" ... surveillance is serving to undermine the foundations of our democracy".

Not as much as the subjects of surveillance are. Nothing to hide: nothing to fear. People against reasonable surveiillance have to be regarded as being shifty.

I hope with all my heart that this author has got it wrong, but fear he may well be right!

I 'm glad I'm 75 and terminally ill, because I wouldn't want to be around when the whole rotten, going to hell in a handbasket, world gets really feral and at each other throats like the unfeeling, wild rapacious (me, me, greed is good, as is selfish, self-serving individualistic individualism) beasts they have become!?

Some things and some humans are beyond saving or capable of changing course or erroneous attitudes/beliefs! Nor those seriously challenged simpletons worshipping at their feet!

Thank God and gravy, you're not one of them!? Or are you!?
Alan B.

Yes, a very chilling assessment of the situation.
This book provides a similar description.
http://www.thefourbook.com

Both books were written by long time professors of business administration.

It always surprises my how self-appointed Heroes for Freedom object to National Security surveillance when

every day these "Heroes" tolerate

COMMERCIAL surveillance eg. third party advertising that targets specific viewer's Google search and page visit habits

Like the Ads on this OLO thread, right now.

It seems our Heroes gullibly assume:

- the multinational corporate Google and Facebook (which actually sell your search habits to other companies) are GOOD

- while Australia's national security Internet surveillance, which protects you, is "BAD".

Undermine democracy ? what democracy ?

This undermining of democracy and brainwashing has been going on in our schools longer than Facebook and Google were around.
The schools have been taken over by the left wing, socialist, professors who have been pushing ideology as fact. Now suddenly they have been challenged online by equal intellectualls and people with common sense, they suddenly want the internet shutdown.
Businesses always did their market research on customers to push advertising at them.
That was happening long before computers too.

Governments also have always known a lot about the public by doing surveys
and a national census survey. In Australia this is done frequently.
They also, have your work ID number, your tax information.
It's isnt new it's just bigger and easier to do on the internet.

I think censoring debate on the internet has much more sinister overtones of control by political groups with hidden agendas who can't tolerate Debate. That sounds more like totalitarian governments shutting down ideas and questions they don't like.

Even this idea that Trump has no right to be president and people who voted for him
had no right to and they must be stupid is the same idea, it's about not letting anyone else have a different opinion or a right to vote for that opinion.

That's where democracy is truly threatened. That's control, as in world government control. The left has been getting away with teaching ideology, not fact that didn't suit their idea of things, for decades.
Now they are being challenged by people calling out the lies and untruths on the internet they want to control that as well.
I do however believe that people shouldn't be allowed to commit sex crimes or
post nude revenge photos