4 Comments so far

1. Lobo Gris March 17th, 2007 5:56 am

   It’s more smoke and mirrors folks.

   Excerpted from a NYT article dated Jan 10, 2007

   You’ll notice that because the new warrant process is secret, we don’t know whether the court has issued a blanket approval for wiretapping, which would undermine the intent of the law, or whether the administration agreed to seek individual warrants. And there is no guarantee that he won’t restart the old program in secret even if the new one is ultimately found to be legitimate finally.

   “Attorney General Alberto Gonzales informed leaders of the Senate Judiciary Committee that Mr. Bush had decided to end the warrantless program. He said the administration had worked out a way to speed the process of getting a warrant from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court to intercept communications to and from the United States “where there is probable cause to believe that one of the communicants is a member or agent of Al Qaeda or an associated terrorist organization.”

   He said the court - created by the 1978 law on domestic wiretapping - issued an order on Jan. 10 governing this new process and that eavesdropping under “the terrorist surveillance program” would be subject to the court’s approval. There are still some big unanswered questions. For one thing, because the new warrant process is secret, we don’t know whether the court has issued a blanket approval for wiretapping, which would undermine the intent of the law, or whether the administration agreed to seek individual warrants.”

   Bush has also appointed a commission to study privacy issues associated with the program. The problem being that the only source of information provided to the commission has been briefings by people operating the program as to how it works. Sort of like the fox guarding the henhouse. Then verbally certifying that all the chickens are present but not allowing the farmer to enter and look.

   Lobo Gris

2. logrithmic March 17th, 2007 10:46 am

   I think Mr. Pitts has done an outstanding job at framing this important issue. We as a country really are at a crossroads. Are we going to continue to slip toward the world depicted in the excellent novel “1984″ by George Orwell, one in where all of us live in fear of our own government, or will we reject the calls of government rights to unwarranted search and seizure in favor of some programmed version of government and media-defined patriotism?

   To question is no longer acceptable to many.

   I have been an observer of the media for many years. Never have I seen such important issues and violations of the law swept under the rug. While the very basis of the Constitution is under attack, these so-called media watchdogs are more concerned with the burial of a blonde starlet than with the criminal activities and threats to our democracy. It is shocking - but it appears that corporations want us all to be dumbed down citizens whose only function is to serve their machines and buy the products of their machines. It is in my humble opininon a worthless and souless existence.

   As someone who has fought locally (and successfully) for resolutions to repeal the Patriot Act, its clear that there is a grassroots constituency in support of broad action to protect our privacy. But unless this becomes a campaign issue, I fear such intrusion will continue unabated. And we the people will be just that less free.

   god help us all…..

3. bnzuxapazupu December 12th, 2007 9:32 am

   titrazotocicy…

   exzywukevize…

4. bnhycocexyso January 1st, 2008 6:29 am

   tithywenizeva…

   exvyvyhiheta…

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