Better keep quiet: 'Exclusive: Inside Account of U.S. Eavesdropping on Americans'

[Brk]

http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/story?id=5987804&page=1

Despite pledges by President George W. Bush and American intelligence officials to the contrary, hundreds of US citizens overseas have been eavesdropped on as they called friends and family back home, according to two former military intercept operators who worked at the giant National Security Agency (NSA) center in Fort Gordon, Georgia.

"These were just really everyday, average, ordinary Americans who happened to be in the Middle East, in our area of intercept and happened to be making these phone calls on satellite phones," said Adrienne Kinne, a 31-year old US Army Reserves Arab linguist assigned to a special military program at the NSA's Back Hall at Fort Gordon from November 2001 to 2003.

Kinne described the contents of the calls as "personal, private things with Americans who are not in any way, shape or form associated with anything to do with terrorism."

She said US military officers, American journalists and American aid workers were routinely intercepted and "collected on" as they called their offices or homes in the United States

[Sava700]

What about the few that prob develop some sort of hate against the US or the US Govt and decide to communicate bad things back this way? I'm sure the needs of the many out weight the needs of a few in this or any other case.

[YeOldeStonecat]

What about the few that prob develop some sort of hate against the US or the US Govt and decide to communicate bad things back this way? I'm sure the needs of the many out weight the needs of a few in this or any other case.

Damned if you do, damned if you don't!

If something happened against us....and "the people" found out the plans were verbally spoken over cell phone....and they found out the government had the technology and ability to drop in on cell phones...what do you think the people would do?

The key words most will choose to overlook...
"in our area of intercept and happened to be making these phone calls on satellite phones"

[Izzo]

http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/story?id=5987804&page=1

Do you really expect anyone here to understand any of this?

[Paft]

Privacy outweighs security. If you give up your right to privacy, you open up a slippery slope that leads to a nanny state that watches your every move (1984). Better to take the chance that a few might empathize with the enemy than to take the chance that you give all your privacy rights away to the government.

[Izzo]

Privacy outweighs security. If you give up your right to privacy, you open up a slippery slope that leads to a nanny state that watches your every move (1984). Better to take the chance that a few might empathize with the enemy than to take the chance that you give all your privacy rights away to the government.

The 'Git 'er Dun' crowd disagrees with you.......but Ben Franklin is on your side.

They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety

[Noevo]

Do you really expect anyone here to understand any of this?

Wait, you are in charge of determining the intelligence of the entire board now? Nice.

[Izzo]

Wait, you are in charge of determining the intelligence of the entire board now? Nice.

No, there's no need for a determination on it. I just give my opinions and they're reaffirmed by some of the posts in this thread. I mean, we could play 'what-ifs' all day long and according to the logic in here already we should let the government read our mail, inspect our medical records, search our hard drives and search our houses on top of eavesdropping. For any citizen of this country to defend the actions of this administration in their eavesdropping has sold out and clearly doesn't understand the Constitution or has little regard for it.

[Mad_Haggis]

Wait, you are in charge of determining the intelligence of the entire board now? Nice.

Hope you have a PHD in Haggis 101