U.S. To Keep Data On Americans With No Terror Ties

U.S. To Keep Data On Americans With No Terror Ties

The U.S. intelligence community will now be able to store information about Americans with no ties to terrorism for up to five years under new Obama administration guidelines.

Until now, the National Counterterrorism Center had to immediately destroy information about Americans that was already stored in other government databases when there were no clear ties to terrorism.

Pretty ironic what kind of president Obama has panned out to be on these kinds of issues, don't you think?

reply to post by loam


How come this kind of news never makes the MSM news cycles?
This is very troubling. I wonder who in Congress supported this measure?

reply to post by loam


The Bush and Obama administrations will go down in history as the most wasteful and dishonest.
They should be ashamed of their abuse of technology and man power as well as how they treat their fine citizens.
You can't tell me that there aren't better things they could be doing with our tax dollars!

reply to post by loam


Especially since he keeps his own past so hidden.

I hope that the 2012 shift grants everyone the ability to read minds or at least to be able to tell when someone has evil intents.

One of the truths of power, or at least social power, is that those who have it never look for ways to reduce it. In this day and age, information is power and the more information one can collect on someone, the more power one has over them.

But why is this a truth? Personally I believe that those who crave power, and who are prepared to do anything to get it, are drawn to those places and positions that allow them the opportunity to acquire that power. Unencumbered by the niceties of morals and compassion, these Machiavellian players rise to the top of these organizations - the moral ones in the organization are always at a disadvantage because they are hamstrung by playing by the rules. It is not that power corrupts as much as it is that those who are corrupt seek power, and those who are absolutely corrupt seek absolute power.

There are two mechanisms that prevent this sort of concentration of power in the hands of such seekers: (1) external and impartial accountability and (2) openness.

External accountability only works when it is impartial and fair. I remember on interview with one wall street insider who claimed that most of the problems we had in 2008 could be traced back to about 20 people who used their positions of power to game the system and flout the rules everyone else played by. The old saying question of "Who polices the police?" is relevant here.

Of course openness means a lack of secrecy. Although there are many reasons for keeping specific things secret, a general culture of secrecy allows for abuse of power since it becomes easy to ensure no one ever finds out about it.

Where will all this go and how will it all end? I have no idea but I do know that a lot will depend on people being less concerned about Snooki and the latest gadgets and more about their responsibilities as citizens to contribute to the effort to create a society that is congruent with the ideals it professes.

reply to post by loam


I don't think it's surprising or ironic at all. Big government is big government, whether you're left or right "the people" are always enemy #1.

Sadly those that vote for him might think he would be different.. or actually think he is different.. are delusional. And those that will vote against him will likely line up behind a Republican who will be .... completely identical. The way our Presidents act and the constant march towards an ever increasingly powerful Federal Government has rendered Democracy obsolete.. we've essentially had the same President for the past 30 years.

All I can say is this: "Let them."

It'll just steer me further away from getting suckered into data-mining garbage.
Like giving my email to EVERY single store I visit! (for their "card" services)
Something I don't do, nor will I ever.

What's alarming is the increasing push for all the technology sectors to flourish.
Everything is becoming increasingly electronic, and even people are asking, "You still use cash?"
I am unimpressed with society's non-combatant push towards electronic everything.

Oh well....




Looks like its back to cash only, no paper-trail, existance for me!

reply to post by Rockpuck

Originally posted by Rockpuck
...we've essentially had the same President for the past 30 years.

Indeed, we have.