Proof The Bible Is True

In the United States, there’s a simple trick to passing legislation that egregiously violates people’s civil rights: give it a really nice-sounding name. We did it in 2001 with the PATRIOT Act, the bill that paved the way for the N.S.A. to engage in mass surveillance of online communications, and now we’re doing it again in 2015 with the USA Freedom Act, a bill that claims to reign the N.S.A. back in and end their bulk collection practices.

“Today, you will read all kinds of stories and tweets about how USA Freedom Act ends ‘bulk collection.’ It doesn’t.”

Rep. Justin Amash (R-Mich.) tweeted that shortly after USA Freedom passed the House by a landslide, and his words could not better sum up a situation where the public and news media are being misled by U.S. lawmakers.

The USA Freedom Act is being hyped as a prohibition of the N.S.A.’s controversial mass surveillance practices, but it actually extends the PATRIOT Act for years and opens up new avenues for more invasive forms of government spying. Its passage into law would be more damaging to civil rights than if Congress did nothing at all. To understand why, it’s important to note that the N.S.A.’s practices were never lawful to begin with.

Read More  No, Congress did not just vote to end NSA spying | TheHill.