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Brits would quite like their private messages to stay private

theregister.com

131–140 of 292 posts

Re: Brits would quite like their private messages to stay private

#131
post #24

Generally speaking the more important an issue is, the less it is allowed to be affected by democratic processes. That's why Brexit was such a big upset, it bucked the trend (the management miscalculated, nobody expected the result and would not have put it to referendum otherwise).

It was virtually 50/50 and should not have proceeded. The bar to leave was set too low. 2/3rd better, and larger turnout should have been mandated. 16 year olds should have voted. The campaign to stay too weak. Mass confusion. Some particularly pernicious lies on the leave side too convincing. Brexit wasn't 100% going to happen, it was more like... Leave 17,410,742 51.89% Remain 16,141,241 48.11%

Turnout was about 72%, so really it was (approx) Leave 37%, Remain 35%, Don’t Know/Care 28%.

Also worth pointing out that the hard Brexit we got, where we left Schengen and abandoned much of our cross-European programmes, was almost unthinkable, and not seriously considered by the media. Whenever it was brought up, it was decried as “project fear” by those who pushed for it.

Re: Brits would quite like their private messages to stay private

#132

Generally speaking the more important an issue is, the less it is allowed to be affected by democratic processes. That's why Brexit was such a big upset, it bucked the trend (the management miscalculated, nobody expected the result and would not have put it to referendum otherwise).

Yep, for once we had actual direct democracy in this country, they won't make that mistake again

Re: Brits would quite like their private messages to stay private

#133

I am not convinced they do, they keep voting to give away their privacy every year.

As a Brit I've never been asked to vote on that. If you are talking about the general election it's not a main issue compared to other things on the ballot.

Re: Brits would quite like their private messages to stay private

#134
post #110
post #74

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The failing was the one and done nature of it all. The vote should have been, should we entertain this idea? If yes, a second referendum on what Leave actually means when it comes to the final decision point. Y'know the same way that any remotely functioning democracy would approach something this large and nebulous. Iceland being just the most recent example. Instead the vote was "life carries on as is" vs "somethin…

Eh, the ‘beauty’ of democracy is it is allowed to screw itself as hard as it wants.

But usually change it's mind later. One vote for life is more 1933 Germany.

Re: Brits would quite like their private messages to stay private

#135
post #50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hm, which is worse: An entire country of millions of people suffers from the shortsighted actions of a few with reduced quality of products, increased prices, worse access to other countries, and a host of other problems... ...or we have to listen to some people whine?

The winners are still whining anyway.

More like “we won, don’t mention it”

It was recently the 10-year anniversary of the Brexit vote. Not a single firework.

Re: Brits would quite like their private messages to stay private

#136

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No, they don't. Turnout in the UK has dropped significantly because it doesn't matter who you vote for, the outcome is the same.

Yes, completely giving up is definitely the better option. /s

I mean, i go through the motions of voting. but i'm voting against an overwhelming amount of feelings-voters that are easily manipulated. i don't think it makes much difference anymore.

If i wasn't busy, local politics is where one could make a difference. Nation politics seems completely captured by now.

Re: Brits would quite like their private messages to stay private

#137

Well, they would have loved to stop migration and voted in droves for brexit for that. Cant have that though, democracy or not, can vote for any party, but cant have that result they all promise before the vote closes and never deliver once the vote is in.

FWIW, Brexit was never, ever, ever about stopping migration.

It was about right wing elites deciding which migrants they wanted, and at best about regaining control of that policy from the EU. It was sold in a racist and bigoted way.

The reason we have less control over illegal migration is exactly Brexit, which, as people were warned at the time, torpedoed our actually cushioned position with respect to "first safe country" asylum rules, and meant we had no cross-border agreements with France.

The "Brexit" that people thought they were getting was always in their own mind because it had no definition. It was an imaginary victory which only has downsides, just as was pointed out.

Re: Brits would quite like their private messages to stay private

#138
post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not sure that's an argument that shines good light on brexit voters.

To be fair (a) I don't think he was trying to do that, and (b) I'm struggling to think of an argument that would shine good light on brexit voters ? Perhaps that they're wonderfully trusting people who believe whatever politicians that Gary down the pub thinks are the best ?

The idea of independence wasn't ridiculous, it's just the details made it hard to make it work.

Re: Brits would quite like their private messages to stay private

#139
post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Absurd to suggest that anyone voting for Brexit knew what they were voting for - by design of the pro-Brexit shysters.

I think everyone who voted against Brexit knew exactly what Brexit was going to be though.

I didn't. I voted against and thought it would be soft Brexit. But here we are.

Re: Brits would quite like their private messages to stay private

#140

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In the US we also have tech companies going out of their way to make their devices have strong encryption and be unbreakable.

Maybe I’m naive: I can believe the e2e encryption happens, but it takes a lot of faith to believe there’s no front-end telemetry that would render that ineffective.

Define "ineffective". Traffic analysis is a thing:

* https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traffic_analysis

but message E2EE is generally not designed to solve that. Other layers of the stack would probably have to get involved.

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