20 November 2009

> Secret services. Spying.

Romanian spy kids(@ BBC CO UK)(New Tab)

The Securitate, with its network of agents and informers, struck fear into the hearts of ordinary Romanians.
"The network was active in all districts. Kids as young as 12 or 14 were part of this. They were supposed to spy on their schoolfriends, their schoolfriends' parents and also their teachers."
"Telling on people" was never the problem in communist states.
Violence, mutual brainwashing, and violence, this was the problem in communist states.

Now that Romania is democratic, the telling is finally over. (You can tell that also by the mass denunciation of it by politicians / state institutions / media / the people. In fact you can be sure of it, because the denunciation actually never seems to stop for more than a wile.)