Five more Kossacks have pledged to drop the telcos that sold our customer data to the NSA. That means 5 x $30K (low estimate of a lifetime of telephone service) = $150 K in denied future business.
The "Dump" poll is at http://www.dailykos.com/...
Breaking news - SF Federal District judge ruled today that
the government cannot use the "state secrets" defense to scuttle the Electronic Freedom Foundation's and ACLU's lawsuit challenging NSA's domestic surveillance program.
Go Judge Vaughn Walker! Judge Anna Diggs Taylor in Detroit, please take notice. You now have a legal prescedent to help back you up.
(more across the canyon)
Judge Won't Dismiss Eavesdropping Lawsuit
By DAVID KRAVETS (Associated Press Writer)
From Associated Press
July 21, 2006 7:38 AM EDT
SAN FRANCISCO - A federal judge Thursday refused to dismiss a lawsuit challenging the Bush administration's domestic spying program, rejecting government claims that allowing the case to go forward could expose state secrets and jeopardize the war on terror.
U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker said the warrantless eavesdropping has been so widely reported that there appears to be no danger of spilling secrets.
Dozens of lawsuits alleging that telecommunications companies and the government are illegally intercepting Americans' communications without warrants have been filed. This is the first time a judge has ruled on the government's claim of a "state secrets privilege."
"It might appear that none of the subject matter in this litigation could be considered a secret given that the alleged surveillance programs have been so widely reported in the media," Walker said.
Walker also wrote that he did not see how allowing the lawsuit to continue could threaten national security.
"The compromise between liberty and security remains a difficult one," Walker said. "But dismissing this case at the outset would sacrifice liberty for no apparent enhancement of security."
And in declining to dismiss AT&T Inc. from the lawsuit, filed by the Electronic Frontier Foundation privacy group, Walker suggested the case had some merit. "AT&T cannot seriously contend that a reasonable entity in its position could have believed that the alleged domestic dragnet was legal," he wrote.
A Justice Department spokesman said the administration was reviewing the ruling before making its next step.
The lawsuit challenges President Bush's assertion that he can use his wartime powers to eavesdrop on Americans without a warrant. It accuses AT&T of illegally making communications on its networks available to the National Security Agency without warrants.
AT&T, based in San Antonio, said in a statement that it values customers' privacy, but also recognizes its "obligation to assist law enforcement".
remainder of article on
http://my.earthlink.net/article/nat?guid=20060721/44c05140_3ca6_1552620060721166223524
What happened on the Spector bill? Did it pass? (boo!)
Did Judge Anna Diggs Taylor ever render her judgement as to the constitutionality of the NSA domestic spying program?
Is this poll appropriate for KOS, or should I move it to another site?
Life is full of questions...
Din