Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act

In the 2001 post-9/11 terrorist frenzy, President Bush authorized warrantless wiretapping by the National Security Administration with Congress further expanding the program in 2008.

In 2011, President Obama again expanded governmental surveillance powers and signed the National Defense Authorization Act. He released the following statement at the time of its signing: “I have signed this bill despite having serious reservations with certain provisions that regulate the detention, interrogation, and prosecution of suspected terrorists.”

Some of the 2011 bill's most controversial provisions include the military's ability to "indefinitely detain terror suspects, including American citizens arrested in the United States, without charge."

Now, in 2012, the Senate has failed to reform the controversial Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act.

It's time for Americans to write to their elected officials, including President Obama, and urge them to vote with the Constitutional Rights of the citizens who elected them as their priority. 

Find your elected officials HERE.

The TSA vs. The Rest Of Us

Those of us who value human dignity and the right to privacy knew that airport body scanners were a bad idea. With multiple documented victims of enhanced security procedures, it is painfully evident that none of us are allowed to protect our bodies, our dignity, or our privacy anymore. A woman who was detained by the TSA because they didn't like her attitude, a sexual assault victim who was forced to endure an intense screening procedure after the TSA thought they detected an anomaly in her bra, and a bladder cancer survivor whose clothes were soaked with urine after the TSA broke the seal on his urostomy appliance during a closed-door pat down, all have no recourse for the injustices they endured. Their only crime was attempting to board an airplane during the 'war on terror' era in America.  

This 2010 poll, published in the Washington Post says most Americans support invasive screening to combat terrorism, rather than support and protect their right to privacy. Screening advocates still voice support of TSA's invasive procedures and often consider those of us who prefer to keep our dignity as: unjustified in our outrage, supportive of terrorists, and people who have something to hide. 

"Taking Sense Away" offers a fly-on-the-wall look at airport screener training as trainees are taught that passengers with nothing to hide have no problem with going through invasive radiation scanners and, most importantly, they are taught that they “can’t trust the general public.” This dehumanization process creates an “Us versus Them” mentality between screeners and passengers which will make the use of full-body scanners a more common practice, body scanner manufacturers richer, the TSA more powerful, and personal privacy obsolete.

Rape Is Not A Women's Issue, It Is A Human Issue

Until the world stops viewing women as inferior beings who are undeserving of equal treatment and protection, brutal gang rapes like the one these women are protesting will continue. One expert attributes the high incidence of rape of Indian women to a "crisis of Indian masculinity." Some rape cases take 10 to 15 years to go to trial and, rather than condemn the rapists, the female victims are often ostracized and shunned by society and their families. This is not a women's issue, this is a human issue, and the world should be outraged enough to speak out against it.

Full Story

UPDATE 12/29/12: The 23-year-old victim of an hour-long beating and gang rape in India has died. Officials say the six cowards who murdered her are in police custody and being charged accordingly. It is interesting that their names and pictures have not been released to the media as this appears to be another case of Indian officials protecting rapists and disregarding crimes against women. India needs to expose the culprits to the world and finally start defending their citizens -- all of their citizens -- including women. Rather than scurrying to protect elected officials,

police forces should hang their heads in shame for the lack of protection they provide to the sisters, daughters, and mothers of their country. Rape is a shameful crime committed by weak men, and the world is now watching you, India.

Hooray For Friends!

                                                                   Three Is Never a Crowd