It won't. But how should having the keys keep them from torturing me if they are willing to do so?

I don't win with that strategy. All I can ensure with it is that the enemy doesn't either. But then again, I cannot win with either strategy, so this is the best exit I have. If you can't save your queen, ensure you can take the enemy's one as well.

If I wanted to see that I'd watch C-SPAN.

Now that would be a pain in the ass.

It's a free exchange of opinion. You go in with your opinion and it's exchanged for free for theirs.

If you want access to children, I question your motivation.

In theory you are right. The problem is that laws change and I cannot predict in what fashion.

What you do today and what is perfectly legal may well be illegal tomorrow. Take, say, smoking. Maybe you're smoking. Now let's imagine smoking gets banned. Well, tobacco is addictive. And if you're known to be a smoker, maybe you should be monitored whether you heed that ban or whether you engage in some illegal activity now that your addictive substance is banned.

And should you have dared to criticize the government in a way that has caused enough waves, this just might serve as the excuse needed to make you disappear behind some bars where you cannot reach those that like to listen to you. And hopefully soon you'll be forgotten and life will go on.

There are some countries, and I'm far from talking third world dictatorships, that are on the verge of heavy unrest. I don't want to say civil war, we're far from that, but there's a LOT of very unhappy and very disillusioned people in many countries that we'd consider first world countries.

All it takes is someone to gather behind. And that's to be avoided at all cost if you're a government, interested in preserving the status quo as long as you can.

So anything to get rid of such people is a good excuse. And having access to data is one way to find something. In case you ever wondered what purpose all those unexectuable laws we're seeing popping up could possibly serve, this pretty much is it. But if you need to construct dirt about someone, you need to have access to his documents.

Everyone breaks the law. Daily. Multiple times. All it takes is access to the proof.

And why the fuck would I want to have such a device?

If this makes anything virtually certain then that people will consider "made in the US" something to steer clear of when it comes to anything that could possibly have anything remotely to do with encryption.

"Banned in the US" will become a security seal of approval...

We've always wanted to be like that. Only back then we had to put up a facade of being the good guy so the people over there could be bullshitted into thinking they'd have it better over here.

Yes, essentially the Soviet Union kept us free.

I was pretty much thinking that. Of course burglars don't like that doors are locked, but they are the fucking REASON those doors are locked!

Well, then I guess the NSA is terribly afraid. Of whom? Us? Because it's us they hide their "secrets" from.

I am sorry, but you are not allowed to have those keys for reasons of national security. No I'm not going to explain it, for reasons of national security.

What? I just play his game!

You can only extract what is available. You may rest assured that I will ensure one thing: That I do not possess any keys I could hand over when I have to travel to anywhere where any violent regime can easily access me physically and use torture to extract such a key.

And now let's try with me not being anywhere close to US jurisdiction.

Remember Snowden? The guy a lot of US three letter agencies and three letter news networks wanna hang higher? He's still alive. Guess why.

Pretty much this. Why all the weeping at religious burial ceremonies? Allegedly that guy is now in a better place, ain't he? Or is it that you envy him and you can't just off yourself 'cause the religion commands that you won't get to $happy_place by suicide?

I'd rather expect a huge celebration with strippers and blow. Thinking about it... that's how I'm gonna organize my funeral.