Yeah but like I was saying here I think you’re a bit too paranoid…that is you give them way too much credit. I think you give too much credence to the true centralization of power and how effective it really is. I actually hadn’t thought about the IRS tax breaks (I’m pretty sure I heard of that sort of thing), but I’m sure you’re right about that part. It’s actually kind of funny when you think about it…how obvious it is: “Oh yeah, totally…it helps the economy when you use a safety deposit box. That’s why we’ll even give you a tax break! Just tell us exactly where it is and how much you’re paying for it (i.e. what size it is…which of course gives us a good idea of the kinds of things you’re putting in there and how valuable they are)”.
But that wouldn’t even cross most people’s minds.
I know you would think the hole grid is just a huge database of info and if you’re high enough in government you can get access to pretty much anything about someone…and to a certain degree that’s true, for certain things. But I don’t think you lend enough appreciation for the compartmentalization in government…particularly one so large and complex as ours.
I think the IRS essentially does need you to tell them. Obviously there’s a record somewhere of you renting the box, but the work it would take for one agency to get that kind of info would be too much, especially for a large number of citizens. It’s much easier to just offer you a financial incentive to voluntarily hand it over. It’s definitely worth the pittance (literally, what, maybe $50/yr?) they’re giving up.
Plus, even if they did gain access without your help, Muff makes the good point that it would be quite a bit of exposure. Everytime the State’s true nature is revealed like that it gains some attention. They can’t afford to have very many of those exposures within a certain length of time, or they run the risk of too many people having their blinders fade. It happens all the time, and with Internet, the pace of that awakening is excellerating exponentially. Obviously they’re afraid of the Internet, but I don’t think they yet realize just how dangerous it is to them.