President Obama: NSA Surveillance Was Necessary To Make Sure Boston Bombings Weren't Part Of Bigger Plot
from the sorry-about-the-explosions... dept
Huffington Post has an article about how President Obama is meeting with many of the biggest Congressional critics of the NSA surveillance programs to discuss their concerns. However, on Wednesday he also met with larger groups in the House and Senate, where he continued to stand behind the programs. At the very bottom of the article is this stunning tidbit:Obama reiterated his call for a "balance" between privacy and national security, but also invoked the Boston Marathon bombings as an example of where data collected by the NSA helped "identify whether there was a great plot."Right. So, after there was a bombing which no intelligence agency spotted beforehand, he's now claiming that the NSA got to jump into action to find out that there wouldn't be any more bombings because there was no bigger plot. We're not even in the silly debunked realm of "preventing terrorist events" anymore. Now we're at "Great work everyone! We found out that there's no larger plot to worry about -- sorry about the explosions and related mess." Using the discovery of a lack of further threats after a bombing happened undetected to justify spying on all Americans? That's crazy.
When that's the best you can do to defend this program, something is clearly wrong. The program didn't prevent the bombing. It may have allowed law enforcement to be more confident that there wasn't a larger plot behind it slightly faster than regular police work did, but that's not exactly a reason to violate everyone's privacy, now is it?
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Filed Under: barack obama, boston bombings, nsa, nsa surveillance
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Making it clear
I'm supposed to believe that the surveillance would help we, the people?
The security theater is ridiculous
It didn't stop the Boston Bomber. It didn't stop the Ft Hood bombing. It didn't even stop the Washington shooter.
we shut down a city for Gods' sake and that wasn't what got the Tsarnaev. As soon as the police stopped their search a private citizen found the guy an hour later!
So now, our president, who supports these programs, wants to tell me that they needed these programs? NEEDED?!
No, you need a swift kick in the ass for lying to the American people. You need a better strategy than taking away the freedoms of the Constitution and only giving it to your financial backers. You need to learn from history and quit repeating it. You need to fire the people that have you wrapped around your finger as a public figure while you support their policies (looking at YOU Keith Alexander!). Finally, you need to grow a pair and face the music that the American public DOES. NOT. LIKE. BEING. SPIED. ON. BY. OUR. GOVERNMENT.
We did not sign up for constant surveillance. It didn't work for the past decade. You used drone strikes in our name and we're unhappy with that. You abused a war on an idea that was unpatriotic and created massive deaths in multiple countries. You cared more about your backers than the American people which you gave the worst debt to. You continued the Bush doctrine which essentially continued the problems that we've had since Reagan.
It's time to END IT! The internet is our global democracy, not the plaything of politicians that don't understand it. The government was created of, by, and for the people. Your surveillance is wrong, unconstitutional, and undemocratic. It cuts against political and patriotic lines and does nothing to help anything beyond the state to lose legitimacy. That is not the American way. It's the way of tyrants and dictatorship.
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Re: Making it clear -- but you LEFT OUT A LOT!
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Re: Re: Making it clear -- but you LEFT OUT A LOT!
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Re: Re: Re: Making it clear -- but you LEFT OUT A LOT!
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Making it clear -- but you LEFT OUT A LOT!
Can you offer a similar solution to avoid the US government spying? You can't say "leave the US" since the NSA spies more on other nations. You can't say "Vote the assholes out" because we did. You can't say "protests" because we did.
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Making it clear -- but you LEFT OUT A LOT!
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Re: Re: Re: Making it clear -- but you LEFT OUT A LOT!
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Making it clear -- but you LEFT OUT A LOT!
OK, the US govt doesn't have a privacy policy that it follows.
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Re: Re: Making it clear -- but you LEFT OUT A LOT!
Google = optional
Government spying = not optional
Got it? You're welcome
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Re: Re: Re: Making it clear -- but you LEFT OUT A LOT!
