Hi Steven,

 MvdV>> Point of fact is that they have no reason to suspect me and so
 MvdV>> they do not monitor my telephone. Point of fact is also that they
 MvdV>> routinely monitor the InterNet without having specific reason to
 MvdV>> suspect anyone.

 SH> Specific reason may be a bit much but they are likely to
 SH> belooking for individuals or traffic patterns.

They look for "interesting" keywords don't they?

 SH> What happened in your younger years to make you so
 SH> concerned about the interception of your communications?

1) I read George Orwell's 1984.

2) I am a ham. When I applied for a license in 1964 I had to submit
testimony of good behaviour from two citizens of good standing. This was
part of the screening by the secret service I learned later. That made me
wonder why /they/ were so interested in people that could freely talk to
others all over the world. The screening of hams has been history for a
long time now by the way.

3) During my study I lived on a house boat. Not much room, so my ham
transmitter was in the bedroom. It didn't have a push to talk switch but a
switch that stayed in position like a light switch. One night the
transmitter was accidentally left on. Luckily a friend who lived in the
neighbourhood put two and two together, guessed what was going on and came
to warn me before anything interesting was going on. No harm done, bit it
taught me to be careful with communication channels that are monitorable.

4) I lived in a police state. The republic of South Africa in the mid
seventees. People I knew of that said the wrong things just disappeared.
Presumably they were held for an indefinite multiple of 90 days under the
"terrorist act", but no way to know for sure.

I know that my country is not a police state. It is still difficult to get
into jail just for saying something. But the times they are a changing and
not for the better. In the sixties it was well neigh impossible. In theory
shouting "Johnson murderer" could get you in jail for insulting a
befriended head of state, but in practise one needed to hunt for a cop, tie
him to a lamp post and shout it in his ear to get that message across.
"Johnson murderer" still won't get you in jail, but I am not so
sure about other things any more. A harmless affair with the sister of an
Al Quada sympathiser may get you in trouble because the spooks monitor her
e-mail or her cell phone. You and the sister may have nothing to do with it
but the naked fact that you call her two times a day may get the spooks'
attention. i don't like that one bit.

Cheers, Michiel

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