1984 is finally here

President Bush says Americans' privacy is secure despite a massive data mining operation

First published: Sunday, May 14, 2006

Ever since last December, when news reports began to indicate that the government's domestic spying program might be more extensive than originally thought, there was good reason for Americans to fear that their privacy, and basic liberties, were at risk. Now those fears have been justified after an article in Thursday's USA Today described just how extensive the spying is. According to the report, the National Security Agency is attempting to track every phone call made within the U.S. to detect patterns that could suggest terrorist activity. Unlike the NSA's other controversial, and likely illegal spying program -- that is, the warrantless surveillance of U.S. citizens' international phone calls and e-mails -- the surveillance is limited to collecting numbers and storing them in a data base. The agency isn't listening in on the contents of the phone calls it is tracking, and only numbers are collected, not names or addresses, although they could easily be retrieved. Nonetheless, the scope of the surveillance is breathtaking, and the willingness of the country's major phone companies -- only Qwest had the courage and principle to refuse to turn over records -- is frightening. It means Americans' phone records can be traced without their knowledge or consent, even though they are not suspected of any wrongdoing, let alone any connection to terrorists. But Mr. Bush, in responding to the latest revelations, assured Americans that their privacy is "fiercely protected in all our activities. Our efforts are focused on al-Qaida and their known associates." That is becoming harder to believe as more information comes out. As an angry Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., put it, "Are you telling me that tens of millions of Americans are involved with al-Qaida?" Mr. Bush's denials are all too typical of a White House that continues to tell the public it can be trusted to use surveillance powers appropriately. In truth, the more citizens learn about the spying, the less reason they have to trust government. That's largely because the full truth about these programs hasn't been told. Instead, it unfolds day to day, month to month. The obvious question that raises is: What else is the government hiding? There's no question that government has an obligation to spy on suspected terrorists who may be operating within the U.S., or contacting U.S. citizens from abroad. But the surveillance must be within the law. That means going to a secret court to obtain warrants before wiretapping phone calls or intercepting e-mails. And it means respecting the privacy of innocent Americans at all times. Regrettably, the Bush administration has been flouting the rules for some time, and Congress has been too meek to challenge it. Perhaps now, with the latest revelations, Congress will find the spine to stand up for basic liberties.

Source: Albany Times Union
http://timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=...5/14/2006