Whitfield Diffie states that individuals have enjoyed complete privacy for most of history: In the 1790s, when the Bill of Rights was ratified, any two people could have a private conversation-with a certainty no one in the world enjoys today-by walking a few meters down the road and looking to see no one was hiding in the bushes. There were no recording devices, parabolic microphones, or laser interferometers bouncing off their eyeglasses. You will note that civilization survived. Many of us regard that period as a golden age in American political culture.
