NNSquad - Network Neutrality Squad
[ NNSquad ] Why "NSA Fearmongers" Are More Damaging to Free Speech than Is NSA
Why "NSA Fearmongers" Are More Damaging to Free Speech than Is NSA
http://lauren.vortex.com/archive/001069.html
If you've been reading my missives for any period of time, you've
probably discerned by personal viewpoint that for virtually any
controversial topic, the reality exists somewhere in the center area,
and not against the pegs at either end of the meter scale.
Unfortunately, our culture these days -- especially in the political
arena -- has become all about extremes.
Either you're with us, or you're the enemy! Compromise is caving! My
way or the highway!
Complicating matters even more, we tend to congregate increasingly
with persons who already share our established points of view (either
in person or online), and gravitate toward opinionated news sources
that will further reinforce our existing positions.
This is the essence of "echo chamber" effects we've frequently
discussed. Another analogy is a loud public address system "feedback"
squeal, as noise feeds on itself through continuing cycles of
uncontrolled amplification.
The current controversies over NSA programs are perhaps quintessential
examples of how this all works in practice.
There are many players, and many motives.
We can definitely stipulate that oversight of NSA programs and
essential associated transparency with the public has become weak and
sloppy -- and is now creating collateral damage that is intolerable.
We can also probably agree that some associated NSA programs -- though
likely still legal in a formal sense -- have drifted beyond an
acceptable scope -- especially of concern given the oversight and
transparency problems.
Reported "leakage" of foreign intelligence data to domestic agencies
such as the Drug Enforcement Agency (and use by these agencies of
"parallel reconstruction" techniques to obscure the original triggers
for investigations) are especially worrisome, since they violate the
basic premises of compartmentalization through which we draw the line
between foreign and domestic intelligence operations and resulting
data.
Still, there is little fundamentally new in the "revelations" we've
seen that was not obvious or anticipated by followers of Congressional
legislation passed in a rush after 9/11, such as PATRIOT and the
Homeland Security Act. Many of us warned at the time what sorts of
programs were being authorized, but we were ignored and chastised.
But for all the information we've seen about NSA to date, there is
zero evidence of actual evil intent to be found -- in stark
distinction to the manner in which various foreign intelligence
agencies operate vast, oppressive, specifically domestic censorship
and surveillance regimes -- with China and Russia being two obvious
examples.
Unfortunately, many breathless observers of the NSA situation have
little knowledge of (or perhaps little real interest in) how other
countries operate. But in a tightly interconnected world, we cannot
view NSA or other U.S. agencies in isolation -- not safely or
realistically anyway.
This is true even if we ignore for now some of the "peg-huggers" at
the extreme edges of the debate.
This includes most of the GOP politicos who suddenly seem to have
gotten "privacy religion" -- even though they loudly supported these
programs in the past and actively criticized anyone who spoke against
them. We can safely relegate these members of the Grand Old Party
(and indeed, some Democrats as well) to the dissembling political
opportunism category. For the GOP, anything Obama did is poison and a
path toward implementation of their "go to hell ordinary people"
political agendas -- even if they lauded the same intelligence
activities under Republican presidents.
The "let the people fend for themselves and rot" contingent that makes
up a part of the "Libertarian" movement also falls into this category.
They just hate government of all kinds, and NSA makes a convenient
target. In their fantasies, they'll be out there shooting at the
aftermath of dirty bombs and terrorist nukes with their handguns and
assault rifles.
And of course there's also the contingent of well-meaning souls who
just fervently believe that spying is wrong, and that if somehow the
NSA could just be unilaterally defunded the rest of the world's spying
agencies -- plus terrorists and their supporters -- would follow along
in a glorious "kumbaya moment."
The facts are very different.
Foreign intelligence is gathered by countries all over the world -- it
always has been -- long predating the development of electronic
communications. Unilateral disarmament in such a context would be
unthinkably irresponsible, especially since the raw truth is that
there really are groups out there who want to kill us, there are
plenty of fissile materials floating around for really nasty bombs,
and while we may not like having to play spy for our own protection (I
certainly don't) that desire doesn't change the actual threat profile
by a single iota.
This is most certainly not to say that there isn't plenty of room for
improvements in the ways that NSA operates. As noted, transparency
and oversight is a mess, foreign-directed programs have been leaking
into the domestic sphere, and in our toxic political environment this
has encouraged the spread of shrill, false, and hyperbolic claims that
are doing far more damage than anything actually being done by NSA.
False claims that the content of all phone calls and emails are being
recorded, or the existence of "anytime, anywhere, anybody" instant
wiretapping capability by low level administrative NSA workers, are
but two examples.
Then we have the libelous, fallacious claims that major Internet firms
are permitting free reign of their servers to NSA or other agency
operatives -- false claims made all the more damaging by existing laws
making it impossible for these firms to appropriately defend
themselves against such allegations.
And the fallout from all this -- yes, triggered by NSA -- but now
aided and abetted by the fearmongers, is a cascading effect of persons
who have been unrealistically terrified into closing important sites
and otherwise attempting to withdraw into the cave.
For some of the fearmongers this sort of anti-Internet response has
been part of their agendas all along, often entwined with broader
anti-government sentiments.
For others, it's a lack of proportionality, or lack of understanding
of how tyrannical regimes actually operate (hint, I couldn't be openly
blogging in any of them).
And for many of the fearful, it's a lack of technical knowledge
crucial to separating the wheat from the chaff intrinsic to these
discussions and accusations.
In the final analysis of course, we all gotta do what we gotta do.
The range of circumstances that individuals face in these contexts
will cover the gamut from absolutely justifiable concerns to utterly
fantastical paranoia.
But my sense right now is that we're seeing a great deal of "knee-jerk
self-censorship" that may seem appropriate if you buy into everything
the fearmongers are claiming -- but is likely much less sensible in
the light of actual realities.
The echo chamber, feedback effect can exert a very powerful emotional
pull on all of us. So it might behoove us all to spend a bit more
time pondering how much of what we're seeing amid the NSA furor is
likely to be hard reality, and how much is significantly more likely
to be the result of hoopla, hype, and hyperbole.
An individual decision to be sure, but an immensely important one,
especially since if there's one thing that history teaches us so
clearly, it's that fear and withdrawal inevitably lead to darkness,
not to sunlight.
--Lauren--
Lauren Weinstein (lauren@vortex.com): http://www.vortex.com/lauren
Co-Founder: People For Internet Responsibility: http://www.pfir.org/pfir-info
Founder:
- Network Neutrality Squad: http://www.nnsquad.org
- PRIVACY Forum: http://www.vortex.com/privacy-info
Member: ACM Committee on Computers and Public Policy
Lauren's Blog: http://lauren.vortex.com
Google+: http://google.com/+LaurenWeinstein
Twitter: http://twitter.com/laurenweinstein
Tel: +1 (818) 225-2800 / Skype: vortex.com
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