Comments on: Controversial spy bill advances in Senate

Civil liberties groups and Democrats argue a new bill would give approval to an unchecked surveillance regime.

[qwerty75]

Why not just do what they are working towards?

A complete authoritarian system to placate the cowards in our country..

We have turned into a nation of cowards, and have become exactly what we fought against in the 20th century: tyrants.

[David Arbogast]

Ignorant

If not wanting to be killed by terrorists who are motivated by a religious mandate to kill non-Muslims is being cowardly.... then call me yellow.

An authoritarian system? HARDLY. But for some people, there is no middle ground between the "freedom" to kill your neighbor, and the preservation of human rights.

As far as tyrany... we aren't even close to the abuses that drove our founding citizens out of Europe to America.

[Rikallos_Lykoudis]

This bill is completely unconstitutional.

This is suppose to be a free country, this bill goes against not only our natural laws but also that of the 4th amendment. If this bill ever did pass, the majority of the people would not put up with it and in the end it would cause more trouble then it was worth. You give anyone a little power and in due time they will abuse it.

[Rikallos_Lykoudis]

This bill is completely unconstitutional.

This is supposed to be a free country; this bill goes against not only our natural laws but also that of the 4th amendment. If this bill ever did pass, the majority of the people would not put up with it and in the end it would cause more trouble then it was worth. You give anyone a little power and in due time they will abuse it.
The only thing that this bill would really do is prove that congress no longer represents the people but represents their own bios views.

[heystoopid]

Oh no

Oh no, merely a bill to legalize, that which the current arbitrary and autocratic government of chicken george , the draft dodger who has an undeclared war on his own people(all disent is to be treated as both treason and disloyalty to the regime), has already authorized anyway!

The time to impeach the man is now well overdue, since he has decided that both the constitution and all congressional laws do not apply to either himself or his minions, and they are above the law as well!

Choices, is the land of the free and the brave, now under direct rule rather than constitutional law? from the inept, the defective and the incompetent who reside at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave DC?

[zanzzz]

The Specter of Specter as Enabler-In-Chief

The creation and backing of this legislation by Sen. Specter firmly places him back in the ranks of the vast majority of fellow Republicans who have shirked all responsibility in fulfilling their Constitutional responsibilities. After first speaking against the Administration's surveillance actions which appear to be illegal he now campaigns as chief enabler. Instead of acting to get to the bottom of possible abuses and criminality he offers a way to legalize it- vastly increase the power and scope of the Executive Branch and erosion of privacy rights. In addition Pres. Bush demands legislation watering down accountability for government sanctioned mistreatment and interrogation of foreign prisoners. He claims such interrogation is essential and has led to important intelligence that has prevented attacks on US targets. Meanwhile a Congressional Intelligence report just released after years of Republican obstruction reveals that unreliable intelligence extracted by dubious means was largely the basis for the now discredited claims made by the Bush Administration in it's rationalization for waging war in Iraq.
What we are sadly presented with is overwhelming evidence of an Administration that has made and continues to make profoundly poor decisions in a vast array of interrelated issues dealing with national defense and the powers of the Executive Branch. Many of the statements asserted in defense of policy decisions have now been revealed to have been made at a time with evidence to the contrary at their disposal. Also the willful ignorance and seeming inability to learn from their mistakes is deeply troubling. Their response to finding themselves in a hole has been to keep digging. Clearly Bush has no credibility left. Congress has no spine. Instead of trying to find ways to further subvert the Constitution Congress should be holding hearings on Impeachment for a vast and disgusting assortment of criminality perpetrated by this thuggish regime.

[wbenton]

Damned if ya do... Damned if ya don't

If they don't... they'll be held responsible for ineffective information gathering which was unable to prevent the next terrorist attack.

If they do... they'll be held responsible for reniging on privacy.

Bottom Line: If terrorism wins... we won't have any privacy what so ever.

Don't ask them to fight a war with no bullets in their guns.

We lost Vietnam because of this same bi-partisian BS!!!

Don't make the same mistake again!!!

Hackers and evil do'ers already have access to the same information which we're trying to prevent our government from getting.

We need something to even the odds out... this is the evener... thus don't remove it!!!

BOTTOM LINE: If one wants privacy... DON'T browse the internet... because privacy IS NOT GUARANTEEED!!!

Walt