No, actually, I did not in fact receive any such letter. I am in no position to expect to receive a national security letter. It would be ludicrous to suppose I had; I am not in possession of any information about anyone that the FBI would want to know.
But the subject of this diary is something no one who receives an NSL could legally write.
But I can. I am not under oath, I am not revealing any classified information, I am merely stating something publicly that happens not to be true. Then retracting it; I am not attempting to deceive anyone, least of all any government agency.
But what would happen if everyone who did not receive an NSL were to claim, on their blog or otherwise in a public forum, that they had?
A few dogs would not bark, that's what. Too bad such a thing couldn't ever happen on a large scale.
This question occurs to me, too: would the FBI be able to issue an NSL to anyone who had previously claimed to have recieved an NSL?
I will, of course, comply with any lawful request from any law enforcement agency. If I receive anything from any legal entity telling me that I need to delete this diary, I'll delete it immediately.
But all I'm doing is saying something publicly that isn't true, then retracting it. I am not under oath. I am not answering questions pursuant to a legal investigation. I am not defaming anyone. Lying isn't otherwise illegal, to the best of my knowledge.
Further, I am not organizing anything. I am not advocating anything. I do not advocate the identification of NSL recipients through process of elimination. I don't believe such a thing is even remotely feasible.
I am not, to the best of my knowledge, violating any law.
Isn't it funny that I feel like I have to go through all that to justify it? Isn't it hilarious that we have to think about whether something as harmless as this might break the law? Isn't it funny that a random private citizen -- who has done nothing wrong, and never made a choice that put him into a sensitive position -- might be breaking the law just by uttering the words "I received an NSL"?
If I am informed that I am violating the law, I will immediately and apologetically delete this diary.