The Power of the Purse

They Say Beauty Is Only Skin Deep

But stupid cuts clean to the bone!

The brainiac above reminded me of another one...

Fathers Day

It's Father's Day and I like it.  I have two amazing sons who are making their way in the world and a granddaughter for whom I would joyfully give up everything in my world.  My oldest son has shown himself to be a wonderful and committed father and daddy.  It's reassuring to see that all the faults and miscues I committed over the years raising him didn't impact his ability to step up be the man in his family.  My youngest son leaves no doubt in my mind that he will be the same when he starts a family of his own.  God help the boys of the world if he has a daughter.  God help the rest of the world if he has a son!

Back in 2011, I was in a much different place when I wrote this.  The sentiment still holds true, but I'm happy to be in the place I find myself now.

Happy Father's Day!

Prism

Enough of the Prism stuff.  The genie is out of the bottle and there's no sense harping on it.  I have a few final thoughts about it, after which I'll leave it alone unless something remarkable comes up.

I find it humorous that many of the most vocal opponents are Facebook and Twitter users who essentially tell everyone on the planet every detail of their lives multiple times daily.  Quite frankly, I'm more fearful of Microsoft and Google knowing my personal details than I am a government too inept to cover its own tracks.

The question all the talking heads are posing is whether or not the whistle blower is a hero or a traitor. I'm on the fence on this one, but I'm convinced this guy will disappear soon and not on his own terms.  How the hell does a 29 year old high school dropout gain such unfettered access to such sensitive information?  But I digress.

If we stop and think about it, none of us should be surprised any of this ever happened or that Obama is such a hypocrite on the topic.  The reality is that public knowledge of Prism in no way limits its effectiveness.  We aren't going to stop using the Internet and neither are the terrorists.  Still, I ponder the inconsistency of the Obama Administration who has stated for months that the war on terror is over and that Al Quaeda is defeated, yet telling us we need this to combat terrorism.

Benjamin Franklin Saw It Coming

“Those who would give up essential liberty, to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety” - Ben Franklin

Personally, I'm not surprised at the recent revelations regarding NSA snooping on Americans.  The scope is a bit surprising, but not the actions themselves.  What does surprise to me is how many Americans are either clueless or careless about it.  I believe they don't think they are a target.  Take a look at the slides from the PRISM program below with attention to the corporate logos at the top of each.  As long as you don't use any of these services, rest assured your privacy is protected.

OK, so all the major players are in on it.  That doesn't mean they are all involved now, right?  Look below.

 

 Oops.  Well shit.  Wait; AOL?  Really?  Are they still around?

I'm on the fence on this one.  I'm all for the tapping of lines (data or phone) for suspected individuals, but this is a widespread dragnet that essentially treats all of us as suspects.  The argument that we should have nothing to fear if we're not up to anything almost makes sense until you consider the recent targeting of individuals by the IRS simply because they publicly express their opposition to the Obama administration.  Liberals with a "so what" attitude will feel differently when the tables are turned against them.

I have nothing to hide.  Are there websites I surf to, emails, and phone conversations that I'd rather the general public not know about?  Perhaps, but I'm really not hung up on that.  What bothers me is that the government has not proven an ability to do anything productive or preventative with the data.  Consider the recent Boston Marathon bombings.  Russian intelligence agencies informed American authorities with specific details about the bomber.  They were ignored and American were killed and maimed.  If they dropped the ball after being given one piece of very specific data, what makes any of us think they can parse through billions of records to find the needle in the haystack?

Can You Hear Me Now?

I'm not so biased nor naive enough to believe that Obama started the surveillance of American phone records.  I believe it was in full swing during the Bush years.  But Bush never claimed that his administration would be the most transparent in history.  Bush never outwardly stated that he would NOT implement or continue such a program.

Watch the first minute of this video and contrast the Senator's promises to what we now know to be true.  Listen to ALL of it if you don't mind facing facts.

All these measures are said to be in the interest of defending our country.  It seems to me that protecting our borders would be a more reasonable place to start.

Got Verizon? Got No Secrets!

Interesting how something our President publicly loathed has become something he quietly needs to enforce his agenda of persecuting political opponents.

A foreign paper (not James Rosen!) outed the Obama Administration's top secret court order to the National Security Agency (NSA) which demands that Verizon give the NSA information on all telephone calls in its systems on an “ongoing, daily basis” over a three month period. This includes calls made both within the U.S. and between the U.S. to other countries.

In 2006, Senator Obama came out against the Patriot Act and settled on compromises to it as detailed here in how own words.

This order only directs Verizon to comply.  What are the odds the other carriers aren't also involved?

You're still being spied upon by your won government. If you voted for him, you asked for it.

Executive Action

• Benghazi Terror Attack
  
• IRS targeting Americans considered to be politcal foes
  
• State Department trageting the Associated Press
  
• State Department targeting specific reporters
  
• Fast & Furious program kills an American border agent
  
• EPA plays favorites with environmental groups

These are all verified and documented executive level scandals that lead directly to the White House.  The mainstream media is FINALLY taking notice.  Perhaps they've grown tired of being trumped by Fox News.  But I digress.

Remember George Bush, the guy Obama claims is responsible for EVERYTHING that ails America today?  Bush was regarded by liberals as an ignorant and clueless President.  I find it interesting that despite his reported incompetence, naivety, and ineptitude, it was generally accepted that Bush was in on every scandal that liberals and the media threw at him.  Contrast this to President Obama who is considered to be the Savior genius by the media and by the left and yet he knows nothing about anything happening in his administration.  The bottom line is irrefutable.  Obama is either in on all of this or he is woefully ignorant of the operations under his charge.

Even the media has turned on Obama, many of which have refused to attend Attorney General Eric Holder's private "off the record" meeting.  I remember the last time a sitting President was in major hot water with all his "friends" turning on him.  On August 20, 1998, the very day Bill Clinton was to be impeached by the House of Representatives, American forces launched cruise missiles against an aspirin factory in Khartoum.  The factory owner sued the U.S. for $50 million, a legal action the Clinton Administration elected not to fight.  Makes me wonder what Executive action Obama will take in an attempt to divert attention from all that ails him now.  Something is bound to happen because blaming Bush won't work now.