R's join Clinton on encryption

In last night’s CNN debate the R’s—all the R’s who matter, anyway—joined Clinton (and the other D candidates as well) in supporting government access to encrypted communications, an outrageously stupid, unqualified disaster of an idea which disqualifies them from being president or holding any other government job. Period.

Providing the government with access to encrypted communications, for whatever reason, would involve either building a weakness—a “back door”—into encryption software or providing a “front door” in the form of some kind of master key. Both of these approaches are terrible ideas because—as Edward Snowden and his merry band of accomplices have clearly demonstrated—even the most closely-held secrets will out in the end. Information wants to be free, as the geeks of old proclaimed.

And when that happens, when the back doors and keys are generally known, the internet will be useless for anything except transmitting pictures of cats and Kardashians. (And even that will be risky—see “steganography.”)

We need a new candidate who understands the 21st Century, and quick.