The ACLU submitted a FOIA request to obtain the Obama administration's policy on intercepting text messages sent to and from cell phones. This is the document they received - here [.pdf] - from the Most Transparent Administration Ever™. It's hard to believe that the DOJ isn't mischievously cackling at their own brazenly displayed contempt as they do these things.For those of you reading on the few remaining mobile devices on which .pdf readers may not be universally available, take it from me: all 15 pages of the requested document are wholly redacted. Yep. Fifteen solid black pages, thanks to your sadly misnamed "Justice" department.
I do not believe this response complies with the spirit of the FOIA. But that seems to be the nature of American government these days: the executive branch does whatever it damned well pleases, and the rest of us suck on it and "like" it.
Remind me: why did I ever vote for this prez?
I so don't want to say "I told you so." Some good people truly hoped it wouldn't be true that Obama is a greater evil.
ReplyDeletekarmanot, if the implied conclusion of your last sentence is "than Romney", I consider that far, far from a demonstrated fact. To this point, Obama has shown primarily that he can follow the more pernicious of GeeDubya Bush's activities, occasionally "improving" on them (e.g., greater and longer violations of the Bill of Rights). But if Romney had become president, I think it not unlikely that we would have an open dictatorship, and slavery (by class, not race) as a daily fact of life. We're not quite there yet.
DeleteIt may seem that not much holds Obama back from the worst he could do, until you realize that his handlers might deprive him of some of his promised post-presidency rewards if he stirs up the population too egregiously. His apparent goal, IMHO, is not merely to perpetrate a totalitarian reign, but also to leave a docile population as he departs office.
We live in end times of a sort. I suppose the most calming way to live my part through it is to return to return to memory, write the stories of our human passion, which we have left behind, love and make art.
ReplyDeletekarmanot, that's as good an approach as any. Politics seems pretty ineffective these days. I have to remind myself that there was a time when it did make a difference... and that the first time a GOPer takes the presidency (I almost said "is elected," but that's a different matter), it's probably all over for the US as the "land of the free." I do what I can, and try not to get too upset about what I can't do.
DeleteYou voted for this president because the alternative was either a) a mentally insane elderloon in 2008, or b) a morality-free magic underwear wearing lizard person from planet Sociopath in 2012.
ReplyDeleteI did not vote for Obama in the Democratic primaries in either year, but you'll have to excuse me for voting for the lesser of two evils. There just wasn't much choice other than a symbolic vote for some third party that had no chance of winning due to the tyranny of math (darn that 1+1=2 identity! Why can't it be 1+1=3?!).
-BT
'tux, that's a succinct summary of my own reasons... and actions. In 2008, I voted for Hillary, but the Obama machine (cult?) was overwhelming, perhaps because after 8 years of GeeDubya, people were desperate. But when push came to shove in 2012, like you, I voted for the apparent lesser of two evils. As I noted above, the greater evil would have, almost with certainty, sunk the ship of state. I'm not ready for that.
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