the UK was already like that for many years as were most EU countries (where the Post Office controlled every form of communication and intercepts were done everywhere without warrant or accountability, as whoever has physical access to a telephone exchange can easily put in intercepts). European countries are also physically smaller and therefore far easier to monitor. UK Government still had controlling shares in British Telecom well into the 1990s, intercepts were done basically on the say so of senior officers at Government and BT. Similar arrangements existed in most nations, even the Northern European nations often viewed as more liberal and tolerant.
There is for instance a website called “broken seals” which discusses the interception of communications in Denmark well into the 1960s.
The USA have less protection against entrapment and far more use of informants (which is why a lot of Americans freak out at the thread saying they are a cop). It is also a much more divided society and those who believe in right wing views are prepared to stand up for them which makes people much more prepared to inform to the authorities.
That said, during the Thatcho days when radio amateurs and electronics enthusiasts were often older and more conservative minded (as Thatcho did to be fair provide a lot of them with well paid, secure work via the military industrial complex) it was not at all uncommon for them to listen in to dealers discussing stuff on analogue mobile phones and cordless phone and grass them up (the cops and DTI conveniently ignoring that it was in fact illegal to do this). In some areas there was even vigilanté work with the hams using their radios to talk directly on Police frequencies to the cops (as the equipment was very similar back then).
Nowadays though todays radio hams and electronics enthusiasts in Europe seem to be are a lot more liberal minded and a great number seem to be pro decriminalisation – at least provided they have an interest in music and arts (its the ones who do not you have to watch out for, they can be very dangerous.
What is however far more a problem in Britain at this moment is not big lumbering bureaucratic institutions or mega surveillance programmes (which generate as much chaff/noise as intelligence) but use of private investigation companies by public sector organisations and also small numbers of determined, focused investigators within these. Consider that for 30 or more years one old man in Britain managed to keep a major blacklist of all union activists within the construction industry, using manual paper based filing methods and thus eluded detection for ages. it really only takes a few people to gather the info and pass it on to the right people.
