Ask HN: Will privacy and cryptography go the way of communism?

In other words, a nice idea in theory but eventually we'll all realize we can't afford it?

Or will it somehow stick around? And maybe somehow find the balance needed to survive?

For me this question was prompted by reading https://w2.eff.org/Privacy/Crypto/Crypto_misc/cypherpunk.manifesto and thinking, yeah, it's a nice piece, but written before terrorism, globally, became a weekly occurrence and before secret message services were widespread, and is blissfully ignorant of the future we inhabit.

And also by remembering, I used to like writing cryptography, but now I also have the feeling that I don't want to make something that helps people do bad things. I never felt that responsibility before. It was just being creative and making something cool. But I feel that responsibility now. I don't want to put a tool in people's hands that could help them get away with hurting people illegally. So even tho I want to, I don't know if I'll write crypto anymore. And even if I do I don't know if I'll share it. It's kind of sad to realise stuff you like doing is going to be abused by some people. And that if you share it with the world, you're going to be part of that. And so instead you pick other projects that have less abuse potential.