xocetaceans

xocetaceans's Journal

July 1, 2013

The Greenwald Show: It's All Greenwald All The Time....

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We Interrupt Your Regularly Scheduled Programming To Bring You This Breaking News Bulletin...

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Misinformation on classified NSA programs includes statements by senior U.S. officials
By Greg Miller, Sunday, June 30, 8:19 PM

...

“A lie can get halfway around the world before the truth gets its boots on,” said Robert Litt, citing a line often attributed to Mark Twain. “Unfortunately, there’s been a lot of misinformation that’s come out about these programs.”

The remark by Litt, general counsel for the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, was aimed at news organizations. But details that have emerged from the exposure of hundreds of pages of previously classified NSA documents indicate that public assertions about these programs by senior U.S. officials have also often been misleading, erroneous or simply false.

The same day Litt spoke, the NSA quietly removed from its Web site a fact sheet about its collection activities because it contained inaccuracies discovered by lawmakers.

...

But even if it is not allowed to target U.S. citizens, the NSA has significant latitude to collect and keep the contents of e-mails and other communications of U.S. citizens that are swept up as part of the agency’s court-approved monitoring of a target overseas.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/misinformation-on-classified-nsa-programs-includes-statements-by-senior-us-officials/2013/06/30/7b5103a2-e028-11e2-b2d4-ea6d8f477a01_story.html

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We Now Return You To Your Regularly Scheduled Programming:

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June 30, 2013

In Spite of the NSA Surveillance Overreach and Its Openly Told Lies: It's All About Greenwald

It's All About Greenwald
by BooMan
Sat Jun 29th, 2013 at 11:24:58 AM EST

There certainly is plenty to read about Glenn Greenwald today. Learning more about his life is kind of interesting but most of it feels voyeuristic to me. I think the most important revelation is that he has admitted that he approaches journalism the same way he pursued lawsuits. His style is litigious and argumentative and intentionally one-sided. If there is a counterargument to his case, it's your job to describe it, not his.

As a partisan writer, I know that I am going to be writing things from a certain perspective and I am not necessarily interested in being fair. But there is a little voice in my head that tells me when I am writing something that is factually inaccurate or that is grossly incomplete. When that voice speaks, I obey. Greenwald doesn't. He puts that voice in a little box titled "opposing counsel."

...

http://www.boomantribune.com/story/2013/6/29/112458/736

The first link in the BooMan article points to BuzzFeed:

How Glenn Greenwald Became Glenn Greenwald
Before he was the Guardian’s eyes on the National Security Agency, Greenwald was a Manhattan litigator with an itchy trigger finger. “He doesn’t care if the entire world hates him.”

posted on June 26, 2013 at 10:17pm EDT
Jessica Testa
...

Greenwald said he called on his experience as a litigator when he first spoke to Snowden.

“When I got to Hong Kong, my immediate priority was to kick the tires as hard as I could on his story and see if there was anything that he was hiding,” Greenwald said. “I spent five or six hours just relentlessly questioning him, using the same tricks that I used to use in depositions.”

...

http://www.buzzfeed.com/jtes/how-glenn-greenwald-became-glenn-greenwald

The second link in the BooMan article points to New York Magazine:

Glenn Greenwald Is Ralph Nader
By Jonathan Chait

...

Greenwald, like Nader, marries an indefatigable mastery of detail with fierce moralism. Every issue he examines has a good side and an evil side. Greenwald, speaking not long ago to the New York Times, said something revealing about his intellectual style:

“I approach my journalism as a litigator,” he said. “People say things, you assume they are lying, and dig for documents to prove it.”

That is a highly self-aware account. Of course, the job description of a litigator does not include being fair. You take a side, assume the other side is lying, and prosecute your side full tilt. It’s not your job to account for evidence that undermines your case — it’s your adversary’s job to point that out.

