In a country where Law Enforcement can jail you for not handing over encryption keys on demand, I don't know how comfortable I would be on having any recorded footage that could also be subject to the same line of thinking in the future.

Eg: Hand over your CCTV footage to prove you were home last night or we put you in jail.

Not to sound TOO tin-foil hat here, but I tend to view anything that Law Enforcement says these days with a bit of apprehension / suspicion.
Regardless of how well it sounds at the time.

I'm pretty sure the NSA will get what they want.

They just won't tell anyone else about it and the only way we'll ever learn of its existence is via another TS slideshow years from now when another Snowden makes said information public.

I am curious what they plan on doing for damage control when they end up targeting the wrong networks for retaliation. Think of the fun you can have with that. It's like Swatting, just on a different level completely. Take over systems in a corporation you loathe, use them to attack the NSA, their retaliation strike takes down the corporation for you. Win - Win.

Open carry of guns in general probably isn't a good idea anyway.
( Should still be legal, just not a great idea unless you're out hunting )

Because if you're carrying it out in the open in public, it makes it easier for the guy who snaps to know whom to target first.
( Then again, you walk into a location with the intent of going on a rampage and note EVERYONE is carrying a firearm, you may change your mind )

Or for the police to harass for that matter. ( They generally dislike folks without badges carrying guns yanno )

You're limiting your thinking to the short term. Expand it out a decade or two and try to picture what the tech can evolve into.

Imagine a satellite ( or something like the ISS ) based weapon that will fire an invisible high-kilowatt ( or even megawatt ) beam on any target it can see from orbit. Maybe combine a few of these satellites onto the same target for even more power output.

Then realize you can pretty much incinerate any human target on the planet, instantly. From orbit. Crank the power output up enough and you can do the same with aircraft, other satellites, light vehicles, ICBM's, etc. The puppet you installed during your regime change a decade ago giving you shit ? No problem. Hope they remember to wear their SPF-10000 today . . . . :| Those pesky whistleblowers taking refuge in a non-extradition country ? Pffft. No problem. Start some wildfires, disable power grids, use your imagination.

On the ground, the target will just heat up, catch fire and die horribly. No collateral damage, nor explanation as to wtf just happened.

Is the tech clumsy today ? Sure it is. All tech starts that way. Compare computers from 20-30 years ago with what is common today if you want to see tech evolution in action.

Snowden is a very intelligent individual.

There is no way on this EARTH he can possibly put any trust into the US Government to keep their word irregardless of what they may promise. Even if this isn't BS ( which I suspect it is ) you KNOW one of the conditions will be to provide the USG with the full cache of documents and / or the cessation of any further disclosures contained within said cache. The USG does not like to be embarrassed on the world stage. Not one bit.

Even IF by some magical amazing miracle the USG keeps their word ( Recall these people spy on their friends / allies and torture anyone to get what they want ) he couldn't return to the US because about half the country has consumed the wrong color Kool-Aid and believes he's a traitor that deserves to die. So even if the USG doesn't do it, they wouldn't have to. They'll let the radicals do it for them.

I can understand he may be homesick, but returning to the US now will certainly not be the same life he left behind. If he's LUCKY, he'll just sit in prison for the rest of his life.

Unless . . . . .

Unless he has something yet unrevealed on the NSA so incredibly damning, that the USG would do anything to prevent its disclosure. That scenario is the only possibility I can think of where these negotiations could potentially prevent any of the usual behavior we've come to expect of the USG as of late.

Of course they won't.

There is a very good reason she exited the State Department stage when she did. She only had the job so she could check off the box labeled " Experience " for her upcoming Presidential bid. Without it, her lack of experience would have been front and center during her entire campaign. This has been planned for quite some time. Though her success at her previous job posting is certainly up for debate.

Her election team knows how short the average voter memory is. Exit the spotlight a few years in advance of the main election and you're golden. Can't have all this ISIS, Ukraine, Iran, Syria business getting in the way of a potential Presidential Candidacy now can we ? Though the closer we get to election season, we'll see all the skeletons dragged from the closets and put on display for both sides.

I would expect nothing but the usual smear campaigns from both parties telling us that Candidate X is better than Candidate Y because they are not AS evil as their counterpart over in the other party. Our entire system isn't about who is best qualified anymore, rather it's about picking the lesser of two evils. ( Which, if you think about it, still makes us Evil . . . :D )

I do have to thank the current administration, however, for introducing a good dose of reality to the upcoming generations. ( In fairness, it happens every election cycle ) I do hope those that voted for Mr. Hope and Change Yes-We-Can remember just how that turned out and not be so easily swayed with the next candidates election promises. ( But I won't hold my breath )

Hillary certainly has a shot at the title, but only if the Republican side fails to field any serious competitor to oppose her. ( We so need a new system to replace this very outdated and increasingly corrupt one we have now )

Third party ? LOL. Never happen.

