Thread: people, we gotta HELP these people!!!

Here - lemme share a "slightly different" viewpoint with you.

Let's start here: why do you think it is, that the government wants to do wiretapping, and snoop the internet, and stuff like that?

Well, in addition to the obvious, let me suggest something else:

Put yourself in the shoes, of a Senator or a Congressman.

Those people, it's like, everyone they meet, has some kinda "agenda" of some sort. Usually, it's a lobbyist, but it might some other politician, or you know, it might be just "Joe Voter" that comes up to 'em at a rally or something - but how do they know, that guy isn't actually a lobbyist with some kinda agenda or something?

How do they know, that the information they're getting, is accurate?

So like, what these guys do, "in addition to" the face-to-face overt stuff, is they have staff, that goes out and trolls the internet, and talks to people, and maybe even.... you know... nudge nudge wink wink.... scrape a database or two....

So, I mean, the short story, is that these guys need accurate information, to make well-informed decisions. Correct?

And things like the internet, are kinda changing the way that works.

For instance - part of the problem, is that these Senators - they sometimes have just as hard a time getting to the information they need, as you and I do. Sometimes, it's even easier for some subject-matter-expert like you or me, to collect information on something, than it would be, for the Senator's staff. So, like, people like the Sunlight Foundation, and the Center for Public Integrity, those people, what they do, is they scrape government databases (which are usually on very old computers buried in some long-forgotten basement in Weaselton somewhere), and they make them accessible to you and me (and the Senators) via the internet.

So, today, a Senator, if she needs information, can reach out to someone like Joe Computer guy out here in internet-land, and that person can then assist and participate in the decision-making process, by compiling information in an unbiased manner and passing it to his or her elected representatives. And 'course at that point, it becomes "just like anything else" in the stream of input, it'll get evaluated and so on -

But the point is, this can be done more quickly and more efficiently, in a cooperative manner, than it can, any other way.

The goal, is for our elected representatives, to have accurate information, so they can make well-informed decisions on our behalf.

Yes?

Thoughts?

Have you seen the "Hillary 1984" video? That gives some insight of things to come, if....

Gee wiz you people are sounding like michaelr, good job!!!!!

Originally Posted by nonsqtr

Let's start here: why do you think it is, that the government wants to do wiretapping, and snoop the internet, and stuff like that?

because there are bad criminals out there that want to destroy this country and bring it down like the WTC.
and since we follow laws we make sure that everything is documented and followed by the book.
very simple.

Originally Posted by sectionOne

because there are bad criminals out there that want to destroy this country and bring it down like the WTC.
and since we follow laws we make sure that everything is documented and followed by the book.
very simple.

Give up your rights, don't fuck with mine.

I didn't follow that at all, I must be tired or something.

Originally Posted by michaelr

Gee wiz you people are sounding like michaelr, good job!!!!!

:jawdrop: Shoot Me now!!!

Originally Posted by michaelr

Give up your rights, don't fuck with mine.

While many abuses do exist the larger threat is not intentional tyranny. The FBI for example was recently in the news for forgetting to pay its phone bills on court approved wiretaps. Bush, Blair and the rest got us into Iraq based on intelligence they thought was good.

The difficulty is that many of our elected and appointed officials cannot pour urine out of a boot with directions on the heel. This is the real hazard to freedom.