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Journalist Sues NSA For Keeping Keith Alexander's Financial History Secret
Daniel_Stuckey writes Now the NSA has yet another dilemma on its hands: Investigative journalist Jason Leopold is suing the agency for denying him the release of financial disclosure statements attributable to its former director. According to a report by Bloomberg, prospective clients of Alexander's, namely large banks, will be billed $1 million a month for his cyber-consulting services. Recode.net quipped that for an extra million, Alexander would show them the back door (state-installed spyware mechanisms) that the NSA put in consumer routers.
This is an example of the perils of state and corporate power being merged. Fascism, according to Mussolini.
And yet he hasn't stopped it. In fact, he has explicitly defended and expanded the surveillance state. If he was against it, he would've stopped it by vetoing the Patriot Act extension. He's corrupt to the core and no amount of "But Bush!!!" will change that.
Derp. Welcome to America. As it's been this way since the days of Andrew Jackson. To state that the current state of affairs is Obama or Bush or any recent president's doing is very naive. People like you contribute to the problem.
Everyone knows that the government you see isn't what is calling the shots in this country.
"Behind the ostensible government sits enthroned an invisible government owing no allegiance and acknowledging no responsibility to the people. To destroy this invisible government, to befoul the unholy alliance between corrupt business and corrupt politics is the first task of the statesmanship of the day."
Theodore Roosevelt, 26th President of the United States,
Theodore Roosevelt - An Autobiography, 1913 (Appendix B)
"A great industrial nation is controlled by its system of credit. Our system of credit is privately concentrated. The growth of the nation, therefore, and all our activities are in the hands of a few men [W]e have come to be one of the worst ruled, one of the most completely controlled and dominated, governments in the civilized world - no longer a government by free opinion, no longer a government by conviction and the vote of the majority, but a government by the opinion and the duress of small groups of dominant men."
Woodrow Wilson,
28th President of the United States, The New Freedom, 1913
"Since I entered politics, I have chiefly had men's views confided to me privately. Some of the biggest men in the United States, in the field of commerce and manufacture, are afraid of something. They know that there is a power somewhere so organized, so subtle, so watchful, so interlocked, so complete, so pervasive, that they had better not speak above their breath when they speak in condemnation of it."
Woodrow Wilson,
28th President of the United States, The New Freedom, 1913
"The individual is handicapped by coming face-to-face with a conspiracy so monstrous he cannot believe it exists. The American mind simply has not come to a realization of the evil which has been introduced into our midst. It rejects even the assumption that human creatures could espouse a philosophy which must ultimately destroy all that is good and decent."
J. Edgar Hoover,
The Elks Magazine, 1956
"Today the path to total dictatorship in the U.S. can be laid by strictly legal means We have a well-organized political-action group in this country, determined to destroy our Constitution and establish a one-party state It operates secretly, silently, continuously to transform our Government This ruthless power-seeking elite is a disease of our century This group is answerable neither to the President, the Congress, nor the courts. It is practically irremovable."
Senator William Jenner,
1954 speech
"The Rockefellers and their allies have, for at least fifty years, been carefully following a plan to use their economic power to gain political control of first America, and then the rest of the world. Do I mean conspiracy? Yes, I do. I am convinced there is such a plot, international in scope, generations old in planning, and incredibly evil in intent."
Congressman Larry P. McDonald, November 1975,
from the introduction to a book titled The Rockefeller File
Oh fuck it. God damn nothing but idiots on this site. Trusting, naive idiots spoonfed political propaganda that will always eat it up without question.
"Obama's America"? Really? Fucking moron.
So the REAL question is what WILL stop it. Saying that "This one is a bad person and did nothing to change it" doesn't work. Saying "The previous one did nothing to change it" doesn't work.
Voting for "The other party" doesn't work.
No, I do not have the answer, because if I did I would be giving it.
Don't fight for your country, if your country does not fight for you.
http://whatthefuckhasobamadone...
"Obama's America"? Really? Fucking moron.
What has he done to change anything beyond stupid platitudes that tons of ignorant liberals lapped up? We charge people who drive by the scene of an accident as negligible so why should Obama not be held to the same standard?
I might consider them negligent, but I'm not really sure what considering them "negligible" means in this context, nor why they would be able to be charged with anything for it.
"Negligible: so small, trifling, or unimportant that it may safely be neglected or disregarded."
We quite honestly do need to improve our educational system, since it seems to produce lots of people who accuse others of ignorance, while at the same time showing their own ignorance of the English language.