I won’t pretend to be neutral here — I’ve tangled with Greenwald numerous times. So, for instance, he called me a “McCain worshiper,” and it is true that I have written some highly favorable things about John McCain. I’ve also written some highly critical things. I pointed out to Greenwald that, when I have called McCain, among other things, a “dangerous sociopath,” it would at least complicate the picture in such a way as to preclude me from being called a “worshiper.” But no, Greenwald dug in deeper, assembling all the evidence he could muster for his side and ignoring all the evidence pointing in the opposite direction.

...

http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2013/06/glenn-greenwald-is-ralph-nader.html

In Jonathan Chait's article, the segment that likens Greenwald's journalism to litigation has a link that points to the New York Times:

Blogger, With Focus on Surveillance, Is at Center of a Debate
By NOAM COHEN and LESLIE KAUFMAN
Published: June 6, 2013

...

Being at the center of a debate is a comfortable place for Mr. Greenwald, 46, who came to mainstream journalism through his own blog, which he started in 2005. Before that he was a lawyer, including working 18 months at the high-powered New York firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, where he represented large corporate clients.

“I approach my journalism as a litigator,” he said. “People say things, you assume they are lying, and dig for documents to prove it.”

Mr. Greenwald’s writings at The Guardian — and before that, for Salon and on his own blog — can resemble a legal brief, with a list of points, extended arguments and detailed references and links. As Andrew Sullivan, a frequent sparring partner and sometime ally, put it, “once you get into a debate with him, it can be hard to get the last word.”

While Mr. Greenwald notes that he often conducts interviews and breaks news in his columns, he describes himself as an activist and an advocate. But with this leak about the extremely confidential legal apparatus supporting the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, he has lifted the veil on some of the government’s most closely held secrets.

...

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/07/business/media/anti-surveillance-activist-is-at-center-of-new-leak.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

The third link in the BooMan article points to a article by Bob Cesca in The Daily Banter:

Greenwald and Nader, Cut From the Same Cloth
Posted on June 29, 2013 at 9:33 am by Bob Cesca

Jonathan Chait wrote an excellent analysis of Glenn Greenwald in which he compares his approach with the style of Ralph Nader.

Greenwald, like Nader, marries an indefatigable mastery of detail with fierce moralism. Every issue he examines has a good side and an evil side.

We’ve seen this many time. If you disagree with one aspect of the Obama administration, you’re morally compelled to reject the whole thing.

Greenwald, like Nader, does not believe in meliorist progress. If you are not good, you are evil. [...]

...

http://bobcesca.thedailybanter.com/blog-archives/2013/06/greenwald-and-nader-cut-from-the-same-cloth.html?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=greenwald-and-nader-cut-from-the-same-cloth&utm_medium=twitter&utm_source=twitterfeed

The analysis put forward in the above-referenced article in the BooMan Tribune is essentially a rehashing of the above-linked Jonathan Chait article - an article in which Chait takes the Greenwald quotation from the above-linked NYT article out of context and shifts the quotation's context from one of a search for credible substantiation of assertions to one of a relentless propagation of one's own beliefs as truth in spite of any countervailing evidence. Chait admits his bias against Greenwald, but this does not make his attempt to alter the context of the NYT quotation any more honest. The article in The Daily Banter simply refers back to Chait's above article.

All told, the underlying problems of the NSA's surveillance overreach and of the misrepresentation made to Congress regarding the NSA surveillance program are ignored and the story is shifted by the facile dodge - "It's All About Greenwald."

Once again, here is the questioning of DNI Clapper by Senator Wyden:

Watch U.S. Intel Chief Clapper Lie to Congress

June 26, 2013

The "Snowden" Effect: We Have No Idea If It Actually Exists, But DNI Clapper Did Lie To Congress

"...militants have begun responding by altering methods of communication...could make it harder...."

"...have begun altering communications patterns in what was believed to be a direct response...."

"...too early to tell whether the recent changes in communications methods had caused a loss...."

"Previous dire warnings of leaks causing huge damage to U.S. national security interests have proved overplayed."

"...militants changing the way they communicate could actually hinder plots...."