You're just flatly wrong. And actually, you Techdirt fanboys are quite the minority in viewing Google as benign. Couple recent of the endless examples:
'Quit Google, Facebook' suggests tech expert as surveillance scandal deepens
http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2013-06/10/tim-wu-google-boycott
NSA is quietly writing code for Google’s Android OS
http://refreshingnews99.blogspot.in/2013/07/nsa-is-quietly-writing-code-for-googles.html
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Making it clear -- but you LEFT OUT A LOT!
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There you go, blue. Search your head off.
Despite the voices in your head saying otherwise, Google IS optional.
/endoflesson...again
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Making it clear -- but you LEFT OUT A LOT!
I just got lemonade in my sinuses from reading that....
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Making it clear -- but you LEFT OUT A LOT!
Google is totally optional. You're just flatly wrong if you're asserting otherwise.
Also, I wonder why it is that you think Google is generally viewed as benign by commenters here? There's little indication of that. Even people here who have said that they use Google's services have mentioned that they're aware that they're making a trade-off in doing so.
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Making it clear -- but you LEFT OUT A LOT!
I don't use Google's Android OS
but I have no choice in what the government does.
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Re: Making it clear
As soon as the police stopped their search a private citizen found the guy one minute later!
When they heard the search was over, they went out of the house and found him immediately.
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Re: Making it clear
They *militarized police swarming a suburban home*
Care *armored vehicles rolling down the street*
So *Blackhawk helicopters looking for someone*
Much *TSA patting down old woman*
About *NSA snooping on "private" conversation*
Your *DMCA takedowns and draconian copyright expansion*
Security *DHS stockpiles 2 billion rounds of ammo and no-hesitation targets*
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Re: Making it clear
Personally, I don't understand what people are hiding. I don't care if the government sees what I do, because I'm not doing anything suspicious. What are you hiding?
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Re: Re: Making it clear
Is this for real, or trolling?
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Re: Re: Making it clear
Really? Put forth some concrete evidence of this please, cuz' I ain't seen any.
Personally, I don't understand what people are hiding. I don't care if the government sees what I do, because I'm not doing anything suspicious.
Oh really? So you would have absolutely no problem inviting all of us over to look at your browser history? Or checking out your entire search history? Or reading your medical history? Or your online shopping history? Or your bank balances? Or keeping tabs on all your phone calls and exact locations where you made them?
And when we get done we can compile all that info into a complete picture of everything you've ever done online and fairly comprehensive picture of everything you've done offline too.
It doesn't matter if you are doing anything "suspicious". It matters when you are doing things online that you consider private and personal.
What are you hiding?
I personally don't consider it "hiding". It's about protecting my rights to privacy and anonymity.
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Meanwhile
http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2013/aug/01/nsa-paid-gchq-spying-edward-snowden
It appears that the 'special relationship' is all about the US spying on UK and the UK spying on Americans, and sharing the information between each other.
Can you just hurry up and add another star to the US flag for your 51st state (the UK)?
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Re: Meanwhile
Of course not, that would make the spying illegal.
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Re: Meanwhile
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The data would only have helped in a psot mortem analysis of the plot, not in preventing closely spaced in time attacks.
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I don't appreciate being lied to, especially in the interests of "national security", that just makes me think of that dumb ass movie of the same name, and is just about as brilliant.
Just stop, please stop the bald face lying, you're busted on it and continuing to lie about it just makes it worse. Oh wait, he's out at the end of this term, why should he care?
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So, when do we start putting them in Jail??
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And yet, this same apparatus could not locate the main suspect of said bombing without shutting down a city and turning it into a warzone.
And even then they couldn't find him. It had to be a civilian to spot him.
Who the fuck do they think they are fooling?
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So far everything coming from the executive branch and the security side are lies unless they've been caught red handed at it. Even after they are caught with their fingers in the pie, they are still trying to cover up just how bad it is.
None of this spying business has stopped any terrorists in their acts. Once again we have direction on just how badly the government can spend tax payers money and get diddly squat back for it.
