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Americans, how do you feel about being stored in a database by government agencies like the NSA? (sh.itjust.works)

submitted 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago) by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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Every search you make, email you send, text message, voice chat, location, and most likely the conversations you have in your own home are monitored and stored in a database for whoever knows how long (probably forever). When I hear land of the free, I immediately think bullshit. We are slowly losing our freedoms, what can we do to prevent this? I mean, when Edward Snowden dropped the leaks, people protested, but barely anything changed. What can we do? This post not only applies to Americans, your own government in another country may possibly does the same thing. Feel free to comment!

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[–] [email protected] -2 points 4 months ago (1 children)

As far as I know, only about a third of people in the US back then ever owned slaves.

Okay? We're talking about the Founders, and they owned slaves. They were directly responsible for it, they had their own plantations. Comparing that to bystanders and voting and buying local and being complacent is absurd.

Are you perhaps under the impression that all Americans in 1776 were Founders? Because generally when USians talk about our Founders we're talking about the people at the Constitutional Convention and terroist organizations like the Sons of Liberty.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 4 months ago (1 children)

Are you perhaps under the impression that all Americans in 1776 were Founders

Are you perhaps under the impression that us stupid Europeans don't know what you're talking about?

Comparing that to bystanders and voting and buying local and being complacent is absurd

Again, I'm German. I've heard that excuse before.

[–] [email protected] -1 points 4 months ago (1 children)

Don't act like being German gives you some kind of unique perspective. Hitler was inspired by the US exterminating it's Native population and by the US reservation system.

There's a clear difference between living in society and ruling that society.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 4 months ago (1 children)

Hitler was inspired by the US exterminating it's Native population and by the US reservation system.

Don't act like being American gives you some unique perspective. Wow, that looks stupid, right?

There's a clear difference between living in society and ruling that society.

Sure, but you're implying that not being part of the ruling class absolves you from any guilt or responsibility. And that is literally what all Germans said after the war. What was I supposed to do?

And you're living in a democracy.

[–] [email protected] -1 points 4 months ago

Sure, but you’re implying that not being part of the ruling class absolves you from any guilt or responsibility.

No, I'm implying that the ruling class has unique guilt and responsibility, which is nontransferable to their subjects. I never said we have no responsibility. I only contend that holding us equally accountable is mystification; it obscures the uniquely horrible actions of the ruling class. They're the ones who deserve to be tried for their crimes, after all.

By flattening society, by holding the least of us accountable for the crimes of our rulers, you actually make it harder to hold anyone accountable for anything at all.

Or do you think the Red Army should have executed all Germans because a minority of them voted for Hitler?