A Green Light to Spy on Americans? Nonsense!

City Journal ^ | Nov 25, 2002 | Heather Mac Donald

[wingnuts'nbolts]

Don't believe the mainstream press's account of the latest court decision on intelligence sharing.

Maybe it's post-election payback. Or maybe just rank ignorance. Whatever the cause, the press's flagrant distortion of a recent court decision on the intelligence sharing represents an escalation of the elite's war on the war on terror.

[Darlin']

Ping :)

[FreedomPoster]

Ah! I should have guessed.

[dirtboy]

If the facts of this issue had not been distorted by so many liberal publications

The problem is, it isn't just liberals distorting this - conservative publications (the Washington Times) and Libertarians (the Cato Institute) spread Safire's lie that the HSA authorize TIA when it did nothing of the sort. Folks who should know better are running with these claims without checking up on them, probably because it makes for a good story and it fits in with their preconceptions.

[Darlin']

Ping :)

[jwalsh07]

Who was that masked man! :-}

[dirtboy]

Cripes, it's been 12 days since Safire's column and folks are still spreading that nonsense:

click here

[wingnuts'nbolts]

More leftist dribble.

[Darlin']

Good point. Although the NYT's crusade notwithstanding, I expect laziness has a lot to do with it, too. Some reporters assume if the venerable David Broder or William Safire say it is so, it is so.

[Inkie]

Agreed. But I think this is only tackling the problem at the most complicated end. Wouldn't it be simpler to ban immigration from countries that hate us and deport all illegal aliens (starting with those from countries that hate us)? Then it would be simpler to watch all the visa holders and American citizens who descend from countries that hate us.

[Protagoras]

This is a must read. One cannot read and believe the manstream media, not now, not then, not ever

The real solution is to read the laws yourself and then you need not rely on anyone.

I haven't read this particular law yet, but I did read the so called "Patriot" act. And it is an abomination to liberty.

[Darlin']

Pings :)

[Darlin']

"Wouldn't it be simpler to ban immigration from countries that hate us and deport all illegal aliens (starting with those from countries that hate us)? "

Perhaps..... but where do you suppose illegal aliens register so we can go get them ? Doesn't that suggestion take us from complicated to over simplification ?

[eno_]

I think here you need to apply the principle that a broken clock is correct twice a day.

The Slimes may be using TIA for political purposes, but that should not blind us to what a bad idea it is. Unless you can somehow guarantee we won't have President Hillary or her equivalent, or, more concretely, that an FDR, LBJ, or Nixon will never again be President, it is very difficult to see how TIA is a good idea.

Moreover, if we had:

1. Followed existing policy and procedure for dealing with terrorists.

2. Infiltrated Wahabbi mosques the way we infiltrate neo-Nazi organizations and Christian Identity "churches," we would have been well on the way to contering the threat.

3. Properly managed our borders - not "sealed" them, whatever that may mean - but just carried out the mission of the Border Patrol and INS effectively, 9/11 would have been reduced or perhaps even prevented.

Instead we are asked to swallow crap like TIA. No thank you. Not without better performance from existing security functions.

[eno_]

So it's your position that atrocities like the Eilian rain, Ruby Ridge, Waco, and numerous other botched raids and gun confiscations have been adequately handled and we should trust the government with new powers? No reform needed? More abuse is unlikely?

[dirtboy]

So it's your position that atrocities like the Eilian rain, Ruby Ridge, Waco, and numerous other botched raids and gun confiscations have been adequately handled and we should trust the government with new powers? No reform needed? More abuse is unlikely?

No, it's my position that reporters and talk-radio hosts should verify information. Whether or not you think TIA is a good or bad idea, the Homeland Security Act had NOTHING to do with TIA, just as YOUR comment had NOTHING to do with what I was saying.

[dirtboy]

Instead we are asked to swallow crap like TIA. No thank you. Not without better performance from existing security functions.

First of all, the more I read up on TIA, the more I think the media has completely distorted that project. I work with large marketing databases for a living - and strongly believe the feds need to significantly improve their skills at analyzing their existing data stream. If TIA develops those tools within the federal realm, in a manner consistent with the Privacy Act of 1974, then it has the potential to do just that. If TIA seeks to build a massive transactional database, then I will have a serious problem with it, but I doubt that will ever happen - there is already a tremendous amount of resistance by the public to what the media has told them about TIA, and it will probably be severely curtailed.