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NSA Cheerleaders Discover Value of Privacy Only When Their Own Is Violated (theintercept.com)
Advocatus Diaboli sends this report from Glen Greenwald:
The Wall Street Journal reported yesterday that the NSA under President Obama targeted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his top aides for surveillance. In the process, the agency ended up eavesdropping on "the contents of some of their private conversations with U.S. lawmakers and American-Jewish groups" about how to sabotage the Iran Deal. All sorts of people who spent many years cheering for and defending the NSA and its programs of mass surveillance are suddenly indignant now that they know the eavesdropping included them and their American and Israeli friends rather than just ordinary people. The long-time GOP chairman of the House Intelligence Committee and unyielding NSA defender Pete Hoekstra last night was truly indignant to learn of this surveillance.
In January 2014, I [Greenwald] debated Rep. Hoekstra about NSA spying and he could not have been more mocking and dismissive of the privacy concerns I was invoking. "Spying is a matter of fact," he scoffed. As Andrew Krietz, the journalist who covered that debate, reported, Hoekstra "laughs at foreign governments who are shocked they've been spied on because they, too, gather information" — referring to anger from German and Brazilian leaders. As TechDirt noted, "Hoekstra attacked a bill called the RESTORE Act, that would have granted a tiny bit more oversight over situations where (you guessed it) the NSA was collecting information on Americans." But all that, of course, was before Hoekstra knew that he and his Israeli friends were swept up in the spying of which he was so fond.
In January 2014, I [Greenwald] debated Rep. Hoekstra about NSA spying and he could not have been more mocking and dismissive of the privacy concerns I was invoking. "Spying is a matter of fact," he scoffed. As Andrew Krietz, the journalist who covered that debate, reported, Hoekstra "laughs at foreign governments who are shocked they've been spied on because they, too, gather information" — referring to anger from German and Brazilian leaders. As TechDirt noted, "Hoekstra attacked a bill called the RESTORE Act, that would have granted a tiny bit more oversight over situations where (you guessed it) the NSA was collecting information on Americans." But all that, of course, was before Hoekstra knew that he and his Israeli friends were swept up in the spying of which he was so fond.
What, they thought they were special? they thought they were part of the untouchable elite? Fucking rubes, anyone championing the NSA's actions deserve what's coming to them. Retards, the whole lot of them.
Nancy Pelosi, Mike Rogers, all of you who voted for safety over freedom - you deserve neither. - Ben Franklin
Justin Amash - Thanks for standing for the constitution, specifically the 4th amendment.
The government should NOT be spying on its own citizens, but spying on heads of state? That's kind of what they are for, right? I mean, if you're opposed to them spying on those guys, you're probably opposed to their existence in general.
These people who routinely advocate for mass surveillance of the rest of us are outraged at being surveilled themselves? The arrogance and/or cognitive dissonance required must be astronomical.
They served their purpose.
My ism, it's full of beliefs.
How many times has Israel been caught spying on the US? All countries spy on each other. Senators conspiring with foreign heads of state though could be considered unamerican, however. It sounds like we were spying on Israel and some congress critters got caught up in it. In other words, the NSA was doing what it's supposed to be doing, monitoring and spying on foreign activity.
This post is encrypted twice with ROT-13. Documenting or attempting to crack this encryption is illegal.
When did the US media start allowing publication of any kind of news that might reflect unfavourably on Benjamin Netanyahu and his Likud Party? Isn't that grounds for immediate classification as a terrorist and transfer to some dark, ugly hole in the back of a Third World prison?
I've calculated my velocity with such exquisite precision that I have no idea where I am.
My standard response to people cheering for new government powers (including NSA spying) is: Would you want these powers in the hands of someone on the opposite end of the political spectrum from you? If the person is a Democrat, imagine President Donald Trump with those powers. If the person is a Republican, imagine President Hillary Clinton with those powers. Rarely is the person fine with this situation, though they are perfectly willing for someone who shares their political philosophy to have those powers.
This here is a real-life example of that response. These people are just fine with the NSA spying on people, but once that spying turns on them they find it a violation of their rights. Sorry, but you can't have it both ways. You can't declare that "all people like me are special and exempt from X." You either are for the NSA spying on everyone including you or you oppose the NSA spying.
Here's hoping their outrage isn't short lived and instead turns into a swell of political opposition to NSA spying.
My sci-fi novel, Ghost Thief, is now available from Amazon.com.