It's long past time to end this. It's also time we figure out how to impeach Obama over this using the Espionage Act to punish the very whistle blowers he claimed at the start to want to protect.
There is so much wrong with this government that it is showing up in lack of education, lack of general well being of the citizens and lack of functional jobs. It's high time we changed the direction of this country.
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Re:
I think you meant the Amash bill. Amish refers to a group of people in the US who are hesitant towards adopting modern technology. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amish
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The Amish are the biggest suppliers of Terrorists in the world!
The NSA can't track them!
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The question is, are they even aware of the NSA spying programs? Do they get newspapers?
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a) because the security services were trying to justify the extortionate amount of money it was being funded with
b) because ordinary people who have nothing to hide, are a damn site easier to spy on than the real people who take whatever precautions they deem necessary to remain uncaught! like everyone that doesn't take precautions, they would be well and truly fucked, with nowhere to turn to!
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"So, after there was a bombing which no intelligence agency spotted beforehand, despite repeatedly being warned about Dzhokhar Tsarnaev...."
If that's true, it makes a bit more sense ( in THEIR eyes ) to just sit on it. They need incidents big enough to justify what they want, yet not so big that they create a massive panic. Not too hot or too cold ... Just right.
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Re:
http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130508/17354123014/fbi-didnt-even-inform-fusion-center-a bout-tamerlan-tsarnaev.shtml
[blockquote][I]A spokeswoman for the Boston Police Department said the Boston Regional Intelligence Center [] was never notified about the FBI investigation.
In response, FBI supervisory Agent Jason Pack e-mailed a statement suggesting that state and local officials had ample access to information about the Tsarnaev investigation in 2011, through their participation in an FBI unit in Boston, the Joint Terrorism Task Force.[/I][/blockquote]
The FBI even interviewed one of the Boston terrorists, probably in 2011.
It's insane to claim the domestic spying is of any use, when knowing about a terrorist before hand wasn't enough to prevent his attack.
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Great American Rally Cry
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Reassuring.
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We are not reassured. If anything, we have even less faith in this system than before.
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well isnt this grand
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"The System Worked"
Janet Napolitano
Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano brushed off the glaring mistakes that allowed a Nigerian bomber onto a U.S.-bound plane, stressing Sunday that everything worked "like clockwork" - after passengers foiled his plot.
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Nope...not spying at all
Makes you wonder if they are not looking then how did they know?
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Re: Nope...not spying at all
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My little dog...
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Yet somehow, we're to trust and believe him when he says that these very same programs, which have been demonstrated to have failed, somehow prevented further bombings related to the initial ones?
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Re:
Prior to the Boston Bombings it was more like:
But that's government competence for you. Only useful AFTER the crap hits the fan.
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You used a bunch of good ole Police Detective Stuff.
You Politicians will say anything to keep your spying krap in place.Fear Mongering is your Tactic and so is Big Money.
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Apologies Mr President, I appear to be allergic to bullshit.
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Re:
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Fixed it for you.
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Re:
Impeaching this sockpuppet will not change anything. US Congress is in the pocket of commercial interests, and will need a serious amount of overhaul before it becomes healthy again. And I don't think this will be possible without a certain amount of bloodshed.
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What I am hearing is that the NSA has been collecting our data but couldn't foil the plot but then used the data to determine that it wasn't part of a bigger plot. Sure seems like they could have gotten the necessary court order to get the data legally when they needed it.
The issue is having to prove they need the data, and focusing on what data they need before they get it....that's the way this system is supposed to work...not let me have everything so I can fish.
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President Obama: NSA Surveillance Was Necessary To Make Sure Boston Bombings Weren't Part Of Bigger Plot
Agenda 21 aka UN /New World Order!
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Whatever
Also, I have not been attacked by a tiger, not even ONCE, since I started carrying around this anti-tiger rock.
This is not rocket surgery folks, just look at the proof!
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NSA Surveillance Was Necessary
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Re:
The Boston Bombing was the fault of the administration not heeding the warnings by the Chechnya and Russian governments.
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nsa
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