Hacker News Reader

the most frustrating part of this whole thing is the multi-headed response by various agency chieftains. fbi says one thing. nsa says another. former generals say another.

am i crazy to want the president step up and say: "our position as a government is: x"? there's no/no way this has escaped his notice. isn't that part of the job description of "leader of the free world?"

View on HN

The executive branch is a big organization. Each agency has a different mission, culture and authorities (legal powers). The cryptowars are a complex issue, so it makes sense that the agencies have different takes on it.

I agree that thr government should have a unified view on all this. However, it should come from CONGRESS, not the President. This is clearly an area where our democracy needs to make a decision about how we govern ourselves, then enshrine that decision in law, then follow that law.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com