End the hissy fit! It has long been known that there are agencies and individuals in our Government that have spied and will continue to spy
on us, as we exercise our constitutionally-protected rights. They have always been associated with a police agency, spy agency, or private contractor hired to spy on us. This is nothing new; what is new is the technology.
Let’s look at some examples from the past. In the early days of the United States Labor movement, Pinkerton spies were hired by corporations and police jurisdictions to spy on the labor organizers. Not only did they spy, but they also planted false evidence. They would go so far as to attempt to provoke violence. You might dismiss this as “ancient history.” So, let’s look at the more recent past.
J. Edgar Hoover, the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), spied on any politician that might cost him his job. He
kept track of who J. F. K. was sleeping with, etc,. so he could expose or blackmail any Senator, Congressman, or other who would be prone to exposing his deceit and incompetence. He spied on the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and Martin Luther King, Jr., in particular.
During the McCarthy era, the FBI and Hoover never bothered the John Birch Society founded by the Koch Brothers’ father. They made millions helping Uncle Joe Stalin develop the Soviet’s oil fields, but the FBI spied on any progressive or labor organizations.
Closer to our own time, Government agents spied on the anti-Vietnam War movement. At the time, I was an Assistant Professor of English and one of the two faculty advisors to the WIU Student Government Association. I remember the provocateurs trying to get the student demonstrators to set fire to the University President’s Mansion. Dr. Karl Marx, the other advisor, and I talked them out of doing it. It was a set up, and we were quite aware of it! Result: no fire, no arrest, just a peaceful demonstration and anti-war speeches.
This spying became more official policy. Back in 1958, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) was created. The mission of this agency’s Information Awareness Office is to “imagine, apply, integrate, demonstrate, and transition information technologies, components, and prototype closed-loop information systems, that will counter asymmetric threats by
achieving total information awareness that is useful for preemption, National security warning, and National security decision making” (from their website.)
This is officialese for “spy on everyone, no exceptions.”
Can we trust such an agency? Good question! It was headed-up by a retired Navy Admiral, John M. Poindexter, who was the National Security Advisor to President Ronald Reagan. He was convicted of conspiracy, lying to Congress, defrauding the Government, and destroying evidence in what had come to be known as the Iran-Contra Scandal. Unfortunately, because
Congress had given him a grant of immunity in exchange for his candid testimony (even though his testimony was a series of lies) an appeals court overturned his conviction.
So, Edward Snowden didn’t reveal anything we shouldn’t have already known. Perhaps he gave more graphic details. Still, we should have all been aware this. We aren’t always “the good guys.” By “we.” I mean our Government. Nor do we always follow the “rule of law.” We had a CIA-run program of “renditioning,” where people were kidnapped, flown to foreign destinations, and tortured.
Yet we invoke this “rule of law” to tell the Russians they must extradite Snowden to the U. S. to stand trial, while not allowing the Guantanamo detainees to have a fair trial and holding them in violation of International Law.
I can understand the Tea Party being blindly fed-up with “totalitarian Government” and the NRA being paranoid about guns. Guns will not defend our democracy, or whatever is left of it. Just look at Syria, and you can see what violence gets you. Being blindly anti-Government and parroting Reagan’s line that Government is the problem will not solve the problem. Government decisions are made by people. We need transparency and accountability in Government. We need an end to secrecy.
The only way we will get good governance is to be well informed and willing to participate in nonviolent protest; be willing to refuse
cooperation with evil. Our examples are the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., Dorothy Day, Frs. Phillip and Daniel Barrigan, and still going are Frs. John Dear and Roy Bourgeoes, et al.
They realize that unjust laws should be broken. They realize that “just following orders” is not a valid defense for crimes against humanity. It takes discipline and courage to look a superior in the eye and inform him/her that their order/request is illegal/immoral, and you are not about to execute it.
Did the Nazi guards at Dachau really think it was right to imprison and torture those in prison there? Did the police at Selma, AL, think it was really moral to charge the peaceful civil rights demonstrators and club them? Did the South African police really believe that their attack on children at Soweto was the right thing to do?
I’m not talking about some “pie in the sky” scheme. I’m talking about a social ethic on the part of a whole population. Holland and
Denmark come to mind. The Dutch deliberately blew up their dykes to thwart the advance of Nazi Germany’s forces. The Danes showed the same resistance and non-cooperation which saved many Jews from the death chambers. Genuine peaceful protest and non-cooperation with evil can bring about change. The protest against the Vietnam War did force President Nixon to the negotiations table; the leak of the Pentagon Papers did expose the official lies.
Conservatives have always realized that where there is power, there is a potential for abuse. Nothing checks the abuse of