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We arrived at a point where the government takes not only income and property in the form of taxes, but also information? If so, do property rights exist in an age of big metadata?
We arrived at a point where the government takes not only income and property in the form of taxes, but also information? If so, do property rights exist in an age of big metadata?
If the law stated that you must carry a tracking devise at all times, would you rebel? Or are you already consenting to be tracked? Do you carry your cell phone everywhere you go?
In ACLU lawsuit, scientist demolishes NSA’s “It’s just metadata” excuse
Quote:
When the scandal about the National Security Agency (NSA) leaks first broke, one of the government's talking points quickly became that its giant database of domestic phone calls was simply "metadata."
"Nobody is listening to your telephone calls," said President Barack Obama a few days after the program became public. "That’s not what this program’s about... by sifting through this so-called metadata, they may identify potential leads with respect to folks who might engage in terrorism."
Privacy activists noted that the "metadata" held plenty of private information. Just six days after the Snowden NSA leaks revealed that the government was collecting essentially all telephone call "metadata," the ACLU filed a new lawsuit challenging the practice as unconstitutional.
Yesterday, the ACLU filed a declaration by Princeton Computer Science Prof. Edward Felten to support its quest for a preliminary injunction in that lawsuit. Felten, a former technical director of the Federal Trade Commission, has testified to Congress several times on technology issues, and he explained why "metadata" really is a big deal.
If the law stated that you must carry a tracking devise at all times, would you rebel? Or are you already consenting to be tracked? Do you carry your cell phone everywhere you go?
The difference between the two is the individuals choice. That choice is supposedly guaranteed by the Constitution.
Repeat after conspiracy theorists - Any thing that can be used to identify you will be used by the shapeshifting reptilian overlords to whisk you away in their black helicopters to a FEMA concentration camp.
/sarcasm
Seriously, general government survailence in my opinion needs greater oversight. Even if it produces things that help protect people it can easily be abused. On the other hand, these wingnut raves about it make people who disagree look like we all should be raving on street corners.
From all of us with sane legitimate concerns, please stop.
Seriously, general government survailence in my opinion needs greater oversight. Even if it produces things that help protect people it can easily be abused.
The opinion of the FISA Court itself is that the NSA is not only violating the Fourth Amendment but also outright breaking the law. So yeah, it's fairly obvious that greater oversight is needed and neither party is living up to their part of the bargain right now.
We as U.S. citizens must demand that Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Representative Mike Rodgers (R-MI) relinquish their positions as heads of their respective Intelligence oversight committees given the fact that they have both willfully lied to the American people with respect to domestic spying.
The leak-and-response cycle of the past couple months has been highly entertaining and the pattern is nearly always the same.
Leak reveals evidence of NSA overreach or wrongdoing.
NSA issues statement explaining how leak is being misinterpreted or is an aberration.
NSA attends hearings and issues statements declaring it doesn't abuse its power. (Frequently qualified with "not under this program.")
New leak reveals evidence of NSA overreach or wrongdoing, proving NSA's most recent statements were pretty much "incomplete lies" or "least untruthful" answers.
Repeat.
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