Precisely which freedoms have you sacrificed? Just curious. I think that approach is pretty silly... but other than a longer line at the airport... what freedoms have you specifically lost? The telco acts? That's a joke. You can go buy a cell phone at a gas station, pay in cash, and use time cards, paid for in cash. No way to effectively track it.
This is one of the very latest "Fence rails" being installed. You probably won't notice this particular new fence until they come to pick you up. But, what the heck!...at least you'll have all the free corn you can eat.
And before someone says "Hey I've got nothing to hide!" better think again...circumstantial evidence gleaned from today's modern data mining techniques can be construed in multiple ways against a person if the powers that be decide your not a "patriotic citizen" for instance.
It was once generally understood that if a person did nothing wrong he could reasonably presume the government would have no reason to "investigate" that person..that freedom is gone now.
These types of investigations have probably gone on for a while. But now with modern technology it is oh so much easier to accomplish with much larger groups of "suspects".
Now they are coming right out in the open with it.
I had a friend in law enforcement once tell me "From our perspective there a two kinds of civilians-- Criminals and criminals that haven't been caught yet."
<rant off>
Regards,
Sun
New Guidelines Would Give F.B.I. Broader PowersWASHINGTON — A Justice Department plan would loosen restrictions on the Federal Bureau of Investigation to allow agents to open a national security or criminal investigation against someone without any clear basis for suspicion, Democratic lawmakers briefed on the details said Wednesday.
The plan, which could be made public next month, has already generated intense interest and speculation. Little is known about its precise language, but civil liberties advocates say they fear it could give the government even broader license to open terrorism investigations.
Congressional staff members got a glimpse of some of the details in closed briefings this month, and four Democratic senators told Attorney General Michael B. Mukasey in a letter on Wednesday that they were troubled by what they heard.
The senators said the new guidelines would allow the F.B.I. to open an investigation of an American, conduct surveillance, pry into private records and take other investigative steps “without any basis for suspicion.” The plan “might permit an innocent American to be subjected to such intrusive surveillance based in part on race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, or on protected First Amendment activities,” the letter said. It was signed by Russ Feingold of Wisconsin, Richard J. Durbin of Illinois, Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts and Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island......
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/21/washington/21fbi.html?adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1219460754-a7klQLreIQFS/o6o4/gLPQ
