OK, I know--for some reason--that Americans in general are somehow unfazed by illegal wiretaps. They yawn at the possibility that they're being watched, tracked, listened to. I don't know how that happened, or how Conservatives--people allegedly dedicated to the preservation of the Constitution--are seemingly all for it.
The spectre of terrorism is used as an excuse, but I don't buy it. Are we more threatened by terrorism than we were by Nazis? Is the war on terror scarier and more dangerous to our safety than the Cold War? Need I remind people that we were hours from nuclear annihilation at one point? So why now is it necessary to dismantle the bill of rights? I don't get it.
Here's a story that lays out in more detail than I've seen before, just what they've been up to, and who is helping them. See if it bothers you. Oh, and if you believe the figure (later in the story) that only 100 Americans are being monitored, you are much less cynical than I am.
The spectre of terrorism is used as an excuse, but I don't buy it. Are we more threatened by terrorism than we were by Nazis? Is the war on terror scarier and more dangerous to our safety than the Cold War? Need I remind people that we were hours from nuclear annihilation at one point? So why now is it necessary to dismantle the bill of rights? I don't get it.
Here's a story that lays out in more detail than I've seen before, just what they've been up to, and who is helping them. See if it bothers you. Oh, and if you believe the figure (later in the story) that only 100 Americans are being monitored, you are much less cynical than I am.
[Excerpt]
WASHINGTON — National Intelligence Director Mike McConnell pulled the curtain back on previously classified details of government surveillance and of a secretive court whose recent rulings created new hurdles for the Bush administration as it tries to prevent terrorism.
McConnell's comments _ made in an interview with the El Paso (Texas) Times last week and posted as a transcript on the newspaper's Web site Wednesday _ raised eyebrows for their frank discussion of previously classified eavesdropping work conducted under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, known as FISA. Among the disclosures:
• McConnell confirmed for the first time that the private sector assisted with President Bush's warrantless surveillance program. AT&T, Verizon and other telecommunications companies are being sued for their cooperation. "Now if you play out the suits at the value they're claimed, it would bankrupt these companies," McConnell said, arguing that they deserve immunity for their help. . .
See what else was disclosed at: HuffingtonPost.com
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