Change we can believe in
In a completely unsurprising turn of events (unsurprising, that is, to those of us who have never had any illusions about Opossum), the Justice Department has moved to confirm and expand the Bush administration’s doctrine on wiretapping. According to Obama’s DOJ, the government can spy on anybody they damn well please and can’t nobody sue ‘em for it. As Glenn Greenwald explains:
In other words, beyond even the outrageously broad “state secrets” privilege invented by the Bush administration and now embraced fully by the Obama administration, the Obama DOJ has now invented a brand new claim of government immunity, one which literally asserts that the U.S. Government is free to intercept all of your communications (calls, emails and the like) and — even if what they’re doing is blatantly illegal and they know it’s illegal — you are barred from suing them unless they “willfully disclose” to the public what they have learned.
Remember when Obama voted for telecomm immunity last year and the possums all said it was a just feint designed to lull the wingnuts? And that once elected the god-king would abjure all those nasty police state powers, throw open the doors of government, and serve cupcakes with rainbow sprinkles to everyone? Yeah.
23 Responses to “Change we can believe in”
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Cyn says:
You know, Violet, I thought I would get great comfort in “I told you so”. It is becoming increasingly obvious that the new administration is the same as the old administration. Oh, they talk a pretty good game, but the governing is much the same. And, I really don’t get any comfort at all. It just makes me sick.
April 8th, 2009 at 7:44 pm EST -
Sis says:
The Bush people made him do it.
“I think right now, the Bush people are bringing out their mission-accomplished sign, because they’ve not only gotten Obama to protect Bush and Cheney and others from any criminal investigation on torture, but he’s now gone even further than they did in the protection of unlawful surveillance. This is the ultimate victory for the Bush officials.”
I’m waiting to hear how this will affect Canada, because it will. OUr private information was in this package. But the major news media apparently haven’t got the story yet (dog-sled, you know) because the Obama news north of 49 is: http://www.theglobeandmail.com.....mment/home
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sister of ye says:
Sis, I’m disappointed that Obama’s idiocy will also affect Canada, because I like to toy with the idea that we in “almost Canada” (MI) could secede and join a country with actual health care and gay marriage. Besides, I’d like to think that at least my neighbors were doing okay.
One of the ironies about Obama’s position is that he was the candidate who refused to reveal anything about himself that wasn’t in his semi- (mostly?) fictional books – be it his grades, his job resume, or his birth certificate. People applying for work at McD’s have to cough up more info about themselves than the guy who was applying for access to the nuclear button.
Obama not only has Bush’s policies, but his spread-my-legs-show-my-package seating manner around foreign leaders. Like Bush, not only dangerous but embarrassing. Leave it to the U.S. to get tyrant wannabes without even an ounce of class.
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Keri says:
Cyn I know exactly what you mean. It just makes me ill that everything I warned about is true, but I wasn’t harsh enough- he’s even worse than I thought.
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Cyn says:
Keri, that’s because they keep using the race card. No one wants to be branded a racist. It got us off our game. That, and the misogyny. We spent more time swatting flies than demanding accountability from our so-called news sources. Plus, they gamed the system. I’m really not so sure we had any chance at all.
Sister of Ye – this line is priceless!
“Obama not only has Bush’s policies, but his spread-my-legs-show-my-package seating manner around foreign leaders.” -
Sharon says:
You know, during the election, I fought with a lot of Obots on the notion that McCain was not Bush V2.
Obama was.
We’ve got to fight back against this racism slur. How can being a patriot, being liberal, being open-minded and progressive…
= racism???
It’s so…Orwellian somehow.
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Nina M. says:
Amazing in so many ways.
1. That Glenn Greenwald is on an amazing roll. Bless his righteous indignation…. did you see this in the comments?
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@ csturgeo:>>”I am afraid that you guys are all so bent on proving your paradigm of how the world works that you’ve become blind to obvious alternative explanations. That scares me.”
You should call the ACLU, EFF, the CCR and everyone else who devotes their adult life to civil liberties and tell them they shouldn’t be angry with the Obama administration. They should be grateful. He’s doing all of this to help them, and help us.
Only you see it. You have a unique vision to which the entire civil liberties world is blinded. Share your wisdom. Go forth and spread the Word of Obama.
When he takes good positions, he is Good. When he takes bad positions, he is Good. The people who work every day for civil liberties are too blind to see this. Only you do. You’re his prophet. — GlennGreenwald
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@ csturgeoCan you admit that this sums up your view of Obama:
Bless my President when he tells me the truth, for that is good.
Bless my President when he lies to me about what he is doing, for that is good.
Bless my President when he takes positions I agree with, for that is good.
Bless my President when he takes positions I disagree with, for that is good.Here: my President is lying to me about what he is doing and taking positions I disagree with. Bless him for that, for that is good. — GlennGreenwald
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whew!
2. Amazing there’s no mention of the a certain primary’s opponent’s vote AGAINST the FISA cave-in that Obama supported…. no, that never happened.
http://tpmelectioncentral.talk.....gainst.php
“However, any surveillance program must contain safeguards to protect the rights of Americans against abuse, and to preserve clear lines of oversight and accountability over this administration….”
Quick! To the memory hole!
