I do understand your viewpoint – theres an unfairness in large-scale terrorist attacks that's very hard to deal with, and commentators can all too often be a bit shallow in dismissing that.
The thing is… there's little evidence that limiting privacy would prevent terrorist attacks. Maybe unless you are talking about a complete elimination of all private communication—something which I think most people would rightly reject outright—then there will always be private channels available for communication. I think most people will accept that some form of government access to communication is sometimes warranted – but that such access must be strictly controlled, judicially overseen, and limited in scope and time. Previous experience as a society suggests that any excessive government power will be abused.
The issue here is not one of a government which is limited in its power to 'crack down' on terrorism. It's what you've identified – neighbourhoods riddled with poverty and crime. There are a breeding ground for disenfranchisement, and we know it's the tactical approach of groups like Daesh to encourage and recruit from these disenfranchised areas.
You can only realistically solve this problem by solving disenfranchisement. That's a complex socioeconomic issue, though – and not something I have the answer to. But the idea that this is 'freedom vs. privacy' doesn't stand up to examination.
The thing is… there's little evidence that limiting privacy would prevent terrorist attacks. Maybe unless you are talking about a complete elimination of all private communication—something which I think most people would rightly reject outright—then there will always be private channels available for communication. I think most people will accept that some form of government access to communication is sometimes warranted – but that such access must be strictly controlled, judicially overseen, and limited in scope and time. Previous experience as a society suggests that any excessive government power will be abused.
The issue here is not one of a government which is limited in its power to 'crack down' on terrorism. It's what you've identified – neighbourhoods riddled with poverty and crime. There are a breeding ground for disenfranchisement, and we know it's the tactical approach of groups like Daesh to encourage and recruit from these disenfranchised areas.
You can only realistically solve this problem by solving disenfranchisement. That's a complex socioeconomic issue, though – and not something I have the answer to. But the idea that this is 'freedom vs. privacy' doesn't stand up to examination.