So I stumbled across a little of Air America last night and listened to one of the hosts just go off about the NSA Phone records thing.
His main point, in summary, was that "you people who think that it's ok for the government to listen to your phone records are idiots!" You people think that "why not? I have nothing to hide!". No! That's not the point! It's not for you to decide - the government decides whether you have something to hide! You may feel like you have said nothing wrong - but it's the government making that decision ! Do you want to give the government (and Bush) that power?"
Hopefully, I summarized his point well - and it's a not a bad one. Do we want to give the government this overarching power in time of war? It made me stop and think for a bit.
But then he continued:
"Some think it's OK because we are at war. With who? Al-Qaida is not a threat. Oooh - I'm not scared of that group - they pose no threat whatsoever to America! And this is the cover that gives Bush the right to obtain your phone records! There is no war!"
That's when I almost drove off the road. So, he believes one of three things:
1) Al-Qaida was NOT behind 9/11, and therefore is no threat to the US;
2) Even though Al-Qaida was behind 9/11, they still are not a threat to the US (I guess 3,000 deaths does not constitute a threat), or
3) Al-Qaida WAS a threat on 9/11, but are not now - which means Bush's war on terror is working.
Everytime I get depressed and think the Republicans will lose control of the House and Senate this November (and believe me, they've made enough mistakes over the past year), I see the base thoughts of Democrats and liberals through statements like the one above - and I feel a little better about the chances of the GOP staying in control.
6 comments:
Why hasn't a 3rd party appeared yet?
I watched Fox news on Sunday and it was everything I could do to not throw the TV out the window.
Ah ...you are touching on a raw nerve here.
1) If we are at war, how do I know when we've won? When the troops leave Iraq? (note, the 9-11 commission stated Iraq had no link to 9-11, and thus the war on terror, not really a part of it) When the troops leave Afganistan? How do I know when we've won the war against Al-Qaida? (I suspect its when the Republicans loose power)
2) If the NSA isn't data mining, what are they doing?
3) If they can't link personal data to a phone number, what good is the data?
They are either not telling the truth, OR wasting our tax dollars. Either way. Please stop it.
I'm not saying Al-Qaida isn't a threat. But there are laws to be followed (having said that, I don't know what the law says about the NSA phone number thing, could be prefectly legal, but smells fishy to me). If we want to change the law, put it to congress. Lets have some oversite here. Maybe a system of check and balance ...novel idea.
Bottom line, if we reliquish our civil liberties, they have won.
Why do they hate us? Cause we are allowed to think for ourselves.
PS - heaven help the democrats, this should be an open and shut case in November, but the donkeys will find a way to give it to the elephants.
Uh.... Go Cavs!?
Well, I don't have time to go into it point-by-point, but...
1) I wish Bush would give more updates on the war on terror to the public, but I've been singing that tune for 3-4 years now. Anyway, it's not just Iraq. I'm sure Iran will be a part of this as well. That's why it's the war on terror, not Iraq.
2) From what I understand, they know when a call was made and the "to" and "from" number. Other intelligence would identify the significance of the phone number, right?
"If we relinquish our civil liberties..." Well, Don, one would argue that we have already lost because of the cartoon thing. I'm serious. If the American public is not allowed to see the Muslim cartoons, then they have won. And it is the media in this case (NYT, CNN) that is helping this cause.
That pissed me off sooooooo much. I should have blogged about that more.
And another thing.... (cue Mary Lou Retton voice)
Checks and balances??? As I heard it, members of both parties - Rep and Dem leadership - were briefed on this program and knew exactly what was going on. In 2002.
So the Dems know about this, but don't say anything for FOUR YEARS. And I'm supposed to take them seriously and believe they have our interests at heart? The only interest they have is political. Period.
Go CAVS! So sorry Mr. Wallace.
You didn't answer my question(s).
How/when will I know we've won the war on terror?
If they aren't data mining, what are they doing with it?
Both Reps and Dems are speaking out against the NSA thing. It isn't just the Dems here. So how do we take any of them seriously?
The cartoon thing has you lit? What about listening to phone calls without a warrant?
And why is the cartoon thing the media's fault? The government placed no restrictions on them either way. It was their choice. If you really want to see the cartoon, I'm sure you can find it.
Is this really about data mining? Jesus.
Insurance companies are not allowed to use individual personal information and credit scoring to make decision on rates. But we are allowed to look at general credit scoring and demographics to make high level decisions. For example, I can't look at Eric's credit score and match it up with his home address, race, and age and make a decision, but I can make a decision based on a credit score range for married white male between the ages of 30-35 that live in suburbs in Cincy. We look for trends in these types of numbers and it is very useful. Actually its extremely useful, and that is why we pay 50 Actuaries 6 figures a piece to do this stuff. Are we infringing on anyone's privacy rights? No.
So if the government was to mine calling data to find trends and then react on those trends with warrants and wire taping, I don't see where there is an issue.
Am I missing the point? I probably am, since you have to know personal information on the phone numbers to indicate if there is a concern or not. I mean would Eric and I show up on a list if he lived in Europe and we called each other 5 times a day? Yes. Then what is the process after we show up on a list? Can anyone explain? Do they need to explain?
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