will be only criminals and enemies who will actively fight and try to avoid total surveillance, then it will be clear that it's a tool specifically against criminals and enemies and it will conclude as the end of the story.