Reply #111: Where do you draw the line?

[one-eyed fat man]

One of the flaws of a free society is that even if we are willing to accept outrages like the secret warrant-less wire-taps, Bush Obama "No fly lists" or the "security theater" of TSA goons every time we fly that there will still be people who find opportunity commit evil. What sense does it make to throw away freedoms under the illusion we are keeping the evil-doers from suborning it?

So what are our options? Do we do like the East Germans did?

The MfS monitored political behavior among GDR citizens, and is known to have used torture and intimidation to mute dissent. During the Peaceful Revolution of 1989, MfS offices were overrun by enraged citizens, but not before the MfS destroyed a number of documents (approximately 5%). When the remaining files were published for review, many people learned that their friends, colleagues, spouses, and relatives had regularly filed reports with the MfS. These wounds on society have not yet entirely healed.

It turned out that one in every seven East Germans was an informant for the State Security apparatus. Amazingly, despite that level of scrutiny people were able to escape. As oppressive and as overwhelming as it was, it still wasn't 100% effective.