I think that's a false dichotomy

[Robert J. Hansen]

> Reality is a *lot*
> more complicated than "the decision belongs to the people".

Yes, democracy is a mess.  But "it belongs to the people" is a lot more
convenient than listing the complex, convoluted, and sometimes corrupt
machinery of government.  :)

> Over here, police is knowingly ignoring privacy laws because it "is so
> effective". That's what I mean when I say this shouldn't be left to the people
> enforcing the law and doing the detective work.

I'd take this as evidence to support a claim that policy should also be
informed by the reasonable fears of privacy activists.  :)