[Dialogue] They Don't Tell Him Anything

[Harry Wainwright]

Colleagues, here it is from Molly. Peace, Harry 
  _____  




Published on Wednesday, January 4, 2006 by The Free Press
<http://www.freepress.org>  

They Don't Tell Him Anything 

by Molly Ivins

My theory is that they don't tell him anything, that's why the president
keeps sounding like he doesn't know what he's talking about. 

There he was at Brooke Army Medical Center over the weekend, once again
getting it wrong: "I can say that if somebody from al-Qaida's calling you,
we'd like to know why. In the meantime, this program is conscious of
people's civil liberties, as am I. This is a limited program ... I repeat,
limited. And it's limited to calls from outside the United States, to calls
within the United States." 

So then the White House had to go back and explain that, well, no, actually,
the National Security Agency's domestic spying program is not limited to
calls from outside the United States, or to calls from people known or even
suspected of being with al-Qaida. Turns out thousands of Americans and
resident foreigners have been or are being monitored and recorded by the
NSA. It's more like information-mining, which is what, you may recall, the
administration said it would not do. But now Bush has to investigate The New
York Times because Bush has been breaking the law, you see? 

I really don't think he'd sound like an idiot if they kept him informed. He
would, however, still sound like a kid trying to get out of trouble by
tattling on something Billy did: "My personal opinion is it was a shameful
act for someone to disclose this very important program (the NSA
surveillance program) in a time of war. The fact that we're discussing this
program is helping the enemy." 

There he goes again. He is being deceitful and insincere. Bush and Co. have
broken the law, and furthermore, it was completely unnecessary to do so. The
Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act is not a hindrance to tracking down
al-Qaida -- every objection to its requirements is easily refuted. 

So Bush breaks a law he didn't remotely need to and then denounces anyone
who discusses this as helping the enemy. Come on. It's so stupid. The choice
is not between a police state and another al-Qaida attack. (Speaking of
disingenuous, if you wanted to make this country safer from terrorist
attack, you'd do a lot better to trade in the NSA spy program for some
sensible precautions at chemical plants, or making the Department of
Homeland Security into something resembling an effective agency.) 

I love the way we always start secret spy programs with great vows that the
information shall be guarded and the innocent protected -- and it turns out
one of the first to make use to the NSA program for his own purposes was
that parfait, gentil soul of discretion John Bolton, the Godzilla diplomat.
Came out during his confirmation hearings: Bolton -- no one's idea of a
judicious, reticent man -- called on the NSA 10 times to identify sources he
wanted the names of, presumably in connection with NSA's shamelessly
undercover spying on the United Nations just before the Iraq War started. 

Now, look at how this stuff spreads. We're only talking about the NSA, a
top-security spy agency, super-secret -- surely it can hang onto information
without having it leak all over hell and gone, right? Wrong. Also in the
business of spying on American citizens are the Pentagon, the Federal Bureau
of Investigation, the Department of Homeland Security and dozens of private
contractors. 

Do you remember a parlor game that was popular a few years ago called "Six
Degrees of Kevin Bacon"? The game was to name any actor and then see who
could connect him to the actor Kevin Bacon in the least number of moves. For
example, Elvis Presley: Presley once appeared in a film with Ed Asner, Ed
Asner later appeared in a film with Kevin Bacon, therefore Presley has a
Bacon score of two. 

How long do you think it would take to connect you to Osama bin Laden? 

Another reason to be deeply worried about a huge domestic spying operation
is that it will inevitably be manned by nincompoops. Just take, for example,
this lovely 2003 memo from an FBI agent railing at what he perceived as the
dreadful restraints by John Ashcroft's Justice Department: "While radical
militant librarians kicks us around, true terrorists benefit from
(Justice's) failure to let us the tools given to us." 

Yep, time after time, it's those radical militant librarians impeding those
pitiful, helpless agents at the FBI. 

Speaking of helpless FBI agents, in a recent column I misattributed the
FBI's fine program of spying on vegans and People for the Ethical Treatment
of Animals to the NSA. I'm sure both agencies would appreciate a correction.


P.S. -- You can always suggest to the radical militant librarians that
instead of saying, "Shhhh!' they yell, "Shut up!" 

Molly Ivins is a syndicated columnist based in Washington. 

C 2006 Creators Syndicate Inc.

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