U.S. Terrorism Agency to Tap a Vast Database of Citizens (Big Brother lives)

The Wall Street Journal ^ | 12/12/12 | Julia Angwin

[TonyInOhio]

Top U.S. intelligence officials gathered in the White House Situation Room in March to debate a controversial proposal. Counterterrorism officials wanted to create a government dragnet, sweeping up millions of records about U.S. citizens—even people suspected of no crime.

~ snip ~

The rules now allow the little-known National Counterterrorism Center to examine the government files of U.S. citizens for possible criminal behavior, even if there is no reason to suspect them. That is a departure from past practice, which barred the agency from storing information about ordinary Americans unless a person was a terror suspect or related to an investigation.

Now, NCTC can copy entire government databases—flight records, casino-employee lists, the names of Americans hosting foreign-exchange students and many others. The agency has new authority to keep data about innocent U.S. citizens for up to five years, and to analyze it for suspicious patterns of behavior. Previously, both were prohibited. Data about Americans "reasonably believed to constitute terrorism information" may be permanently retained.

[juno67]

“Welcome to 1984. You’ll learn to love Big Brother, too.”

This started with the “Patriot” Act, which gave the government unprecedented powers to look into the private affairs of American. It, along with the administration’s claim of a right to indefinitely detain anyone suspected of supporting terrorism, with no right to a trial or even to know the specifics of the charges, was embraced by the country at large.

Surprisingly, most “conservatives” supported this abrogation of our rights, reasoning that the Constitution, and specifically the Bill of Rights, was not a “suicide pact”, and that the dangers of terrorism were such that we should forget about our rights. This is but a continuation of that long, sad period.

[rawcatslyentist]

What did the Hondurans do?

With "Elections" the way they are what choice do we have?

[Art in Idaho]

I sincerely hope the military will side with the patriots in the days to come. . Now this school shooting. . Something doesn't smell right. . Not saying it's a false flag, don't know enough yet, but as of this evening, lots of details unknown. Of course the shooter is dead, the Mother is dead. Evidently Dad still alive as is the brother. .

[piasa]

BUMP