The limits of surveillance

[unhappycamper]

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/opinion/2013/11/07/editorials/the-limits-of-surveillance/#.UoRN83BHJj4

The limits of surveillance

Until a few years ago, the U.S. National Security Agency was so shrouded in mystery that when it was asked about its initials, the standard reply was that they stood for “No Such Agency.” The top leadership of the agency and their political masters must yearn for those days.

~snip~

The fact that the NSA is engaged in the mass vacuuming of data from every conceivable source should come as no surprise. Nor should we be shocked to discover that there have been violations of rules that ostensibly restrict the collection of data to foreign — “non-U.S.” — sources, or even that the United States is spying on its friends and allies. Contrary to the dictum of Henry Stimson, the U.S. secretary of state from 1929 to 1933, “gentlemen do read other people’s mail.”

The offense and outrage that has been heard in allied capitals following the most recent reports appear contrived, recalling nothing so much as Capt. Renault’s “shock” (in the film “Casablanca”) to discover that gambling is going on in Rick’s casino as he pockets his weekly bribe.

In fact, the analogy is better than most care to admit: Those foreign governments have been deeply complicit in either the collection of that intelligence, often passing on their information to the U.S., or its eventual use when Washington provides it to those allies’ security services.