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Member of President Obama's NSA Panel Recommends Increased Data Collection
cold fjord writes "National Journal reports, 'Michael Morell, the former acting director of the CIA and a member of President Obama's task force on surveillance, said ... that a controversial telephone data-collection program conducted by the National Security Agency should be expanded to include emails. He also said the program, far from being unnecessary, could prevent the next 9/11. Morell, seeking to correct any misperception that the presidential panel had called for a radical curtailment of NSA programs, said he is in favor of restarting a program that the NSA discontinued in 2011 that involved the collection of "meta-data" for internet communications. ... "I would argue actually that the email data is probably more valuable than the telephony data," ... Morell also said that while he agreed with the report's conclusion that the telephone data program, conducted under Section 215 of the Patriot Act, made "only a modest contribution to the nation's security" so far, it should be continued under the new safeguards recommended by the panel. "I would argue that what effectiveness we have seen to date is totally irrelevant to how effective it might be in the future," he said. "This program, 215, has the ability to stop the next 9/11 and if you added emails in there it would make it even more effective. Had it been in place in 2000 and 2001, I think that probably 9/11 would not have happened."' — More at Politico and National Review. Some members of Congress have a different view. Even Russian President Putin has weighed in with both a zing and a defense."
Seeing as how I haven't really heard anything to the contrary, this is what I expect will happen. And even if I had heard something to the contrary, this is what I would expect.
Before anyone pipes up with "oh, this doesn't affect me, I'm just a nobody", then try thinking further ahead than the next quarter.
You may be one among, say, millions of students, but what about 5-10 years from now when you do or invent something important and it's in conflict with what the government of the day wants you to do ?
That's the point at which your student past is dug up and it's explained to you that unless you play ball your past will be revealed.
Even if you are the most boring person in the world, then what about the people one or two steps removed from you, ie: members of your class. Guilt by association and all that.
I really dislike it when people think about where they are today instead of where they may be a few years from now. People like these will sleepwalk into this future without realising it until it's too late.
... you know your doing something wrong.
Be seeing you...
Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.
Benjamin Franklin, Historical Review of Pennsylvania, 1759
Not quite.
There are certain semi-agreed 'debate issues' in US politics. Things that the parties have informally (Or possible, conspiratorially) decided are going to get a lot of attention, be a subject of intence R-v-D warfare and generally decide elections. A lot of these are things that won't actually have a great impact on most of society, like abortion or gay marriage.
There are also certain semi-agreed 'off the table' issues, where both sides have decided that drawing attention to them would be a bad thing for both sides. This includes defence spending and civil rights, along with such issues as corn subsidies and copyright reform. Rarely do you find a politician daring to even acknowledge these as issues, and any that do risk a backlash from their own party.
This is one of the 'off the table' issues. If Snowden's leaking hadn't forced it to public attention, it would never have been allowed to come up, and right now both parties are just hopeing it goes away again.
Yes but that's the scary thing about this whole metadata thing. If they tapped every backboned and could archive every packet it would effectively not matter you encrypted it along the way. They'd still know who you're talking to, where you surf online, the whole bit. Also, given how much crap snowden found, the scary question is what is so classified he didn't find it?
Sounds good in theory, like the free-market social Darwinist..
Until they realize that they are pudgy 40 year old 5 foot tall asthmatics who just had all their shit stolen and wife taken by force by a 7 foot tall thug with more muscle than brain.. Who just 'appropriated' their shit by pulling your dick out through your mouth. You know, survival of the fittest, and you my friend are NOT one of them. What? You expected POLICE to help you? You don't have the RIGHT to a government police force. Get off your lazy ass and grow a few feet and put on 100 pounds of muscle and protect your own damn self.
Armed support from the government doesn't protect anyone's rights, it just costs $$.
You see, there is what some kid in their basement thinks about the world, and then there is reality.
The reality is that it costs less than $3,000 a year for foodstamps. But prison costs between $35,000 and $65,000 per year.
In the real world, when there are 3 people for every 1 job, it is simply cheaper to help the poor than it is to punish them for having the fucking gall to be fired because someone with millions decided to move to commie china and get a tax break to do it.
In the real world, compassionate programs for things like drug treatment, food security, and basic housing is not just the christian thing to do ( and exactly what little baby Jesus would want). It is also the most cost effective to the taxpayer. And the reduction in thefts and increase in law and order is also very good if you are someone who wants to keep your shit without having to employ armed guards. Or sell shit and expect to get payed, or walk about without getting killed.
Or, you know hey, we could stop the economic support of rich fucks by raising minimum wage to a level that puts people above the poverty line and hence outside of the welfare system. If we adjusted minim wage to inflation it would be about $20.. There is the real issue.
There were numerous reports about the 9/11 hijackers doing things like learning to fly jets and many of them were already on terrorist watch lists.
The issue wasn't a lack of information, it was apathy and incompetence. Gathering *even more* information about innocent people won't help stop anything. Having competent people who do their jobs can.
All that said, freedom isn't safe. If we want to be free, we have to understand that there are those who are unbalanced, criminal, or just downright nasty out there. We need balanced laws and competent people to address this, but spying on everyone isn't the answer. That is all.
No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr