sabrina 1

sabrina 1's Journal

March 25, 2014

Thank You President Obama For Listening!

For appointing the panel to look into the Snowden leaks in the first place, and for listening to their findings.

I and many others have been very critical of the Obama Administration on the NSA leaks, mainly of the meta data collection and storage of the people's personal communications.

So it's only fair to thank the President now for his proposal to end this egregious violation of the 4th Amendment, apparently agreeing with Civil Rights Advocates and other citizens who have expressed serious concerns about this invasion of the privacy of all Americans.

While not perfect it is a big step in the right direction

First it is an acknowledgement that this was never necessary in the first place and a positive response to the Snowden leaks which was absolutely necessary if the rights of the people are to be protected. It signifies that the administration has taken those leaks seriously, as they should.

This proposal doesn't address the CIA's role in data collecting however, but if this proposal passes it should make the next steps a little easier:

Obama to Call for End to N.S.A.’s Bulk Data Collection

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration is preparing to unveil a legislative proposal for a far-reaching overhaul of the National Security Agency’s once-secret bulk phone records program in a way that — if approved by Congress — would end the aspect that has most alarmed privacy advocates since its existence was leaked last year, according to senior administration officials.

Turning this gigantic, Bush/Cheney disaster around probably won't be easy, which is why I believe people need to show their support for every step taken to begin the process.

Commenting on the proposal privacy advocates are generally pleased to see the beginning of real reforms long overdue:

Marc Rotenberg, the executive director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center, called the administration’s proposal a “sensible outcome, given that the 215 program likely exceeded current legal authority and has not proved to be effective.” While he said that he would like to see more overhauls to other surveillance authorities, he said the proposal was “significant” and addressed the major concerns with the N.S.A.’s bulk records program.

Jameel Jaffer of the American Civil Liberties Union said, “We have many questions about the details, but we agree with the administration that the N.S.A.’s bulk collection of call records should end.” He added, “As we’ve argued since the program was disclosed, the government can track suspected terrorists without placing millions of people under permanent surveillance.”

No doubt the findings of the President's Panel that these Constitutional Violations have never stopped one terrorist, had a lot to do with this proposal.

To those who called the Snowden revelations 'old news' and 'irrelevant' it appears the administration doesn't agree.

So a BIG THANK YOU to Edward Snowden also.

As the article points out:

The existence of the N.S.A. program was disclosed and then declassified last year following leaks by Edward J. Snowden, the former N.S.A. contractor. The disclosure set off a controversy that scrambled the usual partisan lines in Congress.

The Constitutional Rights of the American people should never be a Partisan issue.

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