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Bruce Schneier's Crypto-Gram security blog tells of the dismantling, by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials, of a large sign on the Canadian side of a U.S./Canada border crossing at Massena, New York. The mighty, yellow sign was declared to pose a significant risk of endangering customs agency employees by drawing the unwelcome attention of international terrorists.
No, the sign did not say "Bin Laden Sucks" or "Fuck the Ayatollah." It said "United States." Because if Canadians become aware that they're entering the United States via Massena, NY, then you-know-who has already won.
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A more substantative challenge: find ANY information AT ALL about Russell Tice that's dated after Jan 2009. R.Tice is the ex-NSA employed whistleblower that exposed across the board domestic collection (i.e., *everything* for later sifting presumably). It's now the one-quarter amendment (vs Fourth) and shrinking.
ReplyDeleteSome frame the debate in terms of partial sacrifice of freedoms for security....but if it's a perpetual "shock doctrine" war the street appears one way and increasingly going downhill. Like the Soup Nazi, "no repeal of encroached freedoms FOR YOU. Next!"
L.M.
LM: my ultra-quick search shows that Tice was last heard from on Olbermann's show a day after Obama was inaugurated. If an implicit point in your statement was that the new president hasn't rolled back the Bush-Cheney abuses yet, I've been thinking about that topic, too, and will be writing about it in the near future.
ReplyDeleteBut assuming that BHO was inclined to shed his windfall of new unconstitutional executive power (which I personally do *not* assume), the rollback could not effectively begin until he completely consolidates his authority over the Executive Branch and brings congressional democrats to heel. Nine months in, it looks to me like he's off to a bad start in using his "political capital." I'm still not ruling out some kind of super-ninja rope-a-dope move over the next coupla months to reverse the apparent current momentum, but I have serious doubts. More blue-chip speculation to come soon....
So, completely off the radar. Consistent with your interpretation has the prosecution, once started, now shifts into higher gear, goes neutral, or reverse and dropped all together. As a case it speaks to whistleblower protections (next to non-existant) and this Tice case has tendrils into: constitutionality, high crimes and misdemeanors, etc. All on one plate any number of issues. The non-news though suggests a deal was cut. Listen for what's not being said. PAY ATTENTION to the man behind the curtin.
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