Big Brother on steroids

[weazel]

"This project sends a message that every American should find repugnant," he said. "Namely, that politicians and bureaucrats view America as a sea of criminal suspects whose private behavior must be tracked, catalogued, and analyzed, just in case they commit a crime. So much for the presumption of innocence and the right to privacy."

Read the article.

[Saurdaukar]

Nothing wrong with this unless youre a criminal.

[weazel]

You've got to be joking.

There are no systems of oversight or accountability contemplated in the TIA project.

Have you ever heard that "knowledge is power"?

Originally posted by Saurdaukar
Nothing wrong with this unless youre a criminal.

[Staga]

Everythings going fine, nothing to worry.
Just stay calm, close your windows, don't talk to strangers, don't make jokes about your governmet, talk quietly because your neighbour may be listening... obey...

[Staga]

The Stasi used a huge network of informants to repress the citizens of East Germany. It was not uncommon for members of families to spy on each other for fear of blackmail, as a result of physical threats and even because of monetary rewards from the secret police force. In the late ‘80s, the Stasi had nearly 175,000 official informants on their books, roughly one informant for every 100 people. (Some estimate the size of the “unofficial” Stasi informant force as nearly 10 times this level.) The Stasi maintained a force of over 90,000 uniformed and plain-clothes agents.

[Sandman]

Originally posted by Saurdaukar
Nothing wrong with this unless youre a criminal.

I prefer the presumption of innocence rather than guilt.


There is hope.

[hardcase]

Sandakaur. Your youth is showing....

Those willing to trade freedom for security deserve neither..true then, true now.

HC

[Tyro48]

The homeland security act has already taken care of our concerns the Feds are watching your e-mail amoung just a few little things!
Bush will be King just ask the dope IQ of 70 and President sweet jesus we'll hire any idiot.

[davidpt40]

Jack booted thugs (whether they be goverment agents or not) can't kick down the doors of U.S. citizens at their leisure.  Unlike the weaklings of Europe, U.S. citizens are for the most part armed.  

Even when in the wrong, when U.S. citizens take a stand, they are a formidable force.  Ruby Ridge and the Branch Davidian are examples of this.

[StSanta]

Seriously, I'd like to see some of our Republican friends view on this.

In the past, they've been staunch in their opinion that "those willing to trade freedom for security deserve neither" as expressed earlier.

I hope (and I'll be dearly disappointed if it isn't the case) that they'll express the same outrage now as then.

Using 'security' as a reason, you're being (as are we) slowly stripped of rights. More and more supervised.

I don't buy the 'nothing to worry about if you're a law abiding citizen' argument. I do not WANT the government to know exactly where I am. I do not want them to tape my phone calls and read my mail. I do not want to be guilty until proven otherwise, and then still supervised because I could change.

SO please. I've dewveloped respect for several Republicans (as well as dems) on this board. Don't tell me you've changed because it's a Republican administration that are implementing this. So far, only known liberals have spoken out against this.

If you've changed, let me hear your reasons. That would be a major bummer; sort of a mega break in personal integrity

[devious]

"Of course, you don't have to fear or be opposed to this project if you have nothing to hide."

This is the way our would-be supervisors always justify taking away more and more freedom (and I'm not even talking the USA here, Euroland has it's own Enfopol etc..), and it makes me sick.

I for one don't want to live in a world in that all of my communication is monitored, stored, and processed to find out wether i'm "pro-terrorist", "a danger to society" etc. by anyone's standarts.

First, they came for the jews...

[Tyro48]

Can we get an Amen!

[Kieran]

The only problem with entering a thread like this is the screeching you have to endure to participate. Comparing what we live under to a Nazi or Stalinistic state is a bit over the top.

We are at war. In WWII there used to be food rationing and blackouts, curfews, and myriad other curtailments of rights. Guess what? Those acts were repealed when the need was gone, so the suggestion that such acts cannot be repealed is already proven wrong by history. Will such acts get repealed when the need is gone is the question, and that is handled by us the citizenry through our votes.

[Dowding (Work)]

Yes Kieran, Stalinist/Nazi analogies are over the top, but you are not at war in any legal sense. Just some vague, sound-bite satisfying sense that isn't even good English.

There is an unmistakable difference between WW2 and the anti-terrorist stance Bush et al have taken. I would argue the rights issue equally different.

[Tyro48]

Ahh but did the taxes get repealed ? Oh hell no. Enter the IRS enter the Fed control of your life, it can be argued that it has brought some good, and its overbearing weight on many can also equally be pointed out, Big Government is BIG control and humanes love it at least some do.

Janis Joplin had it right all along !