>>>I don't regard email privacy as an essential liberty for terrorists and criminals.
>>>and that Benjamin Franklin quote is always trotted out but could be classed as "things that smug people who don't have a problem say"
>>>
>>The point is that outlawing encryption will make it so only the outlaws will have it. The Franklin quote is not just smug people trotting something out - it is absolutely applicable because once you go down the road of giving up your rights you will not get them back easily ever again. I shouldn't have to explain why I want my privacy - it was fought for and won and now I have it. One does not need to justify having it.
>>
>>>Certainly the root cause of current terrorism needs to be addressed as its the only cure but when this round is over there will be something else because thats the way some people are and the regulated ability to intercept communication is vital in the same way that government organisations could allow someones post to be intercepted and read in the past.
>>
>>Just because once upon a time our physical post could be read does not mean that our electronic post should now also be readable. What logic is that? That's one of the reasons why encryption was invented in the first place - to protect our privacy.
>
>Electronic encryption began for business and government classified communication. It wasn't invented because "they" could snoop into your private email. That was a side product and in the law of unintended consequences it led us to where we are now. And the reading of your private post was not once upon a time, its happening right now and you would not know if your post was being opened and checked by government organisations .

If there was a physical necessity for human interaction in each "opened" commuication, I would be less certain in damning all approaches to ban encryption. The snail mail opening was done regularly in former East Germany, but with the help computers can give the balance shifts too much to controlling side and less law abiding parts of the population - for instance tailor made attacks via email after cracking another comm channel.