Spies Like Us

"Oh well, there goes the Fourth Amendment...what's left of it."
--Carla Dean (Enemy of the State)

O'Reilly argues that those involved in posting classified State Dept docs are 'traitors' and should be executed or given life sentences. By divulging our 'secrets', the argument goes, the American people are put at risk.

Give me a break, Bill. The entities most at risk by the spilling of classified information are governments around the world. Leaking closely held info reduces State power and increases social power.

In fact, it can be argued that information assymetry is a key factor in motivating armed conflict. Entities are more likely to go to war with each other when they think that their 'military secrets' are secure and not well known by the other side. If all such information were out on the table for all to see, the probability of conflict may in fact decrease dramatically.

Moreover, granting government license to spy on 'enemies of the state' inevitably compromises individual freedom done in the name of 'national security.'

In a free society, national security is not the top priority. Liberty is.

Permitting government to amass confidential information in the name of national security increases State opacity and power. Remove that power, and freedom goes up.