FCC Declines To Probe Disclosure of Phone Records

An anonymous reader writes "News.com reports that the FCC won't be investigating the phone record disclosures by communications companies under US government pressure. Despite a congressional request for that probe, FCC Chairman Kevin Martin quashed the inquiry based on comments from National Intelligence Director Michael McConnell. 'At issue are reports last year that some big telephone companies allowed the U.S. government access to millions of telephone records for an antiterrorism program. The reports have prompted scrutiny by the House Energy and Commerce Committee. Democratic Rep. Edward Markey, the chairman of a key Energy and Commerce subcommittee, asked Martin to investigate. Markey, of Massachusetts, said McConnell's stance was "unsurprising given that this administration has continually thwarted efforts by Congress to shed more light on the surveillance program."'"

Comments

Re:Changing the voting system

[HomelessInLaJolla]

I think if the Founders had seen how it would work out, then they would have Doubtful. Look at the concept of "taxation without representation" and then look at the "power of borrow money on the credit of the United States". You don't think it's obvious that giving a small set of wealthy landowners the power to borrow money, which their constituents will be obliged to repay (through taxes), was a backdoor big enough to drive the USS Enterprise through? Why bother to physically bind your neighbor in chains when you can turn him into an indentured servant who lives off-site?

The Founding Fathers were profiteers just like everyone else at that level. They were looking for a way to increase their share of the American pie and found it in independence from Britain.

This still leaves the question of how bad Britain really want to retain America, politically. Financially (banking) and economically (trading) the reigning major players didn't change much after 1776. "Let them have their silly republic. Their banks and trading companies are all subsidiaries of ours."