tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12286901.post3633242929716338985..comments2008-07-11T17:48:13.603-04:00tenaciousmcdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16017631367821997948noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12286901.post-71752856263961348282008-07-11T17:48:00.000-04:002008-07-11T17:48:00.000-04:002008-07-11T17:48:00.000-04:00Wilson, I'll second Paul's comments, but I'd add this: transparency. <BR/><BR/>Right now we don't really know how extensive the Bush surveillance is. Unofficially, we know they're doing broad-based data mining and that they're listening to a lot of international calls, but we don't know how or who they're targeting. We don't know if they're listening in on people who (a) have clear links to terror, (b) have only suspicious associations, names, or calling patterns, or (c) anyone they damn well please. There is lots of room for abuse here. How do we know they're not listening in on political opponents, reporters, or lawyers who serve the Muslim community? How do we know they haven't wrapped in a lot of innocent Americans who have no idea they're under watch and their information might now be in some database? We don't.<BR/><BR/>Telecom suits are the only way we get a look behind that wall. Even worse, reports are that the FISA bill actually extends Bush's surveillance powers in various ways with (at best) minimal oversight by the secret FISA court.tenaciousmcdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16017631367821997948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12286901.post-51198536331794982762008-07-11T13:01:00.000-04:002008-07-11T13:01:00.000-04:002008-07-11T13:01:00.000-04:00The Greenwald stuff is a great read so far. Thanks a lot.Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01172267036575560231noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12286901.post-26052009447374539282008-07-11T08:49:00.000-04:002008-07-11T08:49:00.000-04:002008-07-11T08:49:00.000-04:00I'll butt in for TMcD and just say there's a little thing called the 4th Amendment, and there's another little thing called the Rule of Law. Granting retroactive immunity to those who broke the law to keep their big government contracts and to kiss King George's ass tore both to shreds. And now we'll never know just how far they went in breaking the law.<BR/><BR/>For more on this issue, see Glenn Greenwald over at Salon:<BR/><BR/>http://www.salon.com/opinion/greenwald/Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11807726599148634984noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12286901.post-86874541482781536262008-07-11T00:34:00.000-04:002008-07-11T00:34:00.000-04:002008-07-11T00:34:00.000-04:00I just don't get the FISA issue. A lot of libertarians I know are really fired up about it, and so I'm surely missing something major. I just can't get that angry about telecom immunity, and I hate the government I love civil disobedience more than any one I know. . .so explain to me why it makes you so mad?Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01172267036575560231noreply@blogger.com