Monday, June 20, 2011

Freedom and the lack of it

Sometimes it seems to me that things in Italy are going progressively from bad to worst. Sometimes it seems to me that Italians just stand there complaining, without actually doing much more than complaining to their neighbors and accepting anything that someone else decide for them.
Sometimes it seems to me that in Italy we passed the limit of what it could be considered acceptable and still nobody does anything.
Sometimes it seems to me that in Italy we are not able to do much more than just talking and talking and talking without actually acting to improve things.
Sometimes it seems to me that the people of Italy represent the apex of being selfish.
Sometimes I can't believe to the way people do not react and respond to what it is going on.
Sometimes I wish I could do something to change the things that I don't like there.

Take the right that the police and carabinieri have to record all the private conversation of citizens that may be considered suspect of some illegal action. Take for example the extension of it, which include the right to listen to private conversation, control sms, emails etc. of people who are more or less related to these suspects.
In the course of recent events in Lucca, the police and carabinieri obtained a large body of information by putting under surveillance for more than 3 years the phones (cellphones, home phones, office phones) of some suspects plus the ones of their family members. But this was not enough. They also placed recording devices to record conservation in some public cafes in the city justifying this fact by saying that "these suspects sometime were meeting there". We are talking about a public place, where me, you could go to have a coffee and chat about private things with a friend. The police and carabinieri got the information they wanted.
But my question is: aren't we free anymore?
Didn't we pass the limit?
Is it normal and considered ok to spy on other people and other people lives because they could be in some way connected with people that are under investigation?

Consider for a moment how you would feel if you would discover that anything you said in the last 3 years have been recorded and of course you didn't know about it. Consider if all your private sms, emails, phone calls would be available to the police and carabinieri. How would you feel? wouldn't you feel deprived of your freedom? wouldn't you feel spied? wouldn't you think that how come a private citizen in Italy can be spied without a warning or anything when the human freedom should be one of the main values of humanity to protect?

I keep wondering, how can this be all legal? and why none protest against it?

2 comments:

girl daydreaming said...

i have been exasperated in relation to little by little what was private and considered a right for citizens is being taken away... and it seems people are not smart enough to realise the consequences... it is heartbreaking, i agree. this is a very insightful post!

fromtheworld said...

The thing that amazes me is why not many more people complain about this. Why being spied is becoming widely accepted and considered "normal". Maybe because I am very protective of my privacy, but the idea that someone may spy what I say, what I do, etc. makes me very very angry!