While we may have far better candidates in the Third Party corner, the media is not on their side. All of the mainstream media in this country is controlled, or has interests in, one of the two major parties. As a result, a Third Party will never see the same exposure to the populace as the other two candidates. No exposure = no chance of getting elected.

You know. . . .

If folks like Anonymous and / or Lizard Squad really wanted something to do that would prove their value, they would turn their attention upon something like this. They would certainly wield considerably more respect were they to apply their skills by obtaining useful information on matters such as these. Granted, such information would be worth quite a bit on the black market, but putting a three letter agency under the public spotlight for using potentially illegal tech would be far more satisfying I think. ( Especially when it's our own Law Enforcement types getting caught doing so ) Not to mention ultimate bragging rights of being the group / individual responsible for it.

The obvious target being the user and / or maintenance manual or even detailed specifications on what the Stingray units are and what they are capable of.

Orders of magnitude more important than knocking Sony or Xbox-Live offline for a few days or defacing some website out of protest.

If you lived in any of the Southern States of the US, you would have nothing to worry about.

Just walking around outside in the Summer Time is on par with visiting a sauna. Nothing like 100+ degree heat coupled with high humidity.
The mosquitoes do tend to make things a bit miserable though. :D

" If build a network, it is up to me to operate it the way I want to "

If you built a network using your own finances, then I say absolutely.

OTOH, if you take government subsidies ( The Universal Service Fund I think ) to help you build your network / infrastructure out with the conditions / goals of the USF, then you don't get to operate it completely by your own rules.

Eg:

Promote the availability of quality services at just, reasonable and affordable rates for all consumers
Increase nationwide access to advanced telecommunications services
Advance the availability of such services to all consumers, including those in low income, rural, insular, and high cost areas, at rates that are reasonably comparable to those charged in urban areas
Increase access to telecommunications and advanced services in schools, libraries and rural health care facilities
Provide equitable and non-discriminatory contributions from all providers of telecommunications services to the fund supporting universal service programs

Pay close attention to number three above. THIS scares the shit out of the big players who are in the broadband game. Currently they cherry pick where they build out their networks based on projected profit returns. They classify under Title II, they may lose that privilege.

That terrifies them as it eats deep into their already absurd profits.

If they buried Mr. Nimoy in a Mark VII Photon Torpedo casing.

I'm seeing a parallel here with modern day medicine.

Commercials are overflowing with " Ask your Doctor if X is right for you !!! "
Fast forward ten years.
Commercials are overflowing with " Did you or a love one take X that resulted in Death, a third limb, cancer, speaking in tongues or the desire to abuse Nuns ? If so, call the law offices of Y as you may be entitled to a cash compensation !!! "

Wise man say: The experts don't always know what's best for you. :|

When the kiddies demonstrate they can't play nice on their own, the parents usually end up getting involved and start laying down the rules. The more intelligent ones realize this early on and self-adjust their behavior accordingly so they retain some say so in how their day to day activities are governed. It allows them a bit more freedom.

It's interesting the corporate interests can't see past their quarterly profit statements to figure out that THEY are the reason broadband in this country is about as pathetic as it gets. Not a f*cking clue on their end. Then again, poster children never realize that they're poster children I guess :|

Personally, I hope they break the companies up. Folks who control the backbone shouldn't be in the content business and vice versa. Too many moral and ethical issues for the average US company to deal with correctly. ( Why offer a superior product when I can just degrade a competitors instead ? )

what we the citizens think. All the Snowden revelations and they have the nerve to even suggest such a thing.

I think it's time for the release of some more damning files from the repository of documented evil. If, for no other reason, to show exactly WHY we need strong crypto in this day and age.

( It needs to be in Comic Sans and giant font with lots of pictures though. The majority aren't getting it )

I find it amusing that the Government argues it must do its job in secret to be effective while, at the same time, no one else is allowed access to any sort of privacy or secrecy at all.

Meh.

If you're perusing the net without some form of basic protection, you're doing it wrong anyway :D

( Bare minimum being: NoScript, Ghostery and Adblock, or their equivalents )
( Paranoia level being: The above plus some flavor of Linux in a VM via a Tor relay, VPN service or proxy and a dozen other addons )

I listen to folks talk about not letting the mentally ill have access to firearms, yet we give nuclear launch codes and near unlimited power to folks who consult astrologers ( Reagan ) and have beliefs in imaginary deities ( every US President, ever ) who use such beliefs and information to help formulate both their foreign and domestic policy.

Truly, the inmates run the asylum.