French Government Not Happy With Recent NSA Revelations; Vows To Do More Spying On Its Own Citizens
from the if-you-want-it-done-right,-you-have-to-do-it-yourself dept
As the French government feigned shock and indignation at revelations that a spy agency would spy on world leaders, it went ahead and continued pushing its new surveillance bill through the legislature.
Yet also today, the lower house of France’s legislature, the National Assembly, passed a sweeping surveillance law. The law provides a new framework for the country’s intelligence agencies to expand their surveillance activities. Opponents of the law were quick to mock the government for vigorously protesting being surveilled by one of the country’s closest allies while passing a law that gives its own intelligence services vast powers with what its opponents regard as little oversight. But for those who support the new law, the new revelations of NSA spying showed the urgent need to update the tools available to France’s spies.This is the hypocrisy inherent to all countries housing intelligence agencies (which is, pretty much, ALL countries). Government leaders express indignation that their spy partners would use their powers to spy on them, while the agencies under their purview do exactly the same thing. On top of that, concern is rarely expressed about their own citizens, whose data and communications are being swept up not only by foreign intelligence agencies but also by domestic surveillance programs.
That's the thing that will happen. France will widen its (already-expanded) surveillance net because a) government and b) the Charlie Hebdo massacre. Never let an attack on free speech prevent you from introducing your own chilling effect. And never let a tragedy go to waste. These are hallmark government moves, easily understandable when you realize most governments prize power expansions above all else.
This is the thing that won't happen:
France should respond to the U.S.’s “contempt” for its allies by giving Edward Snowden asylum, the leftist French daily newspaper Libération declared on Thursday.While Snowden has applied to several countries for asylum (presumably France is one of them), it's doubtful the French government will follow through with a suggestion from an "angry, leftist" newspaper. As much as it claims to be righteously angered by the latest revelations, it is likely in no hurry to strain its "Five Eyes" relationship with a powerful ally. (It will, however, continue to antagonize American tech companies with protectionist trade laws and batshit-crazy court decisions…) If the French government actually issues an asylum invitation to Snowden, I'll order a proper chapeau from some non-Amazonian online retailer and eat it.
France would send “a clear and useful message to Washington, by granting this bold whistleblower the asylum to which he is entitled,” editor Laurent Joffrin wrote (translated from the French) in an angry editorial titled “Un seul geste” — or “A single gesture.”
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Filed Under: france, surveillance
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Just in Time
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"We can't let the US do more spying on our citizens than us...therefore we need to spy on them even MORE! That's how we win this game..."
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That's how much US c*ck France sucks...and now we're supposed to believe they want to protect Snowen from the US government. Sure.
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I laughed at the image this produced in my head.
Ahem.
I was amazed at how France went down the censorious, Orwellian route so fast and so hard after those Charlie Hebdo shootings but really, in retrospect, it should be expected, the west is moving towards it in unison. They just needed a public commotion for a reason. I mean this is not a surprise if you think about it.
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Wasn't France that stopped Bolivian president's airplane...
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Five Eyes
Five Eyes is US, UK, Australia, NZ, and Canada.
Only.
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Re: Five Eyes
The thought "Canada needs to participate in illegal mass surveillance of civilian populations in order to protect global Canadian hegemony." just sounds...wrong.
I thought you were cool, Canada.
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Re: Re: Five Eyes
Worse, I'm afraid. It's like Einstein hanging out with street gangs believing that doing so might get him more nooky than he was finding by himself. It's pathetic. Foolishly, Einstein hasn't twigged to the fact that they were only letting him hang with them because they know his wallet's full and his parents are rich so he'll happily hand over fistfuls to his new bros without worrying about it.
Why's Canada fighting ISIS when the Saudis, Turkey, and Israel are supporting them? Why's the US consulate in Syria accusing Assad of being on the side of ISIS? Nothing makes even a lick of sense in this mess.
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Re:
Is France a member of NATO? I know DeGaulle was adamant about keeping France out of it. Has that changed?
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Re: Re:
France is one of the original signatories to the North Atlantic Treaty.
DeGaulle's withdrawal from the NATO command structure was not a denunciation of the treaty.
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Geez. Japanese and other Orientals have the reputation of being "inscrutable." They've got nothing on the French.
"Are you with us, or against us?!?"
"That depends ..."
Voltaire giggles from the grave. "Try to back me into a corner? I'll show you three other corners you've managed to forget exist."
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Re: Re: Re: Re:
Consider this scenario: Five Soviet mechanized divisions are now occupying Paris. Of course, Washington and London are both naturally hysterical at this point.
Would you let any U.S. President from LBJ onwards have control of your nukes in this situation? Do you think London and Washington are going to target Moscow in this scenario?
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Five Eyes
> by the latest revelations, it is likely in no
> hurry to strain its "Five Eyes" relationship with
> a powerful ally.
France is *not* one of the Five Eyes, which are:
United States
Canada
United Kingdom
Australia
New Zealand
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Re: Five Eyes
It, like Germany, and a couple of other more or less white nations, do not speak English.
However, the Five-Eyes member nations are Equal Opportunity Employers, who are more than willing to accept servitude and tithes from white, non-English-speaking "Associate Member" nations, in return for a promise to not ruin their economy via Free Trade Sovereignty Suits, Monsanto Crop Eradication, or ISIL Horde Attacks.
Non-white, non-english speaking nations are allowed to pay an annual fee, for similar promises, but without any real guarantee that the promises will not be rescinded, unless they also supply mercenaries for the Five Eyes Terrorist Horde, under the ISIL In Disguise For Diamonds program.
Its not personal of course. Just Business as Usual.
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This is the country that welcomed the Nazis...
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Re: This is the country that welcomed the Nazis...
Yes I know you were talking about France, but America did the same thing in the beginning.
Only it was just the Top Industries and Commercial Institutions of America that welcomed the Nazi with open arms.
In fact, a few of your Top Ten Tycoons actually tried to overthrow the American Government for Hitler, but got caught.
They were never punished because they were the Owners of such industries as Steel and Aluminum and Gasoline, and threatened the USG with supplying only the Germans if they were convicted of a crime.
A list of these companies might still be available by examining the names of the US industries that were compensated after the war ended, for their factories in Germany that were destroyed by Allied bombing.
General populations never welcome fascists, unless the fascists wear a disguise, such as National Socialist Party.
Even in France, it was the general population that formed the Resistance, while the wealthy business owners and politicians and bankers cheered the German fascists' arrival.
Read the "Elkhorn Manifesto".
( No Tim, that's not about the Jewish Banking Conspiracy. :)
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