I Am Beyond Sick/Tired Of Being Called An "Authoritarian NSA Apologist".

[UTUSN]

39. R#25 & K for, there's great balm to be had in JaneyVee's thread:

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http://www.democraticunderground.com/10023475

Strange how [FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: yellow"]the same people[/FONT] running around [FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: yellow"]calling everyone Authoritarians[/FONT]

Are the same people who seem to [FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: yellow"]drown out any dissenting voices contrary to their own very specific worldview[/FONT]. If you don't march in lockstep to their worldview you are mocked, shamed, insulted, and called names. It's getting harder and harder to tell who the real authoritarians are. [FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: yellow"]The "anti-authoritarians" seem to exhibit such authoritarian personality traits[/FONT] as mentioned above, while those who are called "authoritarians" by others are the ones who seem to actually exhibit traits of tolerance, open mindedness, rationality, and willingness to listen to factual statements and evidence before jumping to fear-mongered conclusions.

It's amazing how [FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: yellow"]the so called anti authoritarians have no problem worshipping someone[/FONT] to the point of wearing a mask of their hero's face while the so called authoritarians can appreciate having this debate without feeling the need to elevate someone to God-like status.

It's like there is no room for sane rational voices in this debate, it's just battle of the hyperbole's.

Why am I not running around with my hair on fire about this NSA story? One, because its fairly old news, two, besides Bush's warrantless wiretapping, under this administration there are numerous safeguards in place to protect our citizens constitutionally, and three, there is an overwhelming lack of evidence of any nefarious actions taking place. No one is suing the NSA for violations, no stories of innocent people being rounded up into FEMA camps, no unwarranted interrogations of US citizens, and no proof that the Govt is actually even spying on us. Has anyone here had a knock on the door and been interrogated? I certainly haven't. Anyone care to share stories of this occurring?

On the other hand, we can acknowledge how this can be a slippery slope and [FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: yellow"]welcome further reforms and safeguards[/FONT] without believing the Govt is coming to stalk our Facebook pages and read our emails and texts. Personally I welcome the idea of NSA hearings and am interested in hearing both sides argue their positions based on their merits. This is why I also believe Snowden should come back to the US, what better expert witness to take on this issue in a court of law than an actual insider. Yet, [FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: yellow"]running off to another country who would love nothing more than to see our country's demise should also be questioned[/FONT] as suspicious. A country whose president is actually the [FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: yellow"]ex-KGB head[/FONT], equivalent to making James Clapper or Keith Alexander or Leon Pannetta our president. I mean, damn, [FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: yellow"]if you wanna talk about authoritarians, look no further than Putin and the Russian Federation. Better yet[/FONT], look no further than [FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: yellow"]the Republican Party[/FONT].

Like I said above, more oversight is never a bad thing and we all should welcome it, but for the sake of sanity and possibly your own health, lets wait for facts and evidence before thinking the world is in impending doom because our Govt takes counter terrorism possibly a little too seriously. And [FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: yellow"]a little more kindness towards each other couldn't hurt either[/FONT].

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