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US Director of National Intelligence Admits He Was Wrong About Data Collection
Gunkerty Jeb writes "In a highly unusual move, James Clapper, the director of national intelligence, said Tuesday that he misspoke when he told a Congressional committee in March that the National Security Agency does not collect data on millions of Americans. Clapper said at the time that the agency does not do so 'wittingly,' but in a letter to the chair of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, Clapper admitted this statement was 'erroneous.' Clapper, the top U.S. intelligence official, has been quite vocal in his defense of the NSA's now-public surveillance programs such as PRISM and the metadata collection program. In statements published shortly after the leak of classified documents by Edward Snowden about those collection efforts Clapper said that they both have been repeatedly authorized by Congress and the executive and judicial branches over the years."
No.... thats not right. the word required here is FUCKING LIAR!
He either lied like a piece of shit TRAITOR TO AMERICA. Or he's totally clueless.
Either way this is not good.
Lube up the guillotine. It's services are required once again.
Are we not tired of paying fucktons of money for illegal actions by the people who are supposed to be on our side? These guys are worse than terrorists. Terrorists just kill people. These guys ruin lives, familys, and make you pay for it.
Off with his head. We'll put a stop to this shit.
The rich and powerful go unpunished. THAT is the real concern.
In this case, punishment shouldn't even be the main concern. The focus should be in stopping the clearly unconstitutional activities. But the US population opinion is "fuck the constitution, protect us from those evil terrorists" [because that's the objective of the PRISM program, right? sure...].
Land of the free, home of the brave. LOL.
`echo $[0x853204FA81]|tr 0-9 ionbsdeaml`@gmail.com
No, in this case, punishment absolutely has to be a concern. The next time another pompous asshole considers to perjure himself in front of Congress, I want him to remember this guy serving 5-10 years and then reconsider the real consequences of his actions. And we might not have those secret programs in the first place.
If programs would be read like poetry, most programmers would be Vogons.
You may get mad and say why not call it what it what it is, a lie, but there is a reason for doing it this way.
On the surface it looks like he is trying to cover his ass, perform damage control
Happens all the time in politics, and makes sense, on the surface.
However, I think there is a deeper reason. One, news that makes some of the public upset comes out. Step one is to deny. This gives the public what they want to hear, that it isn't true. Most go back to TMZ, or whatever other crap they do. Then when the lie is outed, you try to soften it some by saying it was a mistake, an erroor, or I misspoke. Some people will go WTF, but most are no longer paying attention. If enough are, you also have a scapegoat, the liar who misspoke. You can then, if needed chastise him/her in some way, placating another percentage of the public that is still paying attention (most aren't by now). By the time this is all done, the percentage that had the attention span and desire to follow it this far have dwindled down. Now the few that are left are left shouting into the wind, because the are too concerned with the celebrity du jour, or the sports scores to be bothered.
Now the few that are left that care are looked at like tinfoil hatters, and conspiracy nuts. Meanwhile things are back to business as usual.
Silence is a state of mime.
The problem isn't as much voting either R or D, but that those are the only two choices. Both parties have a vested interest in making you believe that voting anything else is a wasted vote, since, by that logic, if you don't vote R, then D wins. This is only true if both R and D refuse to corporate with a hypothetical third party.
Instead of calling for voters and representatives to change how they operate within the system now, how about calling for a change in the system itself? It is a little bit depressing to see so many tech savvy people completely ignore that the system is built on logic 200 years old, patched up to meet the standards from 50 years ago. Democracy needs a reboot, representative democracy is a solution to a problem we no longer have: speed of communication. What if you could vote on any issue, at any time via an app? Why would you need a representative then?
... whatever
True. Martha Steward went to jail for mis-speaking. yet this joker blatantly lies and doesn't get a all expenses paid trip to Gitmo for the Waterboarding experience? This is the reality as to "justice" in the united states.
If you are inside the old boys club, you do not get in trouble. If you are outside it, they will punish you.
Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
Clappers office has previously released a statement that his answer was "least untruthful" he could make it, because the program was classified. this clearly implies that he was aware that the statement was false at the time he made it.
https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130610/09473723393/clapper-my-answer-to-wydens-beating-your-wife-question-data-surveillance-was-least-untruthful-answer.shtml
Today the statement is, "I misunderstood", implying that at the time, he believed the statement he made was factual.
So, which is it? These statements appear contradictory
You are absolutely correct, but one question remains - what can we do? What can we hope for, if there are no real "selected few" - some are trying to become ones but then they are casted down faster than last-year one-hit bands. Take Snowden - in popular opinion he is just "drama queen", "whiny idiot" or even outright "traitor".
Here, in Russia, there are examples of that too - many of the so-called "opposition leaders" are just crazy ass-clowns, and others are too idealistic to be accepted as true leaders. One of the most scary things in modern Russia is that Putin is really the most popular politician in this country, and this status quo is not going to change anytime soon.
So the question remains - what can we, the people, do? What real power do we have today? My own answer for today is "just wait until this broken system destroys itself from inside", but it still may well outlive me. Not a shiny perspective, I must say.
Absence of proof != proof of absence.
In the European press you mostly get embarrassed reactions since nobody is able to shelter him.
Whistleblower/traitor.
Freedom fighter/terrorist.
20 minutes into the future