I’m not sure which upsets me more, the government’s massive program which spies on its own citizens or the fact few people really care. What’s happening is scary to me. It should be scary to you too.
This isn’t a Republican or Democrat problem. I was upset with President Bush for this intrusion on my life. Now I’m upset with President Obama.
We all understand that the price for services in the 21st Century is a sacrifice of privacy.
As I wrote over the weekend, Southern California Edison knows when I turn my lights off at night. AT&T knows where I am 24/7. Other companies, like Google, know so much about me from my web habits, they might know more about me than I do!
Last night I helped Stef with car insurance. After supplying a few bits of data the insurance company found the rest on their own!
None of these companies can put me in jail. None of these companies have the power of the government.
The US government doesn’t want to give up specifics of their spying programs. Even senators and congressmen have extremely limited access to the NSA’s workings. Government spokespersons say they are worried vital secrets would be revealed.
My suspicion is the administration’s more worried about the embarrassment and blowback from this overreach than any impact from the secrets. Do spies and terrorists not think we’re trying to track them? Do foreign governments think we just mind our own business?
The problem with the NSA and other secretive agencies is lack of oversight. Yes, the government claims there is the FISA court, but it is secret with secret opinions, secret rules, secret laws and gag orders enforced on anyone who has dealings with it or the NSA, CIA, etc.
Most people scrutinized by the court have no idea anything’s happened.
There’s certainly little of the safeguards and protection against prying the government claims. Look what Snowden, a low level non-government employee, made off with!
To me all of this seems like an obvious and dangerous violation of the 4th Amendment.
Few people seem to care. I’ll admit that. The majority of attention to the NSA spying leaks has focused on the leaker.
Who cares? He is not the story.
Fixating on Edward Snowden misses the whole point… which might be the government’s goal in directing our attention his way.
So tell me, why do so few care? Have I become a paranoid tinfoil hat wearing nutcase?