… why the NSA’s domestic spying program is a bad idea, check this out: 

Opinion: Why NSA spying puts the U.S. in danger

It’s an article by a former NSA analyst outlining how the program is bad for the U.S. both in terms of constitutional rights and federal law enforcement. I’m not going to get into what I think of this program or the fact that the guy who ran it was recently promoted because that would be way more than the two of you would read. Plus it’s late, and I have a long day tomorrow.

I will say that I have a problem with one thing he says:

"Addressing the first point, people who did nothing wrong have been investigated and jailed in this country and others over the years.  Additionally, I believe that Saddam Hussein would cheerfully agree with the tired allegation that if you did nothing wrong, you shouldn’’t mind the government looking at your calls.  I think Lenin, Stalin, Hitler and the Chinese government would also agree with that line of thought.  Is this the company we consent to keep in the name of safety?"

I think just about any person in any position of power would agree with the sentiment as well. This is a pretty weak argument in what I think is an otherwise solid op-ed article. The problem with the "I have nothing to hide" argument is that in this country it doesn’t matter if you have nothing to hide. The Bill of Rights protects you from having to hide anything by requiring just cause for investigations and invasions of privacy. Aside from the fact that so many Americans seem to be okay with it, that’s what’s so scary about this wiretapping program: there is no check on the agency carrying it out.

technorati tags: NSA, wiretapping, Ira Winkler