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The law which authorized the NSA's bulk phone records collection to continue is supposed to sunset June 1, 2015 unless reauthorized. But as the New York Times reports. that may not be the end of it.
A little-known provision of the Patriot Act, overlooked by lawmakers and administration officials alike, appears to give President Obama a possible way to keep the National Security Agency’s bulk phone records program going indefinitely — even if Congress allows the law on which it is based to expire next year. [...]
Several executive branch officials said the [Obama] administration had not been studying that option and expressed doubt that Mr. Obama would take such a step, or that the Surveillance [FISA] Court would agree to it if he tried. Still, the mere existence of a potential way for the program to keep going without congressional action could recast the debate.
(Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Friday November 21 2014, @03:39PM
There is no one left to enforce the law. Not even the corporate media will call them out on it, because they're part of it, too. Everyone in the world now knows this (as opposed to cynically suspecting it, as before).
The French Revolution will look like a dress rehearsal when this breaks. I read about the 1% building their panic rooms, buying armored SUVs and hiring extra security, and it makes me laugh. As if there weren't such a thing as thermite, or as if there aren't millions upon millions of guns in private hands in this country (many of very high caliber) and widespread knowledge of chemistry and explosives to make all kinds of improvised weapons.
The citizenry have allowed them their wealth thus far because we had all been sold on the idea if we work hard enough and take calculated risks that we too could advance our material well-being. Except, we'd had it stolen away in the dead of night in a thousand ways, many through the corrupt finance system, many others through a thousand small taxes and surcharges and fees. And now it's been substantiated that this is in fact what has happened.
And it doesn't look like the power elite are capable of change, and have instead responded to this revelation by stealing faster and faster, more and more, hoping to swipe another hundred billion before the fall comes. So it looks like it is not a question of If anymore, but a question of When.
Washington DC delenda est.