eff.org— A federal judge today denied the government's motion to dismiss the Electronic Frontier Foundation's (EFF's) case against AT&T for collaborating with the NSA in illegal spying of millions of ordinary Americans.
Jul 20, 2006View in Crawl 4
Call me cynical, but wouldn't you suppose the American people might be outraged if the AT&T lawsuit was simply thrown out by government veto? Better to let the case proceed and diminish the charges against AT&T later in the game; that way everyone enjoys a good bit of catharsis. Right now, our domestic espionage problem is forefront, but who's to say that people will consider it important a few years from now? This case will likely set a dangerous precedent and that's best accomplished under minimal popular oversight, "off the radar".
As an EFF member this makes me feel as though my donation to them was worth it. I encourage anyone that isn't a member to join. In any case, I have much more respect for an independent judiciary (Ie. those that aren't elected) than I do for legislators and executives. We've seen where that gets.
It's great how the same people who denounce the American CIVIL LIBERTIES Union are the same people who would be begging for representation if their asses were on the line. While I may not agree with every ACLU case, their existence and willingness to stand up when so many are too frightened is a testament to the greatness of this country and that organization. Civil Liberties. That's what it's about.
tek69: Not all of the Christians are oil hungry war mongers, either. Congratulations on your ignorant generalization, though. Par for the course on the magnificent internet.
[quote]@kimastergeorge: Better yet, didn't both Republicans and Democrats support the Patriot Act[/quote]Sure. That was after Cheney had his friends at Merck send Daschle and Leahy a couple of Anthrax letters.Daschle and Leahy where the last two Patriot Act hold-outs after 9/11. A few weeks later, after the Anthrax attack, they hastily fell in line and signed. Signed away America to the devil.
[quote]Perhaps we'll eventually see some accountability[/quote]I can assure you that by the way Americans have reacted over the past five years, the only way they're going to learn is the hard way.You'll get accountability when Americans get the bill for what Bush has done. It hasn't arrived yet. When it finally does, they'll say "How could this have happened right under our noses?"People just don't learn anything from history. Or in the case of many Americans, they don't even know their history.
clevingerJul 20, 2006
Call me cynical, but wouldn't you suppose the American people might be outraged if the AT&T lawsuit was simply thrown out by government veto? Better to let the case proceed and diminish the charges against AT&T later in the game; that way everyone enjoys a good bit of catharsis. Right now, our domestic espionage problem is forefront, but who's to say that people will consider it important a few years from now? This case will likely set a dangerous precedent and that's best accomplished under minimal popular oversight, "off the radar".
kd1sJul 21, 2006
As an EFF member this makes me feel as though my donation to them was worth it. I encourage anyone that isn't a member to join. In any case, I have much more respect for an independent judiciary (Ie. those that aren't elected) than I do for legislators and executives. We've seen where that gets.
omarsxJul 21, 2006
"people should not fear their governments, governments should fear the people." -V
thepeopleJul 21, 2006
It's great how the same people who denounce the American CIVIL LIBERTIES Union are the same people who would be begging for representation if their asses were on the line. While I may not agree with every ACLU case, their existence and willingness to stand up when so many are too frightened is a testament to the greatness of this country and that organization. Civil Liberties. That's what it's about.
dhakbarJul 21, 2006
tek69: Not all of the Christians are oil hungry war mongers, either. Congratulations on your ignorant generalization, though. Par for the course on the magnificent internet.
obkenobiJul 21, 2006
[quote]@kimastergeorge: Better yet, didn't both Republicans and Democrats support the Patriot Act[/quote]Sure. That was after Cheney had his friends at Merck send Daschle and Leahy a couple of Anthrax letters.Daschle and Leahy where the last two Patriot Act hold-outs after 9/11. A few weeks later, after the Anthrax attack, they hastily fell in line and signed. Signed away America to the devil.
obkenobiJul 21, 2006
[quote]Perhaps we'll eventually see some accountability[/quote]I can assure you that by the way Americans have reacted over the past five years, the only way they're going to learn is the hard way.You'll get accountability when Americans get the bill for what Bush has done. It hasn't arrived yet. When it finally does, they'll say "How could this have happened right under our noses?"People just don't learn anything from history. Or in the case of many Americans, they don't even know their history.
sixoh1Aug 4, 2006
Godwin's second law, comparing anyone to the ACLU in a negative way causes your dig score to go below -25 :)