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149 Comments
- Subterfug, on 10/10/2007, -3/+33Here's an idea: I won't make a fuss about the government being able to listen in on my phonecalls, but in exchange I can listen to the phonecalls of all public officials. Fair compromise no?
- yakimushi, on 10/10/2007, -9/+36The Democrats really dropped the ball on this one. What the ***** were they thinking? That in six months we'll forget they approved this gross power grab by Bush Co.?
- satx, on 10/10/2007, -12/+35I've given up. We officially live in a fascist nation... and nobody gives a *****.
- Terr01, on 10/10/2007, -1/+18BTW, you can see how your Rep or Congressperson voted here:
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/vote.xpd?vote=h2007-836
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/vote.xpd?vote=s2007-309
What State are you in? You could see whether any of the ones in your state deserve angry letters. - thelostemperor, on 10/10/2007, -1/+17"people were bitching about how the government should have done this before 9/11"
Speak for yourself.
"The NSA doesn't care what you do"
But I sure as hell care what the NSA does.
"why do you even give a *****? "
Because this corrupt administration cannot be trusted, obviously. And even if YOU trust them, do you know who will be in office in 10 years or 20? Do you want to give these powers to all future administrations?
"even if they do, evidence can't be used against you in court"
I'm sure that is a really meaningful protection to a Guantanamo Bay detainee. - Terr01, on 10/10/2007, -1/+15In theory, no US citizen has to worry about being jailed with no charges, lawyer, or evidence for years on end in a military prison, but it happened anyway.
- spyd3rweb, on 10/10/2007, -5/+18the next logical step is listening to ALL domestic calls because obviously theres already al qaeda in the united states.
- inactive, on 10/10/2007, -2/+13Up to this point they've just been doing it illegally....
- vegascoop, on 10/10/2007, -3/+10 In theory, only "terrorists" will be listed to. In theory, persons legitimately opposed to our president have nothing to worry about. In theory other types of activists have nothing to worry about. In theory, prosecutors look for "truth" and not necessarily for a conviction. That's great -- in theory.
The truth is that this new power, like all power, will corrupt. And anyone opposed to anyone in power better watch out. - CatalystGhost, on 10/10/2007, -1/+8Care to tell me how they classify a suspected terrorist? *****, we've had 5 year-old kids getting held up on no-fly lists as suspected terrorists. Explain to me how that happens, and I'll let you off.
- inactive, on 10/10/2007, -1/+8Your so dense that your in danger of turning into a singularity.
- LBTS, on 10/10/2007, -2/+9usercc, if you think this bill was good for patriotic Americans, this may signal that you are the enemy. That may not be the case, of course, but we better be sure. We'll just have to listen in to your conversations, read your mail, and start following your every movement, and we'd better watch the rest of your family, too; you could be passing messages to Osama through them.
Don't be afraid, though, you're a patriot with nothing to hide.
In other words, they don't call it a slippery slope for nothing. - Water13ottle, on 10/10/2007, -2/+9We give a ***** simply because our nation was founded on the rights we have/had. By the government giving up our rights it is a sure sign that what the terrorists are doing is working. Plus, the government is just capitalizing on the fear that the country is in right now. After the whole terrorism threat goes away the government will still have the same powers. In any situation where a country is in fear they will eagerly give up their rights to be protected until that threat goes away and then we are stuck without our rights, and the government is clearly taking advantage of this or else they would not have attempted to cover it up so much.
- tzonic, on 10/10/2007, -3/+10I highly recommend calling your (and why not others'?) respective Senators and Representatives and salute a polite ***** you. And have all of your friends and family to do the same. Even if they don't want to.
- tzonic, on 10/10/2007, -0/+7...has a backdoor that belongs to Uncle Sam's key. Think open source.
- Terr01, on 10/10/2007, -12/+18I highly highly recommend Greenwald's blog: http://www.salon.com/opinion/greenwald/
One of the best places to find stuff to smack down the "Bush broke no laws" talking point. - LakeshoreBaby, on 10/10/2007, -6/+12So now they listen to both domestic and international. Great.
- jamie1415, on 10/10/2007, -5/+11Not good at all....
- rstarr, on 10/10/2007, -5/+11Skype.
- Malakym, on 10/10/2007, -1/+7Im confused. I live about 20 miles from the NSA headquarters. Most of my friends and a lot of their parents work at the NSA. I was pretty sure they already had this power. This isn't a big surprise to me at all.
- o2o2o2o2, on 10/10/2007, -3/+8This technology has been around since 1970, its certainly NOT new.
Ever call 411 and talk to a computer and ask for a name or business? The computer translates that into text and searches its database for the key word. Now hook that same tech up to all phone calls exiting the USA. Now multiply that tech X 1000 server rooms full of computers doing this. The government isnt really "listening" to you phone calls, computers are. The computers will flag conversations based on a set of rules, keywords, etc, then a real person will look at the logs to see if its worth investigating. - Subterfug, on 10/10/2007, -3/+8Yeah I've heard that one before.
It is a matter of principle, and this can totally be abused. - counterplex, on 10/10/2007, -1/+6I completely agree with spyd3rweb. This is a slippery slope we're on and domestic spying is definitely on the roadmap. After all, we've already given up most of the liberties that make America worth emigrating to - now it's just a matter of time that we'll be giving up the rest.
