Thursday, December 22, 2005

Democrats scramble to say they didn't tacitly approve Bush's NSA surveillance. [Politech] House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi released the following statement today on her request to the Director of National Intelligence to declassify a letter she wrote to the Bush Administration expressing concerns about the activities of the National Security Agency. "When I learned that the National Security Agency had been authorized to conduct the activities that President Bush referred to in his December 17 radio address, I expressed my strong concerns in a classified letter to the Administration and later verbally. So she knew about the Feds' illegal actions, and kept them secret, but she asked them nicely (and secretly) to stop. And that's supposed to make everything better? There's a legal term for someone who helps to conceal a crime: accessory. comment () trackback ()  6:53:12 PM     The Hope That Terror Brings. I concluded some time ago that Daniel Pipes was the worst sort of neocon nut, (if you follow the Pipes link and see the endorsement by the War Street Journal you may already be convinced). I'm glad to see James... By Stephen Carson. [LewRockwell.com Blog] Pipes: "And I worry that not even a catastrophic act of terror will return a desensitized West to its post-September 11 alarm, solidarity, and resolve... And, even if mass murders do awaken the public, a next round of alertness will presumably be as ephemeral as the last one." Wolcott: "When even the prospect of terrorist mass murder is no longer a source of hope, things are pretty bad in the neocon morale department." comment () trackback ()  11:26:29 AM     Digital Content Security Act. bdwoolman writes "Congress is leaving a special gift under the tree for Hollywood's film industry. Just before closing for the holidays, legislators introduced a new proposal designed to curb redistribution of movies.The Digital Transition Content Security Act would embed anticopying technology into the next generation of digital video products. If it makes its way from Capitol Hill to the Oval Office and becomes law, the measure will outlaw the manufacture or sale of electronic devices that convert analog video signals into digital video signals, effective one year from its enactment. PC-based tuners and digital video recorders are listed among the devices." [Slashdot] It would also make it illegal for people to convert their old VHS home movies to DVD, because the technology to do so would be covered by this law. comment () trackback ()  9:14:16 AM

© Copyright 2006 Ken Hagler. Last update: 1/2/2006; 2:41:04 PM.

Email