ACLU Files Suit, and Publisheds NY Times AD

The ACLU collected 65,000 names in a few short days and place many of them in a full page ad in the NY Times. Unfortunately, they only made it to M, and my name doesn't show up :(. But the ad is great, so I thought I'd share.

First, and intro from the ACLU email blast I got this morning:

The ACLU filed a landmark lawsuit last week to stop the government from conducting surveillance under a new wiretapping law that gives the Bush administration virtually unchecked power to intercept Americans' international e-mails and telephone calls.

The FISA Amendments Act of 2008, passed by Congress and signed by President Bush, not only legalizes the secret warrantless surveillance program the president approved in late 2001, it gives the government new spying powers, including the power to conduct dragnet surveillance of Americans' international communications. And, by granting telecoms immunity, it has greatly harmed the chances of ever learning the extent of the administration’s lawless actions.

Our lawsuit was filed on behalf of an impressive array of professionals -- journalists, human rights organizations and lawyers-- whose ability to perform their work will be greatly compromised by this new law.

Our clients include The Nation magazine and two of its contributing journalists, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and more.

Because of the nature of their calls and e-mails, our clients believe that their communications are likely to be monitored under the new law. Even the looming possibility of this surveillance disrupts their ability to talk with sources, locate witnesses, conduct scholarship, and engage in advocacy.

The suit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York Thursday, and asks the judge to stay the implementation of the new powers, until its constitutionality is determined. It was filed on behalf of Naomi Klein, (whose recent book "Shock Doctrine" is a must read if you want to know anything about how the corporate elite governs us.) Klein stated "if the U.S. government is given unchecked surveillance power to monitor reporters' confidential sources, my ability to do this work will be seriously compromised." (Blog Wired)

The Ad: (click on it to find YOUR name)

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