Here is the Fight for the 4th Rally’s release of the NSA surveillance facts gleamed directly from the letter 26 Senators sent to the National Intelligence Agency Director James Clapper, and from two Representatives, one Democrat and one Republican, after attending the classified briefings. The media is not telling us the real story. Here is the real story: The Executive Branch acknowledged that the “business provision” of the USA PATRIOT Act has been secretly reinterpreted to allow the government to collect the private records of large numbers of ordinary Americans. The bulk collection and aggregation of American’s phone records has a significant impact on Americans’ privacy that exceeds the issues considered in Smith v. Maryland. These records can reveal personal relationships, family medical issues, political and religious affiliations, and a variety of other private personal information. They are collecting cell phone locational data, effectively turning Americans’ cell phones into tracking devices. The PATRIOT Act’s business record authority is very broad in its scope. It can be used to collect information on credit card purchases, pharmacy records, library records, firearm sales records, financial records, and records of book and movie purchases. The Government is collecting data on every call made in America. The NSA is directly tapping into the central servers of at least 9 leading US internet companies, extracting audio, videos, photographs, Emails, documents, and connection logs. They track a person’s movements and contacts over time. The great majority of Congress did not know the NSA was collecting these records. It was reported in a very limited way to the Intelligence Committees and possibly a little to the Judicial Committees. The National Intelligence Agency director, James Clapper, lied to the Senate when questioned about the extent of the surveillance. The FBI director, Robert Meuller, lied to the House of Representatives about the surveillance procedures. Senator Ron Wyden D-Oregon and Senator Mark Udall D-Colorado requested from the NSA a ballpark estimate of how many Americans were having their phone calls monitored. The NSA refused to give them that information even though they both serve on the Senate Intelligence Committee. The Government seems to be totally out of control. We have to wake up and think about the frightening implications of a government monitored, government secured, and highly secret trove of personal data held in perpetuity in the name of public safety. What we know is still only the “tip of the iceberg.” We must stand united together amongst the last few vestiges of liberty and privacy we have left and regain our Liberty and Rights. The bottom line: A Free Nation does not keep its population under surveillance!!!
Posted on: Tue, 02 Jul 2013 01:37:13 +0000