[LINK] The NSA Mission Statement

[stephen at melbpc.org.au]

Karl thoughtfully writes,

> > This NSA document is(was) the National Security
> > Agency Mission Statement. 
> > [...]
> > What a laugh, you NSA cowboy idiots.
>
> .. someone who is trying to shoot you is a very dangerous opponent,
> even if, for the moment, their shots are all wide. And someone with
> a loaded gun should be treated as dangerous, even if they haven't
> actually said they are trying to shoot you... So some words of advice
> from Banjo Patterson (who was referring to the Boers): "Firstly, when
> fighting the Dutchman, male it your cardinal rule. Think he's a rogue
> if it please you: never believe he's a fool."


Thank you Karl, both are appropriate and interesting points you make.

May one make four comments?

First, personally I wish to say, please Link don't think I'm a radical
wishing to rant. I've been a government high school teacher etc for 34
years, and teachers are naturally fairly 'conservative' by nature. I've
spent a life gently suggesting 'obey your parents and the law'. Believe
it, I'm no radical. But, the NSA have stepped way outside moral conduct.
Sure, watch out for a person with a gun, but, morally and appropriately.

Second, although Australia is one of the NSA in-group of five countries
that share NSA 'intelligence' and are apparently not subject to hacking
as shown on the NSA Worldwide Cryptlogic Platform world-map shown here: 
<http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2013/11/report-nsa-planted-malware-
spans-five-continents-50000-computer-networks> why not Germany, Belguim,
Sweden, Denmark, Switzerland etc? Why just five white, english-speaking
countries NSA 'trusted'.. all the others being fair-game for NSA spying?
Where's good-will transparency? It seems an idiot way to upset friends.


Third, at least the U.S. has the good grace to be apologetic re the NSA:

The US Secretary of State John Kerry has said, (as Rowena Mason reports):

In an interview with the BBC, Kerry said foreign governments understood
the US president did not personally authorise all the surveillance, which
included tapping the mobile phone of the German chancellor, Angela Merkel.

Asked about the talks held with foreign leaders over the revelations Kerry
said they had been "very respectful, very understanding. We're all trying
to find a way forward that respects privacy, rights, that fights terrorism,
that doesn't interfere with people."

Earlier, Kerry acknowledged that the leaders had legitimate questions about
the extent of US National Security Agency phone and internet surveillance
revealed in stories by the Guardian and other newspapers based on documents
leaked by the whistleblower Edward Snowden.

There has been public outrage about the spying in some European countries,
leading them to demand information from the US about the extent of its
spying on its allies.

Kerry told the BBC: "The president has ordered a full review into what
we're doing. People understand that the president didn't order all these
things, this happened over a long period of time, it's been an evolutionary
process, we now need to define it more effectively and that's what the
president is setting out to do."

In the first likely structural reform of the National Security Agency
since the Guardian began publishing Edward Snowden’s revelations, the
Obama administration is giving strong consideration to appointing a
civilian to run the surveillance apparatus and splitting it from the
military command..

Ref: <http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/nov/12/nsa-files-mps-quiz-
counter-terrorism-experts-live>


And at this Guardian NSA website, we also see that people ARE rightfully
against such NSA heavy-handed, idiotic and mostly illegal cowboy methods:


Quote, "Europeans and Americans largely oppose their governments spying
on their citizens and those of allied countries, a poll found on Tuesday,
according to Reuters.

Opposition to government surveillance of private phone and internet data
was strongest in Germany, where Edward Snowden's allegations have caused
uproar and damaged relations between Berlin and the United States.

Seventy per cent of Germans said their government would not be justified
in collecting German citizens' phone and internet data to protect national
security, according to the poll by the German Marshall Fund of the United
States, a US thinktank that promotes cooperation between North America and
Europe. Twenty-five per cent of Germans disagreed.

Germans were even more hostile to governments collecting the telephone and
internet data of people from allied countries, with 72% opposed and 20% in
favour. About 1,000 people were polled in each country in early September.

In the United States, 54% of people opposed government surveillance of
Americans but US views on spying on allied citizens were more ambivalent,
with 44% opposed and 33% saying it was justified.

In Britain, whose GCHQ eavesdropping agency is alleged to have cooperated
closely with the US National Security Agency, 44% said government
surveillance of British citizens on national security grounds was
unjustified compared to 33% who said it was justified.

Forty-three per cent of Britons thought government surveillance of allied
citizens was unjustified while 30% believed it to be justified.(End quote)


Fourth, it's known the NSA conducted illegal acts, 'because they could'..

<http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2013/11/uk-spies-continue-quantum-
insert-attack-via-linkedin-slashdot-pages>

Quote: 'A German magazine also interviewed Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) asking 
specifically about Snowden and the spying affair against German Chancellor 
Angela Merkel.

McCain said that the NSA conducted the spying operation against Merkel 
"because they could do it. In other words, there were people with enhanced 
capabilities that have been developed over the last decade or so, and they 
were sitting around and said 'we can do this,' and so they did it."

He lamented the lack of Congressional oversight and added that Gen. Keith 
Alexander, the head of the NSA, should be fired.


So Karl, sure, look out for people with guns, but don't upset friends and
the world generally, by a normal idiot Yank cowboy mentality, in doing so.

Cheers,
Stephen



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