Government May Help Bells Defend Against Wiretap Suits

Carl Bialik from WSJ writes "As lawsuits mount against phone companies from plaintiffs who allege their call records were handed over to the National Security Agency illegally, the companies' defense may get help from the U.S. government, the Wall Street Journal reports. From the article: 'The plaintiffs, who accuse Bell phone companies of privacy violations and are seeking billions of dollars in damages, would need to delve into the depths of the NSA's surveillance program to make their cases. But the government considers such information top secret, and legal experts expect the Bush administration to assert the "state secrets" privilege in the 20 or more lawsuits filed by privacy advocates in recent weeks. If judges accept the claim, as has been the case in nearly every instance in which it has been asserted since the early 1950s, the suits will dissolve.'"

Comments

It's All in How You Read it

[eno2001]

Let's parse that headline correctly:

"Government May Help Bells Defend Against Wiretap Suits"

Government = ostensibly the U.S. governement (remember there's a whole world that matters a whole lot more than just the U.S. folks)
May Help Bells = The aforementioned U.S. Government might offer some kind of assistance to all Bells (Art Bell? Carrie Bell? Reggie Bell?) in the country.
Defend Against = A redneck way of saying "defend themselves against" as applied to the previously mentioned Bells.
Wiretap Suits = All the rage in Europe. Suits made out of Wire with Taps that slide over any style of shoe but remain attached to the suit.

So in essence we are saying that the U.S. government may or may not defend all people with the last name Bell from having to wear Wiretap Suits. This is not a good development. Why should all the Bells be prevented from looking foolish when the latest fashion rage takes over the U.S? These are dark days indeed...

Re:Bah!

[Anonymous Coward]

I hate to break the news to you, but the President is not eligible for re-election; there will be no incumbent running in that race. As far as the bureaucracy is concerned, they are mostly appointed.

Who were you going to vote out of office again?