The ongoing fight between the FBI and Apple has folks taking sides as to whether or not the FBI should be able to access the iPhone records of the late Syed Farook, who, with his wife, is alleged to have spearheaded the mass killing of 14 people at a Christmas office party in San Bernardino, California in December.

There are those who are convinced that any information which can be useful to government officials in investigating the incident should be made available. For those of us who are not “technology savvy,” it would seem on the surface that the wishes of the FBI should prevail. However, it appears there is a whole lot more at stake.

Several years ago, government surveillance of phone calls became a hot topic, when it was learned how often Big Brother is listening in on private conversations. Personally, as long as we weren’t committing any crime, we had no objection to them listening in as we talked to a relative in Florida, a classmate in California or the neighbor just down the street. Those who lived during the era of party lines were used to folks listening in on their conversations on a regular basis and knew that there were no phone secrets in those days.  We theorized that keeping tabs on those who might pose a danger to our country was probably the right thing to do.

Since that time, the debate over what is acceptable and what is not, when it comes to “listening in’’ on  our private affairs has become a heated subject. While it initially appeared that the FBI wanted access to the would-be shooter’s phone records, it now looks like the FBI wants more — a way to access similar phone conversations on their own in the future whenever it feels they have bearing on an investigation. Apple has said no, and that’s where it stands right this moment.

Just how far should the government go when it comes to protecting us from possible terrorist threats or other acts which endanger the lives of innocent Americans? If we tie their hands completely, how many potential threats may not be averted? We hear stories every week of plots which have been uncovered in advance by the authorities through surveillance which includes monitoring phone conversations, text messages, e-mails, Facebook exchanges and others.

This Apple-FBI confrontation may be long-lived, with folks on both sides throwing in their two cents’ worth.  Hopefully, there will be a solution which will benefit us all.