Today's (Friday's) Washington Times had a story about the sweeping investigative powers in the new Homeland Security Bill that will slip out of Congress soon and be signed by President Bush.A headline said:
Homeland bill 'a supersnoop's dream'
(AP) In what one critic has called "a supersnoop's dream," the Homeland Security bill will allow the federal government to track the e-mail, Internet use, travel, credit-card purchases, phone and bank records of foreigners and U.S. citizens in its hunt for terrorists.
I haven't looked at the text of this lengthy bill but saw two stories about the broad powers. This is a topic we should chat about. Ways to keep us innocent sportf**kers from being dragged in with the terorrists.
The huge omnibus integrated database to be managed by Admiral Poindexter--forget what it's called--is scary. For some reason I trust the present administration not to misuse it--dunno why, probably shouldn't, but I do. But think about it with a James Carville or an E. Howard Hunt hanging around the West Wing. Scare-eeeee.
He'll use it !!
Yeah, much better to put someone with multiple felony convictions in charge of it, especially when they're felonies about lying to congress.
Sure, we can trust that kinda guy.
That they will also be checking credit card receipts, checks and many other financial transactions.
What will happen when they outlaw cash? Then everything about our lives will be review daily on a giant supercomputer which will spit out a report on your activities and then placed on John Ashcroft's desk every morning.
If I was worried about this, and I am, I would be hobbying all I could while they still can't track where I spend my cash.
Hobby On!
GG
One thing that probably won't change is the ability of the government to actually put 2 and 2 together and figure out when someone's breaking the law from all this information they gather. It seems the government is intent on collecting more information than actually trying to deciphor the information they already have.
Don't get me wrong, collecting more information about citizens is wrong and the new laws make it easier, but I doubt anyone from the government will randomly figure out that you're paying for sex by reading your email and checking your ATM withdrawals.
No matter what the Prez says, the different agencies will still have turf wars and will not play nice together. And creating a new beauracracy will NEVER make other beauracracies more efficient.
The government passed this legislation as history biggest CYA. The government knew the hijackers were in the country before Sept 11th. How would this bill have changed anything? The hidden agenda of Homeland Security is placing the ENTIRE population under surveillance. What astonishes me is how so many people think that's actually cool. It makes me sick. Watch how this law get perverted to target anyone the government wants to grab in the name of battling terrorism. It's Big Brother. And, don't think for a moment they won't come after us. Everything the government deems as a social ill will be lumped into the government's war on terrorism. Drugs, hobbying, running red lights. Watch as our civil liberties go down the drain. I'm far less concerned about Sadam's plans for me than George Bush's. I'm only heartened by the government's response to the DC Shooter. Nothing since then suggests the government has done anything to withhold firearms from would-be whackos. But wasn't that terrorism???