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Originally Posted by 142EBC
Honest point here... I'd like to hear both sides in a civil, open minded manner.
We need to protect ourselves from terrorists. Although I don't want my private life made public, I have nothing to hide. Also, out of all the possible phone records that could have been illegally collected, 2000 doesn't seem like that many, in light of an inexact science such as intel gathering. How many of those 2000 records were used to do anything illegal or unethical to the individual to which they belonged?
What alternative is available to find terrorists other than covert surveillance? As has been said so many times, Freedom isn't Free; that doesn't just apply to those who have paid in war, but also to those enjoying peace at home. There is a price we all need to pay to maintain our liberty.
Alternatives?
Mike
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Don't forget what we're talking about here. The FBI (Under Louie Freh and his bosses John Ashcroft and Alberto Gonzales) concocted bogus threats to use as cover for surveilling people whose identities we are not to know. Frankly, it reeks.
After all, there's the FISA Act. It does a reasonable job of balancing security concerns with civil and privacy rights. If I'm not mistaken, it's even possible under the act to obtain ex post facto approval (which might actually be unconstitutional) for surveillance undertaken in the "heat of the moment".
Bush ignored the FISA Court. Since the Court all but never declines requests it's logical to assume that Bush either believed he was operating outside the law or that he wanted to subvert the authority of the FISA Court - or both.
John