Every now and then things like this article surface, and recede without so much as a raised eyebrow.

Thanks to Jared for the link today.

Excerpt from the article:

Schoen said that the existence of the encoded information could be a threat to people who live in repressive governments or those who have a legitimate need for privacy. It reminds him, he said, of a program the Soviet Union once had in place to record sample typewriter printouts in hopes of tracking the origins of underground, self-published literature.

The argument will be made that these measures are in place to track counterfeiters and would not be used as an invasion of privacy. Many patriotic citizens use similar arguments in defense of other recent legislation. But these patriots forget that America was built upon a distrust of those with power. Indeed, there were those who opposed democracy, and instead argued in favor of a benevolent monarch would rule justly. In the wake of history and the ugly face of human nature, we find this absurd. Yet, modern day “patriots”, blinded by fear, continue to usher more and more power into the hands of the government, believing that our special brand of benevolent American “democracy” can be trusted with it.