yock
TFTC
Premium
join:2000-11-21
Fairfield, OH
| reply to GOLFnSUN
Re: Irrelevant; Old news;Then why post it here?
said by GOLFnSUN  :If this news is irrelevant and old news, then why is it being headlined here? Maybe just another attack on the lawful US surveillance of criminals and terrorists by those who would like to see us at their mercy. I think you missed his point. I want to see terrorism quelled around the globe as much as anyone, but this is one issue in which I'm with the left. Are we to simply trust that our government will not use personal information gathered through the Patriot Act for illegal means? It is important to remember that this isn't our elected officials utilizing this information, but intelligence and law enforcement agencies staffed by people who actively seek their employment.
Consider this.
Terrorists have already managed to topple two of the most prominent features of any American cityscape through lawful use of flight schools and lawful purchase of airline tickets. How plausible, if not admittedly difficult and improbable, would it be for a terrorist to gain employment in one of these agencies? Would not the Patriot Act become a dangerous weapon to be used against us?
We should always be weary about giving our government permissions that we wouldn't give another private citizen. It is these private citizens who go to work everyday to protect us. If there are but a few bad apples among them, God help us all.
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Statistical correlation need not imply causation.
Technical Nirvana |
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Minister
join:2002-01-02
Fleeting
1 edit | I don't even see it as a Partisan issue, personally. Carnivore was developed under Clinton; Patriot Act under Bush. It's simply a human issue. If one gets technical, you could say it's a Conservative issue since they believe in less government intrusion and smaller government. I see many people who suffer from partisan think disease "poo-poo" the issue. We need more enlightened thinking than that. |
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yock
TFTC
Premium
join:2000-11-21
Fairfield, OH
1 edit | I don't see how indicating that I agree with the liberals on an issue is inciting partisan politics. You sound as if you discount my entire argument just because I used political affiliations to make my point.
The truth of that matter is that you're absolutely right correct. But there will invariably be groups of people who associate with each other who share similar beliefs. Those people aren't "unenlightened," they simply want to be heard.
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Statistical correlation need not imply causation.
Technical Nirvana |
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Minister
join:2002-01-02
Fleeting
| Sorry, I was referring more to the first poster, who seems to immediately engage in partisan (defend GWB policy at all cost) punditry with mindless rhetoric about how people who'd criticize US surveillance policies must want to see the country "at the terrorist's mercy"....
That's small thinking. |
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nixen
Rockin' the Boxen
Premium
join:2002-10-04
Alexandria, VA
 ·Cox HSI
 ·Speakeasy
| reply to yock
said by yock :I don't see how indicating that I agree with the liberals on an issue is inciting Parisian politics. Who cares about about the political leanings of the citizens of Paris?
-tom
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"Some people have morals, standards and ideals about quality, but I'm an American: I couldn't care less." --Tony Pierce (paraphrased) |
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yock
TFTC
Premium
join:2000-11-21
Fairfield, OH
| said by nixen : said by yock :I don't see how indicating that I agree with the liberals on an issue is inciting Parisian politics. Who cares about about the political leanings of the citizens of Paris? -tom I was wondering why the hell spell checker capitalized it....=)
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Statistical correlation need not imply causation.
Technical Nirvana |
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LinuxJunkie
join:2005-01-19
Cyberspace
2 edits | reply to yock
quote:
I think you missed his point. I want to see terrorism quelled around the globe as much as anyone, but this is one issue in which I'm with the left. Are we to simply trust that our government will not use personal information gathered through the Patriot Act for illegal means?
You'll also notice that it's "the left" that is also notorious for concocting long-winded conspiracy theories non-stop (my favorite being Hillary's "vast right-wing conspiracy" theory). And what, might I ask, makes you so important as to think that Uncle Sam would actually want to waste time, money and resources just to make your life a living hell? Seems like a lot of people that get all uptight about online "privacy" (doesn't exist -- any hacker can install a packet listener on any network, as long as they have access to at least one compromised machine on the subnet) have serious cases of narcissism. |
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LinuxJunkie
join:2005-01-19
Cyberspace
| reply to yock
quote:
How plausible, if not admittedly difficult and improbable, would it be for a terrorist to gain employment in one of these agencies?
Probably highly unlikely. They'd probably have to pass at least one (probably multiple) lie detector tests before even being considered. Contrary to what many think, intelligence agencies aren't run like "CTU" on 24. |
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