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Wed, 12 Jun 2013 11:24:25 -0600

bigstarlet: quickhits: Maybe We Aren’t so Supportive of the...

Wed, 12 Jun 2013 09:49:44 -0600

quickhits:

Maybe We Aren’t so Supportive of the Surveillance State.

If the recent Pew poll on the NSA’s PRISM program showed a disappointing support for an unprecedented level of domestic surveillance, a new CBS News poll offers cheering disagreement with it. Where the Pew survey found 53% found tracking phone data to investigate terrorism “acceptable,” CBS’s numbers are much more what you’d hope for from Americans.

In the wake of the recent disclosure of two classified U.S. surveillance programs, most Americans disapprove of the government collecting the phone numbers of ordinary Americans, but approve of its monitoring those suspected of terrorist activity, according to a new CBS News poll.

Seventy-five percent of Americans approve of federal agencies collecting the phone records of people the government suspects of terrorist activity, but a 58 percent majority disapproves of this type of data collection in the case of ordinary Americans.

Majorities of Republicans and independents oppose the government collecting phone records of ordinary Americans; Democrats are divided.

To too many of my fellow liberals, I say pull your heads out of your butts. The concern isn’t over who is weilding the power, but that the power exists. If you trust the Obama administration to use this data wisely, that’s one thing. But would you have the same trust in overly ambitious liars and cutthroat demagogues like you might find in a Ted Cruz administration or a Scott Walker administration? The potential for abuse is so great and so simple that this program simply should not exist. There’s nothing but a thin shred of law — and no oversight, you don’t actually have to prove anything to the court — that would stop a president from using his data-collection powers to blackmail political enemies or read the emails of of his election opponents’ campaign teams.

Tim Berners-Lee, the man credited with inventing the World Wide Web, put it well; “It’s the sort of power that if you give it to a corrupt government, you give them the ability to stay in power forever.”

So get your hypocrisy under control, recognize that this is about the program, not the executive, and get your ass back over on the right side of history.

So which poll is more accurate? It’s hard to say. CBS has a margin for error of three points plus or minus, while Pew has a margin of 3.7%. CBS is more confident in their rsults that Pew, but a 0.7% difference is getting pretty nitpicky. Looking at past performance doesn’t tell us much either. After the 2012 election results were in, CBS News/New York Times was off 1.1 points on average, Pew was off 1.5. So not much of a difference there, either. I don’t have Nate Silver-type stat skills, so the best I can tell you is you’re going to have to wait for more data. Will the next poll back up Pew or CBS?

For all the reasons I’ve already listed, you’ve got to root for CBS. Americans should not be comfortable with this and if the CBS numbers are correct, we’re still too comfortable with it. I’d want somewhere in the 75-80% category, where the only holdouts are the lunatic 20% who are always on the wrong side of popular results. 58% is close to 60 — in fact, given the margin for error it could be 60 — which is about the low end of where I’d like to see the numbers. Ending this program should be expanded background checks-level popular.

Because it has to end. The claim that it might stop a terrorist attack does not make it worth the price. I have a plan that would guarantee no future terrorist attacks in America: lock everyone up in a maximum security prison forever. If you think that idea is insane, then we agree on the principle if not on degree. There are some things that are just going too far, even if — as my modest proposal would — they could absolutely guarantee an end to terrorism. Can we agree that some things go too far that could not make that guarantee?

And, as the Boston Marathon tragedy demonstrates so well, the PRISM program — as incomprehensively huge and mind-bogglingly far-reaching as it is — cannot make that guarantee. Meanwhile, it makes our democracy vulnerable to corrupt hacks, opportunists, and ideologues. Again, it’s not about the person in the White House, it’s a about a power that person shouldn’t have, no matter who they are. It puts our democracy at risk and if we sacrifice democracy for protection from terrorists, what would we have left worth protecting?

-Wisco

[photo via Wikimedia Commons]

What this guy said. In spades.

fer1972: Photography by Matthias Haker 1. Silencium 2. Concrete...

Wed, 12 Jun 2013 06:46:11 -0600

fer1972:

Photography by Matthias Haker

1. Silencium

2. Concrete Church

3. Inside the Tower

4. Faded Melodies

thepeoplesrecord: Daniel Ellsberg: Edward Snowden & “the...

Tue, 11 Jun 2013 18:15:42 -0600

thepeoplesrecord:

Daniel Ellsberg: Edward Snowden & “the most important leak in US history”
June 10, 2013

In my estimation, there has not been in American history a more important leak than Edward Snowden’s release of NSA material – and that definitely includes the Pentagon Papers 40 years ago. Snowden’s whistleblowing gives us the possibility to roll back a key part of what has amounted to an “executive coup” against the US constitution.

Since 9/11, there has been, at first secretly but increasingly openly, a revocation of the bill of rights for which this country fought over 200 years ago. In particular, the fourth and fifth amendments of the US constitution, which safeguard citizens from unwarranted intrusion by the government into their private lives, have been virtually suspended.

The government claims it has a court warrant under Fisa – but that unconstitutionally sweeping warrant is from a secret court, shielded from effective oversight, almost totally deferential to executive requests. As Russell Tice, a former National Security Agency analyst, put it: “It is a kangaroo court with a rubber stamp.”

For the president then to say that there is judicial oversight is nonsense – as is the alleged oversight function of the intelligence committees in Congress. Not for the first time – as with issues of torture, kidnapping, detention, assassination by drones and death squads –they have shown themselves to be thoroughly co-opted by the agencies they supposedly monitor. They are also black holes for information that the public needs to know.

