Who’s Watching You?

A few overheads from presentation on the economics of federal electronic surveillance policies.

• Economics is about incentives. Everything else is commentary.
• Economics is not just about private companies that produce, trade, compete, and try to make profits. 
• Public Choice is the economic study of politics, government, and policy. Government incentives?
• So…what incentives does government have to engage in pervasive electronic surveillance?

• To locate terrorists and potential terrorists.
• Who are potential terrorists? Tea Party Patriots?Gun club members? Christian homeschoolers?
• Think incentives. What else does the federal government do besides national defense?
• IRS, FEC, SEC, FBI, and the list goes on. 

• Federal Income Tax regulations require that any and all income be recorded and taxes paid.
• By nature that infringes upon privacy and freedom of association.
• But it also creates incentives for govt. electronic surveillance.
• SEC, FEC, and the other federal agencies also want to know what folks are doing and saying.