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It doesn't justify it, but if we're going to take a stance against spyware, we have to take a stance against all spyware. That includes the home-rolled stuff that the NSA pushes out to Apple and Google.


No, we don’t.


Totally agree. There is a difference still between totalitarian countries against its own people with no theoretical way out even, vs USA that still have some way out.


Dude, the "state department" is blaming Israel because they're just embarassed your guys got owned by Uganda.


What makes that kind of hypocrisy okay?


It seems if Israel is receiving money from the US government and Israel controls the usage of NSO group weapons that are being targeted at the American government then there are problems yea?


It's a catch-22. Telling other countries not to spy on us while we happily spy on others is a double standard.


You’re taking this all too literally. It’s politics, it’s all a performance.

When France was “angry” about Australia buying US nuclear subs and canceling their French contract do you really think that was real?

It’s all for show, just like being “angry” at another country spying on you. You do something like “kick out their embassy employees”, then turn around and let new ones come in.


Yeah I think France was pretty pissed actually.

There was no need to just do this for show. Most members of the public don't care about submarine deals. It doesn't make their government more popular.


Nahh… from what I’ve read, Australia had made it abundantly clear they were pulling out of the French deal. Maybe France was pissed they were excluded, but the “angry” was entirely for show.

The public may not care about submarine deals but France certainly cares about how they are perceived on the world stage.


What alternative do you propose? Give up? Naively hope every other world leaders (all sociopaths by nature, with intelligence agencies managed by yet more sociopaths) will understand and hold up their end of a deal they don’t even know exists? This is geopolitics, you take every advantage you can get, every time, forever. Spying is how you prevent wars by avoiding misunderstandings and miscalculations.


Presumably no bigger problems than arose when the US wiretapped the Israeli prime minister’s phone…


Politics is not about fairness or the truth, it all about getting people to buy the ideas your selling.




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