3. I believe we’re now going to reap the payoff for years of denial that there’s a right to privacy inherent to the Constitution. Repeat after them: “The courts invented the right to privacy. The word privacy doesn’t appear in the Constitution.”
Ka-thunk! I think we might have hit the bottom of that slippery slippery slope.
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yttik says:
Oh no, not the creepy floating messiah head again! Yikes!
“Obama not only has Bush’s policies, but his spread-my-legs-show-my-package seating manner around foreign leaders”
Glad to know someone else was disturbed by this! I’m waiting for the Eminem or Kid Rock style crotch grabbing to begin. Let the secret handshake of the Powers that Pee Standing Up commence.
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madamab says:
I agree with those who say Obama’s fulfillment of their worst expectations makes them sick.
This is just the first 100 days.
BTW – Obama ain’t ending nuthin’ in Iraq. He just appeared in front of the troops in Baghdad and told them they wouldn’t start coming home until the flying Unity Ponies all pooped Hope and Change all over them.
And so just as we thank you for what you’ve already accomplished, I want to say thank you because you will be critical in terms of us being able to make sure that Iraq is stable, that it is not a safe haven for terrorists, that it is a good neighbor and a good ally, and we can start bringing our folks home.
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Sis says:
$83 billion, and that’s just to the end of Sept. And that’s just the U.S. Canada is pledged to follow.
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Sis says:
Oh in case anyone forgot, or never knew, we have an extremely conservative gov’t in Canada. Anti-abortion, anti-birth control, anti funding for women’s rights orgs. Guess what: Harper and Obama have a unique (and very scary) understanding.
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Cyn says:
Via Cannonfire, via Corrente (google them), here is the real problem.
http://www.time.com/time/magaz.....html?imw=Y
“The key guideline was a simple message: “A Record Turnout Is Expected.” That’s because studies by psychologist Robert Cialdini and other group members had found that the most powerful motivator for hotel guests to reuse towels, national-park visitors to stay on marked trails and citizens to vote is the suggestion that everyone is doing it. “People want to do what they think others will do,” says Cialdini, author of the best seller Influence. “The Obama campaign really got that.”
Are we really that shallow? I say Fuck No. How do we counteract it? I don’t know.
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System unable to proove itself as anything other than bullshit « Free and fled says:
[...] 10, 2009 The Messiah decides its good to be king. Women should take over the government. I’m not joking. Posted in Uncategorized | No [...]
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Violet says:
Nina, yes, I saw Glenn’s comments. Did you see the one about 11th dimensional chess? The one where he’s mocking the possums who imagine that Obama is actually on some kind of Rube Goldberg mission to effect a rebirth of democracy? Hilarious.
But that’s what the possums have been doing all along. It’s their own special Fantasy Obama game, action figures sold separately.
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bluelyon says:
Dear FSM – I just saw a comment from one of my friends at Facebook written yesterday that said: I am SO PROUD of our President!
My reply:
For claiming “sovereign immunity” for the government? For asking the federal courts to dismiss the wiretaps case against the government and saying that we have no right to sue the government EVER? You’re proud of that? Have you been reading Greenwald lately?
Damn. That must be some strong stuff she’s smoking.
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anna says:
At least the CIA has closed its secret prisons (according to the BBC.) Not that Obama had anything to do with that.
Still waiting on:
Outlawing illegal wiretapping
Outlawing torture
Closing Guantanamo
Ending the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan
Passing the Freedom of Choice Act (which Obama promised Planned Parenthood would be the first bill he signed into law)Still waiting…dum de dum…..
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anna says:
As for people believing Obama was the magical pony of hope and change, and that Palin was a sub-moron, you can’t blame them too much when the MSM was relentlessly pushing that. I blame the people in the media most (great post on Tina Fey btw.)
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DancingOpossum says:
There have been some exploding heads at places like the Giant Cheeto, MyBO, and others, and even Keith Olbermann was moved to deliver one of his patented “special comments.” I refuse to watch him but I heard about it.
Then there’s Digby who has steadfastly managed to ignore the whole thing (last time I checked which was yesterday). The Kool-Aid, it runs deep!
In all honesty, while I fully expected Obama to disillusion his followers, I never thought it would happen this quickly. Oh yes there is still a hardcore 20% or so, similar to the 20% who still think W was a Great Preznit, but their howls of wounded rage are getting lost as the sounds of Cranial Explosion grow louder.
What I do wonder is, what will happen now? Mr. DancingOpossum is a fan of WWE wrestling and he says there is a recurring phenomenon in that sport where someone is a huge popular favorite and then “the crowd turns, and the turn is ugly.”
I foresee a deep and ugly turn for Obama when the horde revolts.
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bluelyon says:
Why am I still in moderation? I posted my comment early this morning…
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donna darko says:
The only 11-dimensional chess Obama plays is re-election and self-promotion.
Kossuckers and the netroots are so dumb they think they have to suck someone’s dick to prove they’re not racist. Time will tell they were the racists.
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donna darko says:
Obama is racist too. Anyone with two brain cells to rub together knows his economic policies will hurt blacks the most.
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Violet says:
Why am I still in moderation? I posted my comment early this morning…
I usually check the queue when I wake up and come online. But my sleeping and waking cycles don’t resemble those of any other human’s, so it’s a mistake to assume that I’m awake during this thing you refer to as “morning.”
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bluelyon says:
Sorry Violet.
