Glenn Greenwald Challenges the Surveillance State

Some measure of privacy and secrecy for people is essential, especially when it comes to “effective activism,” the Salon blogger and former constitutional lawyer told an audience at the Socialism 2012 conference last week.

“It is in the private realm exclusively where things like dissent and creativity and challenges to orthodoxy reside. It’s only when you know that you can explore without external judgment, where you can experiment without eyes being cast upon you, [that] the opportunity for creating new paths [is] possible,” Greenwald said.

Greenwald went on to say that Americans can challenge attempts to invade their privacy by limiting themselves as much as possible to using cash for purchases; supporting groups such as Anonymous and WikiLeaks; using software that prevents governments and businesses from monitoring online activity, such as the Tor browser; and reading up on privacy rights at places like the Center for Constitutional Rights.

—Posted by Alexander Reed Kelly.

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