"The officials declined to specify what changes were spotted among militant groups...."

"...militants' latest adjustments likely included reduced electronic transmissions and more frequent switching...."

"Exactly how serious the damage might be is difficult to measure...."

"Militants have a long history of trying to cover their electronic tracks."

"Largely using written messages and trusted couriers, al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden hid for years...."

"...analysts around the world are working to determine the operational impact of Snowden's exposure of methods...."

"...the potential damage...is...may have found out technical details...."

"...there could be further fallout...."

"...U.S. agencies are already operating on a "worst case" assumption...."

"U.S. and British officials insist...that...surveillance...has stopped attacks and is essential to public security."

"...is still in the early stages of damage assessment...."

"Washington may face charges of a double standard...."

"How can the United States continue to stand on high moral ground...?"

"It will make it more difficult for us to appear holier than thou...."

http://news.yahoo.com/snowden-effect-u-spies-militants-013034065.html

However, it is certain that DNI Clapper lied to Congress about the scope of NSA surveillance:

Clapper's Words: "No, Sir."

Edward Snowden has underscored Clapper's lie and, thus, deserves credit for his whistle-blowing.

June 18, 2013

Foiled NY Stock Exchange Plot: Limited Background Information

NSA director says plot against Wall Street foiled
Jun 18, 1:02 PM (ET)
By KIMBERLY DOZIER

WASHINGTON (AP) - The director of the National Security Agency said Tuesday the government's sweeping surveillance programs have foiled some 50 terrorist plots worldwide, including one directed at the New York Stock Exchange, in a forceful defense of the spy operations.

...

Under questioning, Joyce said the NSA was able to identify an extremist in Yemen who was in touch with an individual in Kansas City, Mo. They were able to identify co-conspirators and thwart a plot to bomb the New York Stock Exchange.

...

http://apnews.excite.com/article/20130618/DA7095E00.html

On C-SPAN, the House Intelligence Committee hearing addresses this plot at time indices 0:37:52, 1:08:28, 1:11:23, 1:58:32, 2:38:12, 2:39:06 and 2:39:47. This video is here: http://www.c-spanvideo.org/program/AgencyOp .

The Ouazzani Indictment is here: http://www.justice.gov/usao/mow/news2010/ouazzani_indictment.pdf

The Ouazzani Plea is here: http://www.justice.gov/usao/mow/news2010/ouazzani_plea.pdf

The FBI report on the Ouazzani Plea from May 2010 follows:

Al Qaeda Supporter Pleads Guilty to Supporting Terrorist Organization
Kansas City Man Also Admits to Bank Fraud, Overseas Money Laundering

KANSAS CITY, MO—Beth Phillips, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced today that a Kansas City, Mo., man pleaded guilty in federal court today to his role in a conspiracy to provide material support to the terrorist organization al Qaeda. He also pleaded guilty to bank fraud and money laundering.

“National security is the highest priority of the Department of Justice,” Phillips said. “I applaud the diligent work of our law enforcement partners from local, state and federal agencies that serve on the Heart of America Joint Terrorism Task Force. These agencies have made significant investments of manpower and resources to the task force, and I appreciate their commitment to defeating terrorism. Much of their work is done behind the scenes, investigating and gathering information, but they play a crucial role in preventing terrorist activities.”

Khalid Ouazzani, 32, of Kansas City, waived his right to a grand jury and pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Howard F. Sachs to a federal information that charges him with conspiracy to provide material support to a terrorist organization. Ouazzani also pleaded guilty to charges contained in an indictment that was returned under seal by a federal grand jury in Kansas City on Feb. 3, 2010.

Ouazzani, a native of Morocco and a naturalized citizen of the United States, swore an oath of allegiance to al Qaeda in June 2008. Ouazzani admitted that, from August 2007 to February 2010, he participated in a conspiracy to provide material support or resources to al Qaeda.

