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National Security Letter Issuance Likely Headed To Supreme Court
Gunkerty Jeb writes The Ninth Circuit appeals court in San Francisco took oral arguments from the Electronic Frontier Foundation and the Department of Justice yesterday over the constitutionality of National Security Letters and the gag orders associated with them. The EFF defended a lower court's ruling that NSLs are unconstitutional, while the DoJ defended a separate ruling that NSLs can be enforced. Whatever the court rules, the issue of NSLs is all but certainly headed for the Supreme Court in the not too distant future.
Didn't these guys have to take an oath to defend the Constitution?
Its time to add teeth to Oath Violations. Loss of job, loss of pension, jail time.
To argue that some silly law or court ruling overrides the First Amendment should be a criminal offense.
The Ninth Circus will rule they're constitutional, and the Supreme Court will cravenly refuse to take the case.
Crazy as it seems, all the judges were sent letters prohibiting them from taking this case due to National Security.
From the Wikipedia article on National_security_letter: A national security letter (NSL) is an administrative subpoena issued by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in authorized national security investigations "to protect against international terrorism or clandestine intelligence activities" (i.e., spying).
"Maybe this world is another planet's hell"
Aldous Huxley
Sometimes it takes years/decades for power abuse to get curtailed (here's hoping...), but it seems this checks and balance thing can eventually grind through major issues like this. Not great, not perfect, glacially slow but it seems to be working...
https://eff.org/
The same Supreme Court that brought us Citizens United? We are proper fucked now.
"If any question why we died, Tell them because our fathers lied."
Maybe I am too much of an idealist (and give my country too much benefit of the doubt), but if SCOTUS (Supreme Court of the United States) does its job, this madness (NSL's) will be stifled.
After, the American system is built on the assumption that one or two branches will attempt to subvert liberty, and that the other will reign them in.
In this case the executive and legislative have run amock and believe themselves capable of handling essentially limitless power. NSLs are an excellent example, we want information, and you can't even let anyone know what we want or even how often we want it. This is EXACTLY what the first amendment is intended to prevent, the government running amok and preventing its citizens from even discussing it. If the government is allowed to stifle this dissent, then representative government is lost and the despots are free to do what they want.
Hopefully, the judges on the Supreme Court have enough insight and morality to finally stop this and start the United States back onto a course of rule of law in accordance with the constitution that all have sworn to uphold.
By the way, hello to the NSA, glad you are reading along.
As always, no matter how non-obvious or convoluted the law, a regular person would face jail time if what they did were found to be illegal. And for government officials, they will merely be told "from now on, you may no longer do that".
Don't waste your vote! Vote for whoever you want, unless you live in a swing state it won't matter anyways
The the supreme court will decline ruling on it, and nothing will change.
The only thing worse than a Democrat is a Republican.
In 2008 a pair of "New Black Panters" members were arrested for intimidating voters in Philadelphia. In due time they were sued by Bushitler's Department of Justice, which was about to win the case. Obama's Department of Justice, however, allowed the men to avoid any punishment.
I'm bringing this up to preempt any attempt to defend Obama DoJ current actions defending "Security Letters" by their "having to" defend a law. They don't have to. When they didn't feel like it, they dropped the ball and let several thugs walk free and unscathed. Today they do feel like it, they want to have this law and are earnestly defending it.
They may even win, but even if they lose, it will not be for lack of trying. Oh, and they want to keep a backdoor for themselves in your personal electronics too. Remember that if ever you have a difficulty deciding on who to vote for — a promise, that Democrats will improve your civil liberties, will be a lie.
In Soviet Washington the swamp drains you.
You misspelled "KKKorporations".
In Soviet Washington the swamp drains you.
NSL's are unconstitutional. They are merely REQUESTS that can be IGNORED. It doesn't matter what agency puts it's silly logo on top or how exigent or serious they claim it is, or what kind of gag threats they play you with. They are NOT signed by a JUDGE having JURISDICTION. That makes them the equivalent of toilet paper. But instead of wiping your ass with them like you should, all you sheep keep letting them buttfuck you with them.
FISC is unconstitutional. It is a fake kangaroo court established by promulgated legislative/executive(lol) 'law'. In the US, the federal courts tree is ONLY established in the CONSTITUTION as a completely separate branch of government, the JUDICIAL. The FISC is even trying to say it is not beholden to the Supreme Court and that its cases cannot be taken there, as if it itself was the last buck. Which clearly shows they are a false court that is not properly housed within the judicial branch. When you worship a false court you get things like full take mass surveillance on all your citizens without individualized warrants, and renditions and disappearances and free speech zones.
Keep letting your country slide down the rabbit hole and you'll end up like Egypt, corrupt and fucked. As if you're not already.
What part of "well fucking regulated" don't you understand?
To reduce crime, make fewer things against the law.
the Supreme Court is most likely fatally compromised as the NSA will already have all the dirt they need on the Judges in order to get them to make the "decision" they need....
Donald 'Duck' Dunn: We had a band powerful enough to turn goat piss into gasoline.
The judgement will be made FOR the constitutionality of NSLs on a 5-4 split decision...assuming of course that they hear the argument at all.
What the supreme court has to decide is whether they will help the government to pretend ONCE AGAIN that the bill of rights is optional.
-jcr
The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."
If I was in competition with another tech company, what stops me from hiring a few actors and a few burner phones, and delivering a fake NSL to get their most sensitive and valuable data? It's not like the recipient will ever talk about it with anyone. Even if they called up the various government agencies to confirm the authenticity of the NSL, you would presume that the government would deny authentic and fake letters equally. Have there been any cases of people issuing a fake NSL? Is it illegal to issue a fake NSL?
(posting anonymously in case my competition ever googles me...)