Spy on me, Alberto!

[struggle4progress]

By Marke B.

I love it. Really! Congress has just voted in a basic legal carte blanche for the Administration to spy on Americans's emails and phone convos without any court review. Ostensibly, the new law is only to target foreigners who talk to Americans by allowing the government to tap into fiber optic networks based in the US (previously they could only tap into those based on foreign soil) -- and the Administration promises -- PROMISES -- not to use any tips obtained this way to go after Americans on the one end of the conversation. I believe them! Only foreigners are terrorists anyway (sorry, Oklahoma). ~snip~

*Telecommunications companies must obey the government on this. No more of those pesky legal challenges from the more skeptical among them that were gumming up the spyworks. And no more of that free market hooey from our overlords. Just make the corporations do what you want. Terror!

*Bye-bye to FISA, the oversight court set up in the '70s in reaction to Nixonian dirty tricks re: domestic spying. Guess who gets final approval on who gets spied on when? ALBERTO GONZALES. Guess all that lying and "misremembering" and total dereliction of basic duty evidenced when he was in the congressional hotseats -- what, three times in the past 3 months? -- convinced Congress that he should be in charge of the nation's privacy. Way to go Alberto! I've GOT to try your tactics in my own career. ~snip~

http://www.sfbg.com/blogs/politics/2007/08/spy_on_me_alberto_1.html

[Cobalt-60]

1. Let them look through my e-mails

But when they solve the argument of whether Madonna looks better naked or in whole body silver makeup they need to drop me a note. Naturally we respect Alberto's opinion on this matter.

[Middle finga]

3. I think Alberto's first order of business is to use those powers to

find some dirt on Democratic leaders of congress so Bush can blackmail them into passing his agenda with ease, drop any discussion of impeachment and troop redeployments. Then Alberto's next order of business will be to find something on each of the top democratic candidates in order to railroad their candidacies so a Republican of Rove's choosing can win the white house and continue Bush's agenda. Little people like us are on the back burner right now, they'll get around to rounding our "communist" asses up after Guiliani is sworn in.

[ninkasi]

2. I'm sure my own conversations

and e-mails will be fascinating to the government. They can listen to my daughter vent when she has a fight with her husband, and when my oldest and best friend and I start comparing what meds we have to take, now that we're in our 60s, and how a fall I had lately didn't, thank God, break any bones.

I can only imagine how riveted they will be, listening in as my sister-in-law and I discuss our plans to visit another sister-in-law, and our niece. If they are really, really lucky, they will be able to listen to the accomplishments of our grandchildren, and great-nephews. That'll certainly keep this country safe!
:sarcasm: