President Obama Tells “Least Untruthful” Story About NSA Domestic Spying Programs
“Phone customers’ names, addresses and other personal information are not being collected as part of this program. The agency, however, has the means to assemble that sort of information, if it so chooses. ” ~ Questions and answers about the NSA phone record collection program, as published May 11, 2006, USA TODAY
President Obama is not telling the truth about the domestic spying programs run by the National Security Agency (NSA) in conjunction with the short arm of the federal government, the telephone companies and the Internet service providers (ISP). The category of ISP includes cable companies and telephone companies.
We are uncertain why he is telling what we believe to be the “least untruthful” story; the term is one we like. it was coined by Director of National Intelligence James Clapper when, in his response to congress, he told Senator Ron Wyden in March 2013, the NSA does not wittingly “collect any type of data at all on millions or hundreds of millions of Americans.” As we now know, the NSA does precisely that — metadata, (we are told by politicians and others, not content), from pretty much every phone call made in America is collected and stored.
Maybe he doesn’t understand how it is possible in this digital age to store copious amounts of data on each and every living breathing person in the United States. It is possible. As the saying goes “We Have the Technology!” Every year the digital storage capacity grows larger and larger. Today, right now, the government has the capability of storing all phone transactions, complete with conversation/content. Likewise videos of Your activities can be archived as well. Why do you think Google gives so much space in its email accounts?
Perhaps President Obama does understand the technology and he doesn’t wish to worry us citizens with the details about our future, and the future of our children. He would prefer, if we began to give serious consideration to the possibilities of abuse that likely may occur, we be discredited as being paranoid, and traitors. Can’t have us spoiling the Illusion of Security and totally wrecking the optical illusion of protection.
Now today in 2013, just like when the school official warns, “This incident will go on your permanent record”, they really mean it. They can do it. No more lost paper, card or handwritten filed notes. They might be in there scanned as a digital file; mostly the information will be in a file format easily accessible to those who wish to see it.
Imagine fifty years from now in your so-called permanent file, the one not being archived by the NSA via the telephone company today, someone, maybe yourself, gets into the content of the file…recorded phone conversations, face to face meetings in places you would not expect to be monitored for the illusion of your safety. A life you lived and could not remember to know it.
They’d have all this documented information, audio, video, traffic cameras, street cameras, surreptitious telephoto lens snap shots along with that sample of your DNA you willingly gave because the officer told you the samples are not archived. Maybe you or someone else can see yourself just as though you were a character in a movie, rearranging details to tell the story, or make up the story.
Your life might as well be a sex tape, all of it is being recorded, one way or another, by unauthorized insidious voyeurs.
President Bush and President Obama: The fact these two share the same posture about the administration’s powers to participate and condone domestic spying confirms what we’ve been saying all along. When it comes to the power in the executive branch the more you give the more they take. Give an inch, they take a mile; and do know when the executive branch of government secures more power they are beyond reticent to return it to the people.
In fact the people must understand if you surrender your power, if you give away your rights to privacy, neither you, your children, nor your children’s children will ever be permitted to reclaim them. That is why it is imperative to preserve all of our rights as guaranteed in the historic founding documents stating our rights.
At the end of a press conference in California during an afternoon news conference abouthealthcare, President Obama took a question from the press and, in doing so, provided his first remarks on twin NSA programs that collect metadata on domestic phone calls and examined the content of online communications by foreigners, respectively. The programs are not exactly new — both began under President Bush. Indeed, on May 11, 2006, Bush appeared in the White House’s Diplomatic Reception Room to offer his own defense of the NSA’s phone-snooping efforts. Seven years apart, history appears to be repeating itself, only this time the spying has multiplied.
Bush: "After September the 11th, I vowed to the American people that our government would do everything within the law to protect them against another terrorist attack." (and if it didn't fit within the law we would change the law.)
Obama: "When I came into this office, I made two commitments that are more important than any that I make: number one, to keep the American people safe and, number two, to uphold the Constitution."
Bush: "The privacy of ordinary Americans is fiercely protected in all our activities."
Obama: "That includes what I consider to be a constitutional right to privacy."
Bush: "The intelligence activities I authorized are lawful and have been briefed to appropriate members of Congress, both Republican and Democrat."
Obama: "When it comes to telephone calls, every member of Congress has been briefed on this program. With respect to all these programs the relevant intelligence committees are fully briefed."
Bush: "The government does not listen to domestic phone calls without court approval."
Obama: "Nobody is listening to your telephone calls ... If the intelligence community actually wants to listen to a phone call, they've got to go back to a federal judge."
Bush: "So far we've been very successful in preventing another attack on our soil."
Obama: "They make a difference in our capacity to anticipate and prevent possible terrorist activity."
Bush: "As a general matter, every time sensitive intelligence is leaked, it hurts our ability to defeat this enemy."
Obama: "I don't welcome leaks, because there's a reason why these programs are classified."
Watch then-Senator Joe Biden from 2006 as he directly refutes each point made by his boss, President Obama, about the NSA surveillance program at his news conference last week
Think of it this way...if these so-called leaders were your friends or family would you believe what they are saying? Would their mothers accept the lies, or the "least untruthful"responses being given to the public?
"...every member of the executive branch of the government and every member of the Congress face great responsibility-- great accountability." ~ Franklin D. Roosevelt, 32nd President of the United States in his State of the Union address, also known as the Four Freedoms Speech, delivered January 6, 1941, the beginning of his third term in office.
Lately, since 2001, our national policy in internal affairs has been based upon a decent disrespect, (our government has set the low standard), for the rights and the dignity of all of our fellow men within our gates, so our national policy in foreign affairs has been based on a decent disrespect for the rights and the dignity of all nations, large and small. And the justice of morality has been utterly disregarded.
Some basic things expected by our people of their political and economic systems are simple. Among them are:
Security for those who need it.
The preservation of civil liberties for all.
The enjoyment of the fruits of scientific progress in a wider and constantly rising standard of living.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt said:
"These are the simple, the basic things that must never be lost sight of in the turmoil and unbelievable complexity of our modern world. The inner and abiding straight of our economic and political systems is dependent upon the degree to which they fulfill these expectations."