Big Brother is watching you

...intellectual freedom is a deep-rooted tradition without which our characteristic western culture could only doubtfully exist. From that tradition many of our intellectuals are visibly turning away. They have accepted the principle that a book should be published or suppressed, praised or damned, not on its merits but according to political expediency. And others who do not actually hold this view assent to it from sheer cowardice. - George Orwell

It is April Fools' Day, but this piece of news is no joke...

From the BBC:

The government will be able to monitor the calls, emails, texts and website visits of everyone in the UK under new legislation set to be announced soon.

Internet firms will be required to give intelligence agency GCHQ access to communications on demand, in real time.

The Home Office says the move is key to tackling crime and terrorism, but civil liberties groups have criticised it.

Attempts by the last Labour government to take similar steps failed after huge opposition, including from the Tories.

A new law - which may be announced in the forthcoming Queen's Speech in May - would not allow GCHQ to access the content of emails, calls or messages without a warrant.

But it would enable intelligence officers to identify who an individual or group is in contact with, how often and for how long.

In an age when the real danger to our benighted society is the lack of law and order on our streets, millions of pounds of public money will be being diverted away from front-line policing to this terrifying new approach.

We pride ourselves on having a free society in the UK - freer than most of Europe and America in many respects - yet now our government (using the excuse of "terrorism" again) appears hell-bent on introducing legislation that is reminiscent of China or Iran. For what?

As The Opinion Site says:

The government is well aware that civil unrest is more likely than not to break out towards the end of this year and throughout next, given cutbacks to public services, rising prices, diminishing wage packets and higher taxes. It is desperate to maintain control over the British population and David Cameron has clearly taken the decision to take whatever action is necessary in order to enable the government to limit the activities of any particular individual considered by the government to be a ‘troublemaker’.

Let's hope this misguided law is killed off as before, or we'll all be watching our backs!