Your analogy is worse. The government is prevented from unwarranted surveillance already. To fit into your analogy, you would have to have a lease that prevented him from letting a cop in, and he does anyway. Also, with the information the NSA has, the cop isn't being let into your hallway. The cop is being let into…

If you have nothing to hide, would you mind a police officer permanently stationed in your house following you from room to room? How about one tailing you everywhere you drive? I mean, after all, nothing to hide.

That makes sense to me, most of us are just irrelevant data to be ignored.

Well I suppose it depends on your point of view. Me personally? When the government knowingly violates the Constitution (which kind of goes against that whole "protect and uphold" oath), and essentially acknowledges their law breaking with a "deal with it" response, I'd say we're pretty fucked when elements of the…

This is quite possibly the most naive thing I've ever heard.

You're right, states never abuse their power to the cost of ordinary citizens. The US is a free country because it was just born that way, and will remain so however passively its citizens behave.

Amazing, isn't it? The government has finally mastered the knack of pissing people of just enough that they eventually get used to it.

Did you check out his website? He's an amazing photographer and there are more pictures of his daughter. She's a doll!! I want one soooo bad!

I don't think that's an unreasonable hope? Like, I bet he hopes that, too. Most of the time it's just a tongue-in-cheek comment referencing that fact that they really like ASOIAF, he's getting on a bit, and he takes kind of a long time to finish his books.

Dude, what a fucking pile on. I totally get what you were trying to get at in your initial comment though. Yes, the writer must have a life and the space to create the magical things (s)he creates. But damn, the fans are the ones paying said writer's salary - however directly or indirectly. Doesn't that at least…

I think I just immaculately conceived.

Well, I would only consider doing that if he tried to escape and "have a life" or whatever these people are going on about. Otherwise, chains should do the trick. I don't want to be cruel, preciouslittledong!

Me too! I hate babies for making me want them.

Well, today is the day I learned that Jezebel commenters take everything said literally, at face value, and very seriously. Please keep piling on though, I'm learning so many new uses for GRRM. Monkey, slave, writer vending machine... I had no idea the man was so multi-purpose.

I put my nekkid kid in a roasting pan with potatoes and carrots and placed him in the oven. That picture is on a slide. A slide, I tells ya! Kids these days and their 'Photoshop.' Got it sooooooo easy.

Oh man. I thought putting a fake mustache or long red wig on my kid was clever. I gotta step up my game!

My heart and ovaries just exploded.