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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Because Freedom Can't Wait For The Next President

Thanks to the ACLU and Electronic Frontier Foundation, we the people of these United States have one last opportunity to stop the government from spying on us without redress. This is a short post today to provide you with information about the suits and links to follow their progress.

The ACLU suit is summarized on http://www.aclu.org/safefree/nsaspying/faachallenge.html and go here for a conversation with Glenn Greenwalk and Jameel Jaffer, Director of the ACLU's National Security Project.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation has filed a class action lawsuit against AT&T (Hepting v. AT&T) which may now be voided thanks to Congress, and describe their strategy post FISA signing here. Because I'm feeling patriotic today, I thought I would end this entry by providing the logo of the National Security Agency who has a SERIOUSLY PISSED OFF EAGLE on it. Oh, and that "key" that it's clutching in its talons (its prey of course)... that's the key to your front door and phone and Internet and financial information. Now, say after me... I pledge allegiance to the flag, of the National Security State.... with liberty and justice for all. I forget, am I supposed to say "amen" at the end?

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Stop Torturing Me!

I think there are two current issues that I am by far the most passionate about:

1/ Our complete denial that the planet is dying is we're going to go with it... and resulting inaction from that denial

2/ The use of torture by the government of these Unites States Of America

As I look through the thousands of articles in my Google Reader from all the major media and big blogs... I just don't see much on these issues. The Huffington Post should really just shut up about this election and start to focus on bigger issues. They now look like a left leaning CNN as they dither away the time contemplating their navels about the election and endlessly complaining about conservatives.

Arianna, as much as I love to read what you have to say... the truth of the matter is that if we have no oxygen to breathe then your (very justified) hatred of the right will be so completely irrelevant. Why? Well for those of you who don't know this... we get 70% of our oxygen from the oceans... mostly produced by plankton. If the oceans heat up too much, (some say by just 2 degrees) the plankton will die, and then for all you really smart people who can connect the dots... so do we. Call me crazy.

Thank you to Amnesty International for giving us a glimpse at the horror of water boarding. Have a look... perhaps it will cause YOU to do something now... not tomorrow.



This is a time for ACTION on these two fronts as I believe that no two issues are more important than the very existence of life of our planet and the complete destruction of American values and democracy that torture represents.

That's why I love WE... and that's why I love the ACLU, and that is why I love Amnesty International. THEY DO SOMETHING. They are acting and behaving as if these are extreme emergencies that must be fixed NOW... and not just discussed and then have a committee formed and then have a meeting and then write a memo and then hope for the best.

I have taken the liberty to share with you the blog page from the ACLU on TORTURE and encourage you to look at it, join and TAKE ACTION. They are calling for an Independent Prosecutor and that's a great start as it will make this THE number one political issue of our time as it should be.... not Hillary and Obama and John McCain. They are far secondary to this pressing issue .

Its really simple to make a difference. Go to http://www.aclu.org/safefree/torture/index.html and donate, send letters to your Congressional Representatives and spread the word. This is an issue we no doubt all agree on. But just remember... someone is being tortured by the Unites States Government with your tax dollars at this very moment for no reason other than to gain false confessions that our military then uses to justify its out-of-control spending.

Don't just sit there... DO SOMETHING! Why not? Is it gonna hurt you somehow to do the right thing?

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