Can You Hear Me Now....Good!
But after further reflection I just don't see how listening or monitoring 500 stateside citizens and 4,000 citizens abroad is really that big a deal. The truth is there are probably a lot more people than just 500 in the US who would like to bring serious hurt or death to it's citizens. I just don't think it's that big a deal if the Government makes sure that those individuals who are considered high risk aren't in the final stages of planning something serious.
I do think that what the NY-Times did was pretty cheap, especially considering this has been going on since 9/11 and a lot of congressional leaders knew it was happening. I think Bush is right in that part of the intelligence gathering apparatus of the government has been seriously compromised, and to real minimal gain. 500 people out of 245 million is hardly worth a mention and definately doesn't illustrate a widespread "big-brother" effort.
If the investigation reveals that people have been locked up for the last three years just because of an e-mail they sent that threatened to shoot up a mall, then perhaps I wouldn't be so supportive. But in the end, and be honest, don't you secretly hope and suspect that the government knows what's going on and is actively working to thwart terrible crime before it happens?
It's tragic that this is the main news, and not what Happened in Iraq on the 16th. Despite what you feel about the war, or how the war has been carried out what happened in Iraq was truly inspiring. To have millions, and millions of people show up to vote despite the real threat of violence was pretty awesome. Especially considering that here in the US people stay home from voting if there is bad weather. I wish the Bush administration and the media could have done a better job at framing the historic importance of the Iraqi vote.
Heading off to Searcy, AR soon to spend time with the family. I think they have internet out there so I will still try to post. Happy Holidays everyone.
3 comments:
Spying on U.S. citizens isn't new -- it's on the Sopranos every week. I guess what makes this "a big deal" is that Bush said to go ahead and do it without seeking a court order. Worth mentioning I think.
It's exactly what Brandon said that makes Bush's spying wrong. It's the fact that he refuses to get a court order. There is a special court within the justice department set aside for just this thing. I don't doubt that most of the spying is helpful and with reasonable cause, but our government is designed with checks. The court approves over 99% of all requests. Why not use it? Bush has continually over stepped the power of his office. This is another example where he believes he is above the law. Bush needs to abide by the precedent and form what I have read the law. He is not above that and should face serious questioning on this and other possible situations where he overstepped the power of his office, namely torture.
Totally agree with both of you, and from what I have read it's clear that getting a court order didn't take an inordinate amount of time.
I guess what I am saying is that of all the things that Bush has done to seemingly overstep his bounds of power this is the one that bothers me the least. The scope of what he has done doesn't seem, to me, to be as serious as torture, Guantanamo, or other things. I can imagine situations that could happen where the NSA would need to work "off-the books" so to speak.
But perhaps I have been watching too many movies.
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