A demonstrator at a rally in Tokyo earlier this month carried a sign reading "Himitsu hantai" ("Against secrets"). She meant government secrets, the rally having been called to protest the state secrets bill that is now the law of the land. The legislation imposes draconian penalties on leakers or seekers of information that the government, with no necessarily independent oversight, deems secret, according to standards left undefined. It's impossible not to be reminded of the Ministry of Truth in George Orwell's "1984," or of a slogan propagated by that novel's ruling Party: "Ignorance is strength."
"Against secrets" is an interesting turn of phrase and suggests meanings the demonstrator probably didn't intend. Society itself is evolving "against secrets." Not just government secrets but all secrets — even personal ones — are suspect.
"If you have something that you don't want anyone to know, maybe you shouldn't be doing it in the first place," said Eric Schmidt, then Google's CEO, in 2009, articulating the spirit of the age.
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