Slashdot Mirror
Wiretapping Program Ruled Legal
BuhDuh writes "The New York Times is carrying a story concerning that well known bastion of legal authority, the 'Foreign Intelligence Surveillance' court, which has ruled that the National Security Agency's warrantless eavesdropping program was perfectly legal. It says, 'A federal intelligence court, in a rare public opinion, is expected to issue a major ruling validating the power of the president and Congress to wiretap international phone calls and intercept e-mail messages without a court order, even when Americans' private communications may be involved, according to a person with knowledge of the opinion.'"
Sorry to reply to my own post, but this article gets more absurd as I go:
The appeals court is expected to uphold a secret ruling...
Uphold a what?
...issued last year by the intelligence court that it oversees, known as the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance, or FISA, court. In that initial opinion, the secret court found that Congress had acted within its authority
Wait... so a secret court, established by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, ruled that secret actions of that secret court are legal? Shocking!
It found that the Protect America Act did not violate the Constitution because the Fourth Amendment, which prohibits unreasonable searches and seizures, contained an exception for the collection of foreign intelligence information, according to the person familiar with the ruling.
It does?
Amendment IV
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
I guess they mean the Border Search Exception...
Doesn't the court realize that by ruling FISA entirely useless, they just ruled themselves useless?
This post expresses my opinion, not that of my employer. And yes, IAAL.
Nobody is seriously talking about taking your guns away. With the modern mind-control technologies, it's really not necessary.
You know, most people just call it Fox News
If while on vacation I knowingly AND willingly attempted to kill innocent people, I would expect to be thrown into a hole.
The military tribunals have releases people from such military detentions so the process does work.
If you think a 15 year old deserves a bullet to the head, then
FUCK YOU
"It doesn't cost enough, and it makes too much sense."