- otheruser, on 10/10/2007, -1/+6What if an INNOCENT CITIZEN is speaking to an INNOCENT relative outside the country?
The citizen, being in the U.S., is being spied on domestically because he/she is making an international call. - tzonic, on 10/10/2007, -2/+7Are you British? You have superb sarcasm skills.
- chrisfnet, on 10/10/2007, -3/+7By the time each six months is up the government can 'make up' enough evidence to warrant an extension..
- inactive, on 10/10/2007, -1/+5Yeah, you do that. That'll be totally hilarious. Make sure you drop the words "Project Blackbriar".
- Terr01, on 10/10/2007, -1/+5Tell that to David Vitter and Mark Foley.
- gotamd, on 10/10/2007, -0/+4Thank God we have a Democrat-controlled Congress that would never pass anything like this in order to bail out a Republican President.
...oh. Wait. - Jeffler, on 10/10/2007, -1/+5Actually, tweekster, thats exactly how it works. Do you really think the government can do what happened in the simpsons movie?
- Skip742, on 10/10/2007, -0/+4As a long-time conservative - a typical Reagan Republican, if you will, let me disabuse you of that delusion. This is NOT a liberal scare tactic. If you ask any of the conservatives from pre-Bush, they'll take the exact same position as the liberals on this stuff. This is big government at it's worst. The Bush administration has done more damage to the conservative movement than any 50 liberals could. This, in particular, is among the worst...a complete gutting of the Constitution.
Just because they don't have the manpower to listen to EVERY call, doesn't mean that they won't choose to listen to yours. And remember, you're putting this power into the hands of our next president...one who is VERY unlikely to be a Republican. Ultimately, this will be used to go after every little petty tax case, every little medical marijuana user, and every investor who tries to shuttle some money overseas when the dollar continues to tank. You've got a very gullible trust in big government...something that is more in line with the Ted Kennedy way of thinking than anything Ronald Reagan would countenance. Think about it. - Terr01, on 10/10/2007, -2/+5Well, majorities of Democrats voted against it, but yeah... I posted URLs earlier if you want to check how your own congressfolks voted.
- spyd3rweb, on 10/10/2007, -1/+4all its going take is one 'Event' to show Al Qaeda is operating in the United States, and your rights are totally gone.
- inactive, on 10/10/2007, -0/+3I can't wait until congress comes back in session. Reid and pelosi will run in front of any camera they see acting like victims of the big bad Bush administration.
Standing up there with torn dresses and smeared makeup: "He was like a madman. He was so powerful. We couldn't defend ourselves." - polyGone, on 10/10/2007, -1/+4"Just go with the flow, its not that big of a deal."
That is the ultimate example of herd mentality. Try thinking for a change. - bobzibub, on 10/10/2007, -0/+3That yours? It is fantastic.
- CatalystGhost, on 10/10/2007, -1/+4Yep, those guys that tried to kill us... 6 years ago, was it? Seriously, let it die. Not saying we should forget, but honestly, we're not in danger, people... wake up...
- JimXugle, on 10/10/2007, -1/+4I love it. I'll suggest this in my next ranting to a congress critter.
- counterplex, on 10/10/2007, -1/+4I won't even ask to listen in to all their calls - after all some must be private. But if Bush, Cheney, Gonzalez, Rice and the rest of the cabinet are ever talking to anyone else within our government, I'd like to listen in :) Excellent point subterfug.
- spyd3rweb, on 10/10/2007, -0/+3What about computer systems with voice recognition that scan for certain keywords, give each call a threat score and upgrade the calls status to the next level if the score is high enough, eventually forwarding to an actual person. Say the wrong word and you've got feds knocking on your door.
- tzonic, on 10/10/2007, -0/+3I called Italy over the period of a year and a half-ish and routinely gabbed on about such nonsense. Nothing happened.
- otheruser, on 10/10/2007, -2/+4o2,
And who defines the vagueness of the flags?
Will someone who says "Allah" automatically be monitored (i.e., the 2.35 million Muslims living in the U.S.A)?
Will someone who says "Hate" and "Government" automatically be monitored?
What if they say something about Iraq or Afghanistan?
God forbid they discuss political issues... - phatt-matt, on 10/10/2007, -2/+4And if you believe StinkProgress...I've got a bridge to sell you...
- jhshukla, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2as if only you understand your language.
- FredoBerfil, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2Jose Padilla.
- Dewhead, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2How is posting a differing opinion than yours constitute a "troll digg"? Maybe I am unfamiliar with that term, but I thought people were entitled to their opinions.
- Skip742, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2Yeah, but there are really so FEW neocons out there. There are a bunch of sheep that follow Hannity and O'Reilly, and kids who grew up under Bush and think that neocon means conservative (as a real conservative, let me clear that up for you...it's NOT the same thing). But there are very few real neocons outside of the Washington think tanks. Don't worry...we're all against this wiretap stuff...both on the left and the right. We just need to work together for a short while and let's see what we can do.
- o2o2o2o2, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2Movies? LOL, no. Current intelligence spending is in excess of $45 billion a year. Computers are cheap. Its been done in secret for many decades, only difference now, it they are telling us they are doing it. Its not a big deal, nothing has changed.
- Dewhead, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2holmwrecker,
I think they are worried that they will be overheard talking about a pot deal or something. - JimXugle, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2Sorry to burst your bubble, but Skype is known to have met Federal wiretap regulation... even if it's Skype to Skype calls.
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