Tech-nerds: the world doesn't operate under "theory". There are social rules that you are ignoring that completely invalidates your fears of government. Did the Snowden revelations lead to thousands of US citizen murdered by government? No? Not even one, in the realm of statistical noise? No? Why do you think that is?
The US was a country that had could have ruled over the world between 1945-1949, and yet, we chose not to do that.
Tech-nerds are going to have to reformulate their horrible anti-government rhetoric to account for these social effects.
Learn how people actually live, not how people theoretically might live.
Then and FBI lawsuit to force apple to unlock a phone the FBI could trivially unlock.
I mean why wouldn't "tech-nerds" being falling over themselves to submit and comply?
That right there is the problem.
Government actors -people in positions of power- are known to ignore rules -social and legal- to further their own agenda. From NSA analysts listening to other people's phone sex for personal titillation, to a sitting President who orders the harassment of disfavored groups, then orders some guys to break, enter, and destroy records to cover it up, there are people in positions of power who will do Bad Things that are very much violations of applicable rules, social or otherwise.