Ouazzani also admitted that he personally provided more than $23,000 to al Qaeda and performed other tasks at the request of and for the benefit of al Qaeda. Ouazzani had conversations with others about various ways to support al Qaeda, including plans for them to fight in Afghanistan, Iraq, or Somalia.

“Citizens here in the heartland should be alert to suspicious activity and never hesitate to report their concerns to law enforcement. This case serves as a reminder that terrorist-related activities can occur anywhere,” said Special Agent in Charge Brian A. Truchon of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Kansas City field office.

Ouazzani agreed to contribute $6,500 to al Qaeda in August 2007. A co-conspirator, who is not identified in court documents, made that payment on Ouazzani’s behalf. Ouazzani repaid the co-conspirator in November 2007 through a wire transfer to the co-conspirator’s bank account in the United Arab Emirates. Those funds came from Ouazzani’s sale of his business, Hafssa LLC, doing business as Truman Used Auto Parts, a retail operation that bought and sold used auto parts and used motor vehicles.

In June or July 2008, Ouazzani also agreed to pay al Qaeda $17,000, which represented his profit from the sale of an apartment in the United Arab Emirates that was owned by Ouazzani and a co-conspirator (who is not identified in court documents).

Bank Fraud Scheme

Ouazzani obtained a $175,000 line of credit commercial loan from Union Bank in April 2007 for Hafssa LLC (Truman Used Auto Parts). Under the terms of the loan, the funds were to be used as working capital for his business. Ouazzani admitted that he submitted false financial information about himself and the company to obtain the loan, and used substantial amounts of the loan proceeds for various personal purposes.

Ouazzani made only approximately $13,000 in payments on this loan. In September 2008 Union Bank wrote off the loan (then in the amount of $174,028) as uncollectible. On Feb. 11, 2009, Union Bank obtained a civil default judgment against Ouazzani and Hafssa LLC in the amount of $177,001.

Money Laundering

Ouazzani admitted that he used part of the proceeds of the Union Bank loan to purchase an apartment in the United Arab Emirates with a co-conspirator.

On May 23, 2007, Ouazzani caused a wire transfer of $112,830 to be sent to a bank account in the United Arab Emirates. The funds for this wire transfer included funds obtained from the $175,000 Union Bank loan and involved a series of transactions designed to make it more difficult to trace the funds.

Ouazzani used the wire-transferred funds to purchase an apartment in the United Arab Emirates, which he later sold for a profit of approximately $17,000. Ouazzani requested a co-conspirator to pay this $17,000 to al Qaeda.

“The criminal justice system is a valuable tool for disrupting terrorist plots and bringing terrorists to justice,” Phillips said. “We must use every means—criminal prosecutions as well as intelligence and military operations—to protect the American people. Federal prosecutions not only result in long prison sentences, but yield valuable intelligence that can be used in the fight against al Qaeda and other terrorist organizations.”

Under federal statutes, Ouazzani is subject to a sentence of up to 65 years in federal prison without parole, plus a fine up to $1 million and an order of restitution. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys J. Daniel Stewart, David M. Ketchmark and Brian P. Casey and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Alex Menzel of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Missouri, with assistance from attorneys at the Justice Department’s National Security Division, including the Counterterrorism Section. It was investigated by the Heart of America Joint Terrorism Task Force, led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with the assistance of the Missouri Department of Social Services - Division of Legal Services Investigation Section.

Heart of America Joint Terrorism Task Force
Federal Bureau of Investigation
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms
Defense Criminal Investigative Service
Federal Air Marshals Service
IRS-Criminal Investigation
Kansas City, Kan., Police Department
Kansas City, Mo., Police Department
Kansas Highway Patrol
Missouri State Highway Patrol
Overland Park, Kan., Police Department
U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the Western District of Missouri and the District of Kansas
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
U.S. Marshals Service
U.S. Postal Inspection Service
U.S. Secret Service

http://www.fbi.gov/kansascity/press-releases/2010/kc051910.htm

One might note that neither the indictment, the plea nor the FBI report at the time of the plea make the claim that there was a plot directed at the NY Stock Exchange.