A million is worth admittedly less these days, I get that, but I have the same feeling now.
Happiness in intelligent people is the rarest thing I know.
Ernest Hemingway
Your Hoover quote was referring to communism, not the Illuminati. How's your spoon holding up?
I live ze unknown. I love ze unknown. I am ze unknown.
Why the summary munged Alexander's laughable salary request and a lawsuit by a journalist is a bit baffling.
First issue, the lawsuit. The NSA refused to provide under Federal Law. It should not come as a surprise to anyone that this agency is ignoring (or at least attempting to ignore) Federal Law. The right answer is to disband the NSA and hand SIGINT over to the Military which tends to follow the US Constitution a bit more closely. While we are disbanding things, we should also revamp the CIA, FBI, DHS, and TSA removing most of their powers and executives that also ignore the law.
Second issue is that Alexander thinks he's brilliant enough to make a million a month telling people what most IT Security professionals can do for a much better rate. I'd do better than he does at securing a company, and I'll do it for much less. In fact I can think of a few dozen people I'd recommend for much less, and for a million a month I'd have a full staff doing audits _and_ consulting. You don't need to be a former General to be intelligent about security, you need knowledge.
In other words, if Alexander can get a million a month for consulting it sure as hell is not for security. It would be for cronyism.
-The wise argue that there are few absolutes, the fool argues that there are no probabilities.
So the REAL question is what WILL stop it. Saying that "This one is a bad person and did nothing to change it" doesn't work. Saying "The previous one did nothing to change it" doesn't work.
Voting for "The other party" doesn't work.
No, I do not have the answer, because if I did I would be giving it.
What must be done to change the status-quo with minimal violence or bloodshed is to unite people under common values, such as the massive & ongoing civil rights violations/infringements that most people agree are wrong, regardless of what political stripe they self-identify as.
Likewise, the militarization of domestic police forces and their gradual shift from a community law enforcement role to more resemble a national occupation force complete with armored vehicles and heavy crew-served weapons.
Start focusing on what we have in common, not what divides us. Despite what those with power would like you to believe, we have much more in common than we have differences. Those commonalities are also those of a much more fundamental and essential nature than our differences.
Extremely few on any side of the political spectrum in the US (barring government & MIC) wants an Orwellian surveillance//security/police state.
I'd have no problem at all standing side by side in public protests and demonstrations with almost anyone from TEA Party member to PETA and/or LGBT activist and beyond who also was willing to postpone our arguments for our common interests in a free and open society without mass domestic surveillance & data analysis and a militarized police force performing military-occupation and wealth-confiscation roles more than any sort of community-based & controlled "officer of the peace" roles.
Look, people, yes we have beefs over stuff *BUT*, unless we unite and curb government power and size, it won't matter because very soon none of us will have any choices about anything nor any meaningful rights at all.
Strat
Progressivism (aka US 'Liberalism'): Ideas so good they need a police/surveillance-state to enforce.
I think the point he's trying to make is that there's no such thing as "Obama's America" - he's just the latest in a long stream of presidents to dance on the strings of someone(s) far more powerful who are actually in control. Or get assassinated - that seems to be a pretty common theme among presidents that actually tried to take a stand against this tide.
--- Most topics have many sides worth arguing, allow me to take one opposite you.
But you sir are on this site. What weight then shall we give your post?
I think Obama's one of the best Republican Presidents ever. He's guided the country through a healthy if slow economic recovery. Convinced the democrats to implement the Republican health care plan. And continued the Republican lovefest with the patriot act and secret surveillance
There has clearly been success in creating a one-party state. The party just happens to have two faces, but inside, there is no significant difference.
The real "Libtards" are the Libertarians!
Typically financial disclosures, such as the ones covered by OGE Form 450 (Confidential Financial Disclosure Report), are not public information and are exempted from FOIA requests (Exemption 3). There are certain types of personal information that you are not entitled to; for instance, one wouldn't be able to request social security numbers, or bank account info, etc. on people. You are allowed to know things like their position, job title, salary, and stuff like that.
Gotta love that site, too bad "doing something" is not the same as doing the right thing. Sure, hes done alot, what has he done to make the country better jack shit
have you seen my sig? there are many others like it but none that are the same
Derp. Welcome to America. As it's been this way since the days of Andrew Jackson.
