Bush 'Privacy Board' Just a Gag

[sabra]

http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,72248-0.html?tw=wn_politics_1

Bush 'Privacy Board' Just a Gag

WASHINGTON -- The first public meeting of a Bush administration "civil liberties protection panel" had a surreal quality to it, as the five-member board refused to answer any questions from the press, and stonewalled privacy advocates and academics on key questions about domestic spying.

The Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board, which met Tuesday, was created by Congress in 2004 on the recommendation of the 9/11 Commission, but is part of the White House, which handpicked all the members. Though mandated by law in late 2004, the board was not sworn in until March 2006, due to inaction on the part of the White House and Congress.

The three-hour meeting, held at Georgetown University, quickly established that the panel would be something less than a fierce watchdog of civil liberties. Instead, members all but said they view their job as helping Americans learn to relax and love warrantless surveillance.

"The question is, how much can the board share with the public about the protections incorporated in both the development and implementation of those policies?" said Alan Raul, a Washington D.C. lawyer who serves as vice chairman. "On the public side, I believe the board can help advance national security and the rights of American by helping explain how the government safeguards U.S. personal information."

[LynnTheDem]

1. WTF??!

:wow:

[Quantess]

2. Recommended.

I don't like the sound of this at all.

[crickets]

3. Surreal. K&R nt

:dem:

[mogster]

4. It's ridiculous

This is how 'they' work; by taking over society's watchdog's and replacing them with another version, doing partisan work instead. Good find, sabra. Thanks for posting.

[formercia]

5. They take our liberties away one by one

not enough to cause a riot but day by day they will soon disappear.