Is this a new claim made in order to justify the scale of surveillance that is ongoing?

Sean Joyce notes that several individuals were lured to the USA, arrested and subsequently convicted for their terrorist activity - time index 1:10:30 in the C-SPAN video.

Who are these individuals and when and where were they convicted?

Is this the plot against the NY Stock Exchange to which they are referring?

Man arrested in FBI terror sting also targeted N.Y. Stock Exchange

NEW YORK — A Bangladeshi man snared in an FBI terror sting considered targeting a high-ranking government official and the New York Stock Exchange before authorities say he raised the bar by picking one New York City's most fortified sites: The Federal Reserve.

In a September meeting with an undercover agent posing as a fellow jihadist, Quazi Mohammad Rezwanul Ahsan Nafis explained he chose the Federal reserve as his car bomb target "for operational reasons," according to a criminal complaint. Nafis also indicated he knew that choice would "cause a large number of civilian casualties, including women and children," the complaint said.

The bomb was phony, but authorities alleged that Nafis' admiration of Osama bin Laden and aspirations for martyrdom were not.

FBI agents grabbed the 21-year-old Nafis — armed with a cellphone he believed was rigged as a detonator — after he made several attempts to blow up a fake 1,000-pound the bomb inside a vehicle parked next to the Federal Reserve Wednesday in lower Manhattan, the complaint said.

...

http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2012/10/man_arrested_in_fbi_terror_sti.html

If it is, this is two years after the prior defendant agreed to a guilty plea. Is it reasonable to believe that two years after a plea agreement is made that one is still an active participant in an on-going plot?

How important is transparency in these issues?

June 18, 2013

Snowden / Manning 2016 or Manning / Snowden 2016 would be great...

but neither would meet the age requirement to run for the office of President. After all, it takes time for corruption to set in properly.

Some may object to the above, but it seems that a person is doing something right if his or her actions cause Dick Cheney to label that individual a traitor - this is the honorable reverse of W awarding certain prominent Bush functionaries the "Medal of Freedom (TM) for which they hate us":

"Dick Cheney To Chris Wallace: ‘Traitor’ Snowden Possibly Had Chinese Connection Before Leaking Info

...

Cheney had no kind words for Snowden, whom he forthrightly labelled a traitor. “I think he has committed crimes in effect by violating the agreements given the position he had,” Cheney said, and went on to question his choice of hideout. “I’m suspicious because he went to China. That’s not a place where you would ordinarily want to go if you are interested in freedom, liberty and so forth. It raises questions whether or not he had that kind of connection before he did this.”

...

http://www.mediaite.com/tv/dick-cheney-tells-chris-wallace-traitor-snowden-possibly-had-chinese-connection-before-leaking-info/

June 10, 2013

The Least Untruthful Manner: Donald Rumsfeld Would Be Proud

June 6, 2013

Feinstein Defends & (the) Obama Administration Confirms Massive Surveillance Program...

Learning To Love The Matrix: Feinstein Defends Warrantless Surveillance of All Citizens
Published: June 6, 2013

As expected, in facing yet another attack on civil liberties by the Obama Administration, Democratic members are choosing personality over principle. Senator Dianne Feinstein (D., CA) has come out to assure the public that it is a good thing that the Administration is spying on them and encourage them to accept such surveillance as the new normal. In the meantime, Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R, Ga), insists that the surveillance must be fine because “to my knowledge we have not had any citizen who has registered a complaint relative to the gathering of this information.” Of course, it has been secret and just last February the Administration succeeded in blocking an effort of dozens of citizens and groups challenging such surveillance programs before the Supreme Court.

Feinstein is notorious among civil libertarians as someone who knew of many of the abuses during the Bush Administration, including possible knowledge of the torture program and warrantless surveillance programs. However, the Administration is clearly putting the push on to get members in front of cameras to claim that that surveillance stopped a plot. It is an effort to get citizens to give up this core liberty. Of course, if you strip every civil liberty, you can claim additional plots. These members are responsible, again, for a failure to use oversight authority to protect civil liberties. They have clearly been given the message to try to change the story in the critical first 24-hours in classic Bush (now Obama) terms: yes we put everyone under surveillance but it paid off.

