"Why Should Congress and the Courts Care About Snooping If Citizens Don't?"... Uh.....What?

Originally posted by khimbar
Can someone answer me a question as I'm not in the United States?

Is anyone doing anything about it? I don't mean online angry posting, or letters to the editor, I mean actual actions?

Is anything actually happening? Are things happening in your towns or on your streets? Or is it still at the Angry Tutting Stage?

(The Angry Tutting Stage(TM) will be where it ends in the UK, if we can even be bothered to get that far)

I know personally I am at a loss to what to do.

I would do exactly what Snowden did if given the opportunity.

Oh boy, I bet Snowden is a trigger word now.

Oh well

Its not that people don't want to do anything. I just don't know how you would go about getting anything of substance done. I'm thinking the only way to get bigger things done is baby steps like this.

Its hard to do when every little thing is now extremist behavior. I mean, look at the media, they have been going back and forth saying he is a traitor, he is a hero, all they are doing is buying time until the next thing happens so it goes to the back burner.

Not much you can do these days. Occupy was a good effort, though the media demonized them until they ultimately dropped off the radar.

We need a million man march.

We should look at Turkey for what to do. Peaceful assemblies which will force the government to act. Whether enough people would take the chance of being arrested and beaten for freedom of speech will decide how it turns out.

We just need numbers. We have them, we just need to get them together.

reply to post by Wrabbit2000


reply to post by muzzleflash


reply to post by cconn487


Thank you all for that.

It's very strange to see it happening from the other side of the ocean. I'm relatively certain our MSM is playing the 'nothing to hide, nothing to fear' card to it's fullest and downplaying it.

Strange days, man, strange days. I honestly never thought I'd see the day I felt sorry for Americans. Not in a patronising, superior way obviously, I genuinely don't envy the stuff you're all going through over there.

Originally posted by webpirate

I would guarantee that there are not a 62% majority here on ATS who believe this topic isn't important. Just look at the list of popular threads for the last week or so.

We must keep in mind that this is a conspiracy website- it is expected that whatever the other percentage is, it is here!

I've been trying to suggest to people here to try writing out a rational debate on the issue, even if the people who don't care are not necessarily here, in order to just work out their thoughts and construct good strong reasoning, for when you run into these people in real life.

Because if all you have to convince them to care is "It is against our rights, don't you get that????" you are not going to get far in stirring up some concern! -and it becomes just ANOTHER issue in which the people separate and fight amongst each other... while those in power giggle and eat their popcorn......

reply to post by Bluesma


You're absolute right. There was once a time a long time ago in Boston where people said something the ruling government did was against their rights. And while the actions they took did help to stir up a more generalized sentiment against TPTB, at the time, all it did was make local matters worse, and left them with no tea to drink or stores to buy it from.

It wasn't until the crisis there had boiled over into full blown conflict, that someone decided to put in writing the common sense ideas that finally turned most of the Americans against their ruling PTB of the time.
And 6 months later, after this common sense hit the streets, another group of Americans gathered together and wrote the following words down, for all of their peers, AND their ruling government to see:

That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.--

I'm not that eloquent of a writer. A a matter of fact, most things that would come out of my mouth, or from my fingers regarding this would appear on ATS as $% $%$ ###@%^!! ^&&^%$$ %! ^!% !$%.

But by god, I would definitely have the largest signature on whatever parchment those more effective words were written.

reply to post by muzzleflash


Muzzleflash,

You are one of only a literal handful of friends I have on ATS.
Please don't be afraid the government is going to collapse.
It's probably the best thing that could happen for the country we used to know and love.
Not to say that it'll be a positive experience or a barrel of fun - more like hell I'd imagine.
It's really going to hurt when my social security check disappears, but I'd rather give that up than my liberty.

ganjoa