While the peoples of the Internet are busy arguing over the morality and legality of covert NSA programs unveiled by Edward Snowden, many of the bigger issues have been missed. Like, for example, how some NSA programs are clearly desperate attempts to stave off the inevitable advancement of technology set to make its life hell. When Napster first popped up in 1999 the music industry had it covered. Dispatch the lawyers and problem solved, right? Riiiight? Wrong! In this talk Patrick Gray argues that in the medium to long term the NSA, like the music recording industry, will fail in trying to cripple consumer technology. This leads us to the ultimate question of Life, The Universe and Snowden: How can a government fulfil its obligation to protect its citizens when it can no longer reliably intercept electronic communications?