Happy Father's Day
Glenn Greenwald of The Guardian: Tens of Millions of Innocent Americans on NSA Target List
Glenn Greenwald, the reporter at The Guardian who broke the story about NSA surveillance programs, discusses the information received from whistleblower Edward Snowden, saying the federal government is now trying to “scare the American people” to justify its “massive spying program.”
Edward Snowden: Whistleblower Behind NSA Leaks
Published on Jun 9, 2013
"The 29-year-old source behind the biggest intelligence leak in the NSA's history explains his motives, his uncertain future and why he never intended on hiding in the shadows"
"The individual responsible for one of the most significant leaks in US political history is Edward Snowden, a 29-year-old former technical assistant for the CIA and current employee of the defence contractor Booz Allen Hamilton. Snowden has been working at the National Security Agency for the last four years as an employee of various outside contractors, including Booz Allen and Dell."
Please read more here.
CNN: Dr. Rand Paul to File Class Action Lawsuit Against U.S. Government for Internet & Phone Spying
Washington (CNN) – Sen. Rand Paul, R-Kentucky, said Sunday he's looking into suing the federal government in the wake of what has been a tumultuous week for the Obama administration and National Security Agency.
"I'm going to be seeing if I can challenge this at the Supreme Court level. I'm going to be asking the Internet providers and all of the phone companies; ask your customers to join me in a class-action lawsuit," Paul said on FOX News Sunday.
"If we get 10 million Americans saying, 'We don't want our phone records looked at' then maybe someone will wake up and things will change in Washington."
The controversy began this week after multiple published reports said the NSA has been mining the phone and Internet records of both U.S. citizens and people around the world in a quest to prevent terrorist attacks.
President Obama addressed the issue Friday, saying the information gathered is extremely broad and that the government isn't monitoring the content of the data or people's names unless they have probable cause and a warrant.
But Paul said this data collection is by no means a modest invasion of privacy and in fact may even weaken America's counterterrorism operations.
"We are looking through so much data that I think it makes our fight against terrorism worse," Paul said.
In the end, Paul - known as a strong proponent of civil liberties - said this intelligence-gathering strategy is simply a step too far.
"I think the American people are with me and I think if you talk to young people who use computers on a daily basis, they are absolutely with me," Paul said.
Michael McDonald: "Sweet Freedom"
On May 25, 2010 - in my very first quantitative finance blog on www.wilmott.com - I wrote the following:
Please don't take your Sweet Freedom for granted. You must fight for it or before you know it your loved ones will be dancing on your coffin!
FreedomWatch: Obama, Holder, NSA, and Judge Sued Over Verizon Phone Records Spying
(Washington, D.C., June 7, 2013). Today, Larry Klayman, the founder of Judicial Watch and Freedom Watch, a former U.S. Justice Department prosecutor, and himself a user of Verizon, filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, over the massive illegal seizure of phone records by the Obama administration's National Security Agency. Joined as defendants in the suit, which primarily is based on violations of the 1st, 4th, and 5th amendments to the U.S. Constitution, are President Barack Obama, Attorney General Eric Holder, the U.S. Justice Department, Director Keith B. Alexander of the NSA, the NSA, and the federal judge who signed and issued the illegal warrant, Roger Vinson.
The individual defendants are being sued in their personal capacities under the Supreme Court precedent of 403 U.S. 388 (1971), which permits aggrieved persons to sue government officials when their constitutional rights are violated.
"Here, there is no doubt that this massive illegal seizure had to be authorized and approved at the highest levels of the executive branch, which necessarily leads to the president, attorney general and the director of the NSA. These violations of free speech, prohibitions against unreasonable search and seizure, and due process rights are unprecedented in American history. They make the fictional scenarios depicted in the literary works of George Orwell's 'Big Brother' and Ayn Rand's 'Atlas Shrugged' look tame, particularly when coupled with other burgeoning government scandals concerning the IRS, the equally illegal seizure of phone records of Fox News and AP, and other abuses of power. It would appear that Obama and his government 'yes men' know no constitutional bounds, and the courts are no longer 'independent' such that they will protect American citizens from this tyranny. This is why Roger Vinson, the judge of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, has also been sued in his personal capacity. As an Article II jurist, who is supposed to protect the people from the tyranny of the other two branches of government, his actions are as despicable as those of Obama, Holder and Alexander. It is high time that judges are held accountable as well to the rule of law and the edicts of our constitution," stated Larry Klayman.
To view the complaint, see www.freedomwatchusa.org. Contact Dina at daj142182@gmail.com or (424) 274-2579.
Please read more here.
Larry Summers, Don't Blame Iris Mack If You're Not the Next Fed Chairman
Just in from a colleague of mine. Somehow I got caught up in the discussion for the selection of the Chairman of the Federal Reserve! SMH!
Eight reasons not to hire Larry Summers for Fed chief
http://www.intrepidreport.com/archives/9793
FT: Larry Summers Has an Edge in the Race to Head the Federal Reserve
http://www.economicpolicyjournal.com/2013/05/ft-larry-summers-has-edge-in-race-to.html
