METADATA IS MORE INTRUSIVE! REPEAT: METADATA IS MORE INTRUSIVE!

[neohippie]

57. But Greenwald said that all calls are also stored not just metadata and they can go back 7 years

I think you are not paying attention completely...
This article with an interview with a counterterrorism official says that the meta-data is collected in a blanket fashion and that all calls are also stored, but that they can only go back and listen the calls when a FISA warrant has been issued but there is no warrant for the blanket collection of all our calls, texts, emails, chats, etc...


http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/may/04/telephone-calls-recorded-fbi-boston

On Wednesday night, Burnett interviewed Tim Clemente, a former FBI counterterrorism agent, about whether the FBI would be able to discover the contents of past telephone conversations between the two. He quite clearly insisted that they could:

BURNETT: Tim, is there any way, obviously, there is a voice mail they can try to get the phone companies to give that up at this point. It's not a voice mail. It's just a conversation. There's no way they actually can find out what happened, right, unless she tells them?

CLEMENTE: "No, there is a way. We certainly have ways in national security investigations to find out exactly what was said in that conversation. It's not necessarily something that the FBI is going to want to present in court, but it may help lead the investigation and/or lead to questioning of her. We certainly can find that out.

BURNETT: "So they can actually get that? People are saying, look, that is incredible.

CLEMENTE: "No, welcome to America. All of that stuff is being captured as we speak whether we know it or like it or not."

"All of that stuff" - meaning every telephone conversation Americans have with one another on US soil, with or without a search warrant - "is being captured as we speak".

On Thursday night, Clemente again appeared on CNN, this time with host Carol Costello, and she asked him about those remarks. He reiterated what he said the night before but added expressly that "all digital communications in the past" are recorded and stored: