Dear Readers,
In a great column Henry Porter has used today's Observer to issue a call to arms:
Each of us should understand that personal information is exactly that - personal - and that the government has only limited rights to demand and retain it. The scale of its operations and the innate weakness of the systems is a very grave concern to us all.
What is needed - and here I hope someone is listening - is a mass movement on the lines of the Countryside Alliance, which goes across all parties and absorbs the skills and expertise of countless activists. Now is the moment to create a movement in defence of our privacy, security and freedom.
If you know me you'll know I'm going to try and make it happen. Over at the Liberal Conspiracy Sunny Hundal has also said the time for action has arrived. We are not alone. If you want to make sure you are kept in touch, sign up for either of OurKingdom's handy weekly or, to keep on top of a fast moving situation, daily email alerts. If you have suggestions you want to share, please comment below. If you want to help with any form of support, please email me at anthony.barnett at opendemocracy.net
Thank you,
Anthony Barnett
Comments
Henry Porter's article in last Sunday's Observer was excellent and he is right to call for the creation of a popular movement. He is on shakier ground when he asserts that the government has only limited rights to demand and retain our personal information. That is a large part of the problem: the position in our country is uncertain to say the least. One cure for that is for us to have a modern Bill of Rights which would lay down ( and entrust to supervision by a constitutional court) the extent to which "we" collectively (the state) can invade the private rights of us as individual "I"s. That is what a popular movement should seek to achieve.
But the story should not stop there. History shows us how much power the state will always have. A continuing "alliance" of the sort Henry mentions will be needed to " keep watch" and ensure that popular gains made are not lost.
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