The fact that congressional leaders were “briefed” on this and went along with it, without any open debate, hearings, staff analysis, or any real chance for effective dissent, only shows how broken the system of checks and balances is in this country.

Obviously, the United States is not now a police state. But given the extent of this invasion of people’s privacy, we do have the full electronic and legislative infrastructure of such a state. If, for instance, there was now a war that led to a large-scale anti-war movement – like the one we had against the war in Vietnam – or, more likely, if we suffered one more attack on the scale of 9/11, I fear for our democracy. These powers are extremely dangerous.

There are legitimate reasons for secrecy, and specifically for secrecy about communications intelligence. That’s why Bradley Mannning and I –both of whom had access to such intelligence with clearances higher than top-secret – chose not to disclose any information with that classification. And it is why Edward Snowden has committed himself to withhold publication of most of what he might have revealed.

But what is not legitimate is to use a secrecy system to hide programs that are blatantly unconstitutional in their breadth and potential abuse. Neither the president nor Congress as a whole may by themselves revoke the fourth amendment – and that’s why what Snowden has revealed so far was secret from the American people.

In 1975, Senator Frank Church spoke of the National Security Agency in these terms:

“I know the capacity that is there to make tyranny total in America, and we must see to it that this agency and all agencies that possess this technology operate within the law and under proper supervision, so that we never cross over that abyss. That is the abyss from which there is no return.”

The dangerous prospect of which he warned was that America’s intelligence gathering capability – which is today beyond any comparison with what existed in his pre-digital era – “at any time could be turned around on the American people and no American would have any privacy left.”

That has now happened. That is what Snowden has exposed, with official, secret documents. The NSA, FBI and CIA have, with the new digital technology, surveillance powers over our own citizens that the Stasi – the secret police in the former “democratic republic” of East Germany – could scarcely have dreamed of. Snowden reveals that the so-called intelligence community has become the United Stasi of America.

So we have fallen into Senator Church’s abyss. The questions now are whether he was right or wrong that there is no return from it, and whether that means that effective democracy will become impossible. A week ago, I would have found it hard to argue with pessimistic answers to those conclusions.

But with Edward Snowden having put his life on the line to get this information out, quite possibly inspiring others with similar knowledge, conscience and patriotism to show comparable civil courage – in the public, in Congress, in the executive branch itself – I see the unexpected possibility of a way up and out of the abyss.

Pressure by an informed public on Congress to form a select committee to investigate the revelations by Snowden and, I hope, others to come might lead us to bring NSA and the rest of the intelligence community under real supervision and restraint and restore the protections of the bill of rights.

Snowden did what he did because he recognised the NSA’s surveillance programs for what they are: dangerous, unconstitutional activity. This wholesale invasion of Americans’ and foreign citizens’ privacy does not contribute to our security; it puts in danger the very liberties we’re trying to protect.

Source

meaning yes

Tue, 11 Jun 2013 18:14:32 -0600

meaning yes

Poor Christians :( it’s just like the reverse racism...

Tue, 11 Jun 2013 13:18:08 -0600

Poor Christians :(

it’s just like the reverse racism nowadays

visualgraphic: Art Deco Adventure

Mon, 10 Jun 2013 20:54:59 -0600

visualgraphic:

Art Deco Adventure

rollingstone: Take a look at our interactive map that shows how...

Mon, 10 Jun 2013 18:45:23 -0600

rollingstone:

Take a look at our interactive map that shows how far each state has come in the road to legalization.

HEhehee, tick, tickle… wait, mmmHhhmm ...Adult! Far...

Mon, 10 Jun 2013 18:26:37 -0600

HEhehee, tick, tickle… wait, mmmHhhmm ...

Adult! Far too old Michelangelo This! is Wrong! Boys only!!

Scandal. First the Pietà and now again !! *Disgusting!!*

Meanwhile in Canada…love…

Sat, 01 Jun 2013 14:52:55 -0600

Meanwhile in Canada…love…

Photo

Fri, 31 May 2013 18:36:12 -0600

mancrushoftheday: Photo: Kirill Dowidoff #muscle #abs The...

Fri, 31 May 2013 16:12:15 -0600

mancrushoftheday:

Photo: Kirill Dowidoff #muscle #abs
The Man Crush Blog / Facebook / Twitter

thegetty: arsvitaest: Wisteria over lanterns via Okinawa...

Fri, 31 May 2013 13:48:21 -0600

thegetty:

arsvitaest:

Wisteria over lanterns

via Okinawa Soba

“Most all of the images in this set were the ‘throw-aways’ I’ve found at the bottom of FOR SALE boxes during 30 years of collecting.” —Soba

More: Pictorialism in Old Japan

Hawwwt chicks makin out & For your trivial pleasure btw...

Fri, 31 May 2013 12:48:51 -0600

Hawwwt chicks makin out & For your trivial pleasure btw Justice in Greek is Dike :p Uh hu #lezzOut!

You

Thu, 30 May 2013 13:48:08 -0600

You

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Thu, 30 May 2013 11:24:58 -0600

Photo

Wed, 29 May 2013 19:40:15 -0600

Shhheeeeesss gonnnnnneeee “Michele Bachmann to leave...

Wed, 29 May 2013 18:34:04 -0600

Shhheeeeesss gonnnnnneeee

“Michele Bachmann to leave Congress, insisting departure has nothing to do with ongoing ethics investigation”

via rawstory
http://bit.ly/15jjYHx
___
gonna miss those soul-less eyes #creepee

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Wed, 29 May 2013 16:12:24 -0600

nevver: The Evolution of Video Game Controllers

Wed, 29 May 2013 13:48:25 -0600

nevver:

The Evolution of Video Game Controllers