How dare you try to lay our sorry state of affairs at the feet of President Jackson! Don't you realize what a fucked up country he inherited from John Quincy Adams?!? You've obviously been spending WAY to much time in your RWEC. (Right-Whig Echo Chamber)
Sadly, sedition would be vilified. Look at Mr Snowden. Enemy of the state, now exiled in Moscow. He's one of many, and as there are no controls, and the game of extortion is played at the highest level like a bad poker game, the chances of clarity, openness, and even "just the right thing" are nil.
Martyrdom doesn't work with 72 virgins, and it doesn't work when corporate America controls the press-- especially Murdoch. Who has the WSJ by the printing press short-hairs? None other. Most of us just duck low, shaking our heads.
---- Teach Peace. It's Cheaper Than War.
http://www.militaryfactory.com...
Military pay grades are in the public record. Many sites (the above is just one) publish them.
Extremely few on any side of the political spectrum in the US (barring government & MIC) wants an Orwellian surveillance//security/police state.
How many people support DUI checkpoints, free speech zones, unfettered border searches, constitution-free zones, the TSA, the NSA's mass surveillance, protest permits, stop-and-frisk-type policies, unwarranted surveillance in general, or assassination of citizens without trial? They only have to be a supporter of one of them to be a supporter of a police state, and I can't tell you how many people I've personally conversed with that supported a number of those as long as it makes them feel safe. In 'the land of the free and the home of the brave,' freedom should be considered more important than safety, but I don't think most people see it that way.
And even if most people did see it that way, look at how many people changed their tunes directly after 9/11? If people are so weak and unprincipled that a disaster can make them give a bunch of power to the government, then all it takes is another disaster for the government to take advantage of, and we'll lose all that progress.
So either way, I'm not too optimistic.
If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
It might work - IF you could find enough competent assassins willing to become the target of the most intensive and well-funded manhunt ever to be implemented.
I assume you think that you're making a joke, but it is worth pointing out that government by assassination never works.
You think good guys have more money to hire hit men than bad guys? Or, you read so many honorable-mafia-killer novels that you think hired killers won't work for bad guys, only for the good guys? Or, you think that the kind of people who like to assassinate public figures have an unerring ethical sense, and can instinctively tell good from bad?
Or perhaps better yet willing to become public martyrs to the cause. Shouldn't take more than a few dozen "educational killings" to get the message across. A few thousand, tops.
This, basically, is a way to guarantee that the worst possible people end up in power. 'Cause once you get onto that Roman-Emperor assassination train, the ones that are ruthless, power-hungry, and have no morals will be the ones hiring the killers. Either directly, if they're bold, or through "grass roots- it's the people who support me" intermediaries if they're not.
And then just hope the message received is "you're public employees - stop being lapdogs to the ultra-powerful" and not "the proles are getting uppity, time to crack down for real"
The message that will be sent is "if you want to survive, be paranoid, trust no one, kill quickly and ruthlessly".
Typically financial disclosures, such as the ones covered by OGE Form 450 (Confidential Financial Disclosure Report), are not public information and are exempted from FOIA requests
The form in question isn't the 450, which is confidential (hence its name). It's form 278, "Public Financial Disclosure", which is public (hence its name.
From http://www.oge.gov/Financial-D...
Public Financial Disclosure
The Ethics in Government Act of 1978, as amended, requires senior officials in the executive, legislative and judicial branches to file public reports of their finances as well as other interests outside the Government. The statute and the U.S. Office of Government Ethics's (OGE) regulations specify which officials in the executive branch file an OGE Form 278. Unlike confidential financial statements filed by some mid-level employees, the OGE 278 is available to the public. Reviewing officials within each agency certify and maintain these reports. Agencies do, however, forward reports of Presidential appointees confirmed by the Senate and certain other reports to OGE for additional review and certification.
http://www.geoffreylandis.com
Anyone who ever believes that state and corporate power are, or were ever separate is hopelessly naive.
“He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
Thank you for your informative reply and please know that the heights to which I hold you in my esteem is in proportion to your courtesy.
Holy crap, if that isn't the next sign of the dystopian future I don't know what is.
Private corporations getting the consulting services of the king spook of the spy agency which has tapped into the entire fucking world.
That scares the bejezzus out of me.
Because all of the secrecy of the NSA combined with the douche-baggery of corporations is straight out of a cyberpunk novel.
The surveillance state meets Wall Street. Oooh, they could privatize the NSA, that would be really profitable.
Time to stock up on Guy Fawkes masks.
Lost at C:>. Found at C.
"For we are opposed around the world by a monolithic and ruthless conspiracy that relies on covert means for expanding its sphere of influence--on infiltration instead of invasion, on subversion instead of elections, on intimidation instead of free choice, on guerrillas by night instead of armies by day. It is a system which has conscripted vast human and material resources into the building of a tightly knit, highly efficient machine that combines military, diplomatic, intelligence, economic, scientific and political operation."
Its preparations are concealed, not published. Its mistakes are buried not headlined. Its dissenters are silenced, not praised. No expenditure is questioned, no rumor is printed, no secret is revealed."
John F. Kennedy, April 27, 1961. "The President and the Press"
No Inflation Taxation without Representation
I wasn't aware that I was opposing useful technology simply because it might take away my job. You do know that's what a Luddite is, right? And you do know that not all uses of technology make sense, correct? Therefore, calling me a Luddite for criticizing a stupid use of Javascript makes absolutely zero sense.
If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
He going to charge you a shit load of money to tell you secrets. Edward gave them away.
Once again being a patriot is all about how much money you can charge.
Seems to me what you need is a political party that opposes this shit. Whenever Ds and Rs agree on anything, it is a pretty safe bet that the public at large do not.
Gosh, thanks. That must be why the other ships call me Meatfucker -- GCU Grey Area (Eccentric)
Democracy != free country. And yes, there are no truly free countries in the world, but being free is something we should aspire to. The US is, after all, supposed to be 'the land of the free and the home of the brave.' So people here would look less like hypocrites if they stopped supporting rights violations and constitutional violations, whether it be to increase their safety or some other reason.
If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
Driving is a privilege not a right.
I knew one of you morons would show up. Even if it is true that driving is a 'privilege' *that does not mean your constitutional rights are null and void the second you decide to innocuously exercise that privilege!* The fourth amendment still applies, and the government has absolutely no constitutional authority to disregard people's rights just because they want to exercise something the government deems a 'privilege.' This logic is simply insane, and it's killing our freedoms.
It's the same sort of logic that allows for the TSA. "You implicitly consented to having your fundamental and constitutional rights violated by government thugs by trying to get on an airplane, so it's not a constitutional violation!" You're in good company, AC; government thugs all over the world drool when they see people using this awful logic to justify the erosion of people's fundamental liberties.
If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
You don't give up your 4th Amendment rights just by getting behind the wheel. If you're driving erratically, the officer has probable cause to stop you and verify your sobriety. The officer is also able to shine his flashlight through your window and see if you have anything illegal *in plain sight*. He is not, however, allowed to search your trunk, make you pick your sweater up off the seat next to you, or otherwise SEARCH your car. And, if you are found to be driving while impaired, you still HAVE A TRIAL. You have the right to call into question the methods the officer in question used. If he violated your rights, and you are able to articulate and demonstrate it, your offense is null and void. If HE screwed up, you get a walk. And even if it's a small town, and the cop is the judge's brother (oh, hey, look, another reason the case should be tossed), you have the right to appeal. I know, I know, reasoned discourse is no match for vitriol, but it's early in the day and my hopes haven't been utterly eroded yet.
No, I do not have the answer, because if I did I would be giving it.
The answer lies in recognizing that even though we oppose it in principle we are supporting it through funding.
If political leaders are misuses your money and the voting system is provably inadequate in changing this behavior than you are left with 2 options:
1) Leave the country and become a citizen in a less corrupt one
2) Follow the principles of Agorism and starve the beast with local barter or using Bitcoin instead and avoid paying taxes as they fund policies you oppose.
Recode.net quipped that for an extra million, Alexander would show them the back door (state-installed spyware mechanisms) that the NSA put in consumer routers.
Hasn't congress already warned this asshole that selling classified information is a felony? [[http://politics.slashdot.org/story/14/06/26/1929246/former-nsa-chief-warned-against-selling-nsa-secrets]]
While Alexander probably didn't actually say that, Congressman Alan Grayson (D-FL) hits the nail squarely on the head, "Without the classified information he acquired in his former position, he literally would have nothing to offer to you."
Likewise, the militarization of domestic police forces and their gradual shift from a community law enforcement role to more resemble a national occupation force complete with armored vehicles and heavy crew-served weapons.
A SWAT team per city / county, a few of which might have a light armored vehicle, is an "occupation" army?
You don't suppose you might be overstating things a bit, do you??
Were you in Boston on April 15-20th, 2013? Occupation army isn't too far off.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/pb/radley-balko
"What the American public doesn't know is what makes them the American public." -Ray Zalinsky (Tommy Boy)