[sparkie]

That might be how it's being played - the NSA surveillance is a useful story to push individual countries agendas, but what they're really after is complete control of domestic communications. It's not countries "breaking free from the US", rather the beginning of the balkanization of the internet.

[walshemj]

Back to the good old days when all communications where under the countrys PTT and in third world country's was a nice source of foreign cash to be spirited away to a Swiss banck account.

Thats why Postmaster general was such a plum Job in that sort of country.