an interesting point but such a quintessentially american mindset imo. This thing could potentially used wrong so let's build in all kinds of hedges and failsafes; our freedoms could be impinged in these edge cases so this is a no go, etc.
cannot help but lament the inefficiency and stagnation arising from this culture of distrust
Sorry to the American folks here, this might sound offensive, but I agree with bllguo. As an European colechchristensen's point of view feels alien.
I'd argue that for the average European this kind of comment would seem paranoid bordering on insane.
I guess some cultural differences are found way deeper than you'd expect.
The European point of view about the whole "government opression" thing is that you don't fight tyranny with guns and cars (LOL), but with a population educated about the benefits of democracy. If you've lost the people, nothing can save you.
on the cultural differences.. I've always loved the saying:
Europeans see 100km as a long distance, while Americans/Australians see 100 years as a long time.
Well, 100 km is next door when there's a direct rail line and when discussing with my granparents, 100 years is a long time. I get what you mean though
cannot help but lament the inefficiency and stagnation arising from this culture of distrust