Um, Seriously though, it's crazy what they spy on. If I hear of a weapon- and I do have a fascination with them- and I don't know what it is, I Wiki it. Does that mean I'm going to get targeted?
No. What are the chances of them finding out you went to wikipedia? Do you think there's a slight chance that your Internet traffic (and that of any actual terrorists) is DWARFED by all the warez traffic, porn and spam going around? Yeah pretty much. Needle in haystack does not even begin to illustrate the problem. It's like being at a Manowar concert and trying to listen to someone whisper to you. From the far side of the moon. They will find Extraterrestrial life in far away solar systems before they find one real terrorist on the Internet. The bottom line is, if you aren't doing anything wrong then what are you afraid of?
What's fear got to do with it? If you're not worried about the ignorance and stupidity of your elected officials, how about this. Who do you think is going to pay to store all those teenage girls pointless, stupid messages? God? Well you're wrong. There's only one person who's going to pay for this large and ultimately pointless surveillance technology. British citizens (through their taxes) and consumers of British products (through the increased cost of service).It's not a matter of fearing the Gestapo will kick down your door because you looked at that picture of Rhona Mitra. It's a matter of your government wasting your money on stupid bullshit you don't need.