Feinstein has continued her dubious record of leading the charge against liberty — a curious role for the Democratic senator from a state like California.

My favorite however is Chambliss who seems clueless that the Obama Administration has classified information needed to challenge these laws and no citizens had information to complain about . . . because Chambliss and his colleagues kept it from their constituents.

...

http://jonathanturley.org/2013/06/06/learning-to-love-the-matrix-feinstein-defends-warrantless-surveillance-of-all-citizens/

Obama Administration Confirms Massive Surveillance Program Of U.S. Citizens
Published: June 6, 2013

While the media in the United States (with some notable exceptions) have been criticized for relatively soft coverage of attacks on civil liberties by the Obama Administration, the British press appears to be filling the gap. The Guardian is reporting on a massive surveillance program by the Obama Administration where the government has ordered Verizon (and presumably other carriers) to turn over all calls made within the United States and calls between the United States and other countries. The surveillance was conducted under an order from our controversial secret court, the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, and demanded by the Justice Department and the FBI. The Administration has confirmed the existence of the program — another blow to civil liberties under Attorney General Eric Holder and this president. It also adds another area where Obama officials appear less than candid with Congress. [Update: USA Today first revealed aspects of this program in 2006]

The order signed by Judge Roger Vinson requires the company to turn over the phone numbers, location, duration, time and unique identifiers for all calls for all citizens. There is no effort to confine the search for individuals connected to any investigation. It is a sweeping surveillance on all citizens. Of course, just as Democrats have remained quiet over the recent attacks on the free press, it is not clear if even this abuse will generate opposition in Congress. Civil libertarians have been complaining for years about these programs and have met a wall of silence from Democrats protecting President Obama and Eric Holder.

In February, the Administration succeeded in blocking a challenge to its surveillance policies by arguing that any confirmation of such programs would put American lives at risk. Now that the case is dismissed, they have simply acknowledged the program. The decision is Clapper v. Amnesty International, No. 11-1025, and it is a true nightmare for civil liberties. The Supreme Court rejected the standing of civil liberties groups and citizens to challenge the Obama Administration’s surveillance programs. President Obama has long been criticized for his opposition to such lawsuits and his Justice Department has continued a successful attack on the ability of citizens to challenge the unconstitutional actions of their government in the war on terror. The 5-4 opinion by Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. insulates such programs from judicial review in yet another narrowing of standing rules.

Alito rejected the ability of an array of journalists, lawyers and human rights advocates to challenge the constitutionality of the 2008 law allowing secret surveillance without meeting constitutional standards of probable cause. Alito simply said that the parties could not prove that they were subject to surveillance — since the Obama Administration has classified such evidence — and insisted that their fears and precautionary actions are merely efforts to “manufacture standing by incurring costs in anticipation of nonimminent harms.”

...

http://jonathanturley.org/2013/06/06/obama-administration-confirms-massive-surveillance-program-by-nsa/

Transcript: Dianne Feinstein, Saxby Chambliss explain, defend NSA phone records program
By Ed O'Keefe
Published: June 6, 2013

Sens. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.), who lead the Senate Intelligence Committee, spoke with reporters Thursday morning at a hastily arranged news conference to explain and defend the National Security Agency’s collection of Verizon telephone records.

An unofficial transcript of the exchange appears below:

Sen. Dianne Feinstein: I just had an opportunity to review the Guardian article and I’d like to make the following points.

As far as I know, this is the exact three month renewal of what has been the case for the past seven years. This renewal is carried out by the FISA Court under the business records section of the Patriot Act. Therefore, it is lawful.

...

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-politics/wp/2013/06/06/transcript-dianne-feinstein-saxby-chambliss-explain-defend-nsa-phone-records-program/

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