NSA chief defends agency against domestic spying charges

Washington Times ^ | 7/10/12 | Shaun Waterman

[Nachum]

The head of the National Security Agency on Monday denied reports that NSA’s new data center in Utah would collect and store data about Americans, including their e-mails and web-browsing habits. The $2 billion data center in Bluffdale, Utah, will house massive supercomputers capable of storing and analyzing vast quantities of data when it comes online next year, but U.S. ArmyGen. Keith B. Alexander reiterated NSA’s insistence it does not unlawfully conduct surveillance of Americans. (Snip) However, “I’m not going to come out and say what we are doing” at NSA, he added. “That would be ludicrous, too.”

[Gene Eric]

As far as I’m concerned, the NSA knows about the warts on my ass.

It’s not the NSA that worries me. It’s the Marxists that are attempting to regulate our lives.

[ASA Vet]

No Such Agency Ping

[null and void]

What are you saying?

[ASA Vet]

It's an old inside joke. NSA = No Such Agency.. In other words. "I no Nothing" done in Sgt Shultz voice.

[SpaceBar]

I don’t doubt for a second that there are deep dark recesses within these alphabet spy agencies that refer to everyday US citizens as “the infestation” or some other similarly dehumanizing term as if they’re just playing with millions of white lab mice.

[BIGLOOK]

Hmmmm......$2 billion aounds a bit small for all. That would just about cover all the junk e-malls from the DCC and DMC.

[ASA Vet]

Who are we to doubt the word of "Big Daddy?" DIRNSA has never lied to us, or about us, before has he?

[Cementjungle]

I don’t doubt for a second that there are deep dark recesses within these alphabet spy agencies that refer to everyday US citizens as “the infestation” or some other similarly dehumanizing term as if they’re just playing with millions of white lab mice.

That dark recess is actually the oval office.

[ColdSteelTalon]

NSA - No Such Agency. :) Its not the NSA I am really worried about. The leaders set the tone and give the orders. The NSA just complies with directives from leadership.

[Brandonmark]

However, “I’m not going to come out and say what we are doing” at NSA, he added. “That would be ludicrous, too.”

NSA = Never Say Anything

[SuperLuminal]

Whew! I greatly relieved.../s

[Ax]

As a career NSAer, I can speak from personal experience. Those of us on the tip of that spear were constantly reminded that we could NOT collect or report on any communications with a US citizen absent a court order. Doing this was a dismissal offense and could lead to prosecution. We just have too many enemies and potential enemies off our shores to direct our attention inward. I’ve been retired 15 years now but I seriously doubt the ROE have changed any.

[VeniVidiVici]

While stationed overseas I know several times we had to shut down some good stuff once we determined someone involved was a US citizen.

[Jack Hydrazine]

How about Project ECHELON?

[Ax]

ECHELON exists but I never worked with it. It is my belief that is only targeted against foreign communications.

[Jack Hydrazine]

Do some reading about it. You’ll find it wasn’t only against foreign com.

[Grampa Dave]

“How about Project ECHELON?”

Echelon eliminates the need for us to spy on our selves. We monitor our allies, and they monitor us.

[Ax]

I’ve been out of there for 15 years now. If they changed the ROE, then I don’t know about it.

[BIGLOOK]

Echelon still exists as far as I know but what everyone is worried about is the reauthorization of Carinivore, which is technically wrong. Carivore was farmed out the Narus and became NarusInsight.....and it's run by the FBI. Thus it's run by the DoJ.

SOS.

[elfman2]

</i>”As far as I’m concerned, the NSA knows about the warts on my ass.

It’s not the NSA that worries me. It’s the Marxists that are attempting to regulate our lives.”</i>

Don’t worry about those Marxists. To micro manage our dynamic economy, they’d need huge fortified processing facilities running at multiple petaflops on mountains of data that could be switched over to, no... wait...