Posted on 05/11/2006 12:30:13 PM PDT by demlosers
Washington is agog today with the disclosure that appeared in USA Today that Verizon, AT&T and Bell South have been providing domestic phone call information to the National Security Agency on millions of residential and business phone calls made by Americans.
It’s all part of the spy agency’s quest to create a huge database of caller information it could data mine in order to find patterns that might reveal terrorist communications. But it has raised enormous privacy concerns in the minds of many.
The USA Today report, coming after last year’s disclosure in the New York Times of the NSA’s warrantless electronic surveillance of phone calls it deems to be connected to terrorism ginned up the debate over how far is too far in the Bush administration’s efforts to protect the American people from al Qaeda and other terrorists.
The newspaper’s disclosure modified a lot of plans today. President Bush, on his way to give a commencement address in Biloxi, Miss., stopped in the White House’s Diplomatic Reception Room to deliver a brief statement to the press.
By the way, the president’s rapid response was remarkable. When other bad news has hit, say Dubai Ports World or the initial revelations of the NSA surveillance last December, there was a noticeable lag which allowed White House critics to define the debate.
The president’s quickness before today might be attributable to Tony Snow, the new press secretary. Or it could be that the White House is so nervous about the president’s ever lower poll ratings that he and his advisors felt he had to speak and quickly.
PRESIDENT BUSH: After September the 11th, I vowed to the American people that our government would do everything within the law to protect them against another terrorist attack. As part of this effort, I authorized
(Excerpt) Read more at newsblogs.chicagotribune.com ...
The linkage is the same.
You can get much more information from dial lists. If you and I call the same numbers, then we are associated somehow. By analysis of who is called, and who calls who, somebody can get a good idea of who your circle of friends are, and many other details about you
Conservative? Please. I am sure that you will just sit back and smile when they start keeping the gun owners lists too. Domino theory. Fourth amendment is inoperable, does that mean 5th, 1st and 2nd are sacroscant? How?
You are just a cheerleader. Free thinking is something foreign to you. KGB Conservatism at it's worst. I believe in freedom. If I wanted people snooping on me, I would move to Cuba.
Oh screw the enemy. I am not afraid of Osama so much that I wet my pants like a three year old whenever his name is mentioned. I am more likely to be hit by a bus. Ben Franklin said that those who sacrifice liberty in the name of security deserve neither.
You think that some crazy islamists require us to give up the bill of rights, even when communism never did. And, you call me crazy.
Boo, there is a terrorist under your bed. Let's draft a law so the FBI can check under your bed for you every night ya little sissy.
"It is still a search." No, it's not. The information belongs to the phone company, not you. They sell it to whomever they want. Qwest was only pissed because they weren't getting any money.
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