Quote (Santara @ Jun 10 2013 06:02pm)
I am for the rule of law and a restrained federal government. This is the government going after whistle blowers (which Barry is unfortunately wont to do) and a gross overreach of power. They have proper channels for getting data, and that means a court order from a security clearance (secret) court. That's not what this is. This is data mining every single solitary American, regardless of our rights. Someone should be fired, and it isn't Snowden. What I am NOT, is for propping up an unchecked and patently non-transparent government going to any lengths "to keep us safe" when they have already done egregious harm to the rights we hold dear.
/e
https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn2/970850_486468291427147_502908344_n.jpg
The government disagrees and says its well within their constitutional authority, that there is oversight, and that you're just an unsupported minority viewpoint (the majority of Americans support the governments access to this data) that won't hold up in the courts.
I'm inclined to agree with them, not only is this a constitutional exercise of their legitimate authority, but it just makes sense. Unless you're involved in something illicit, there's no reason to suppose that the government is interested in what you're doing, and they still need a warrant to access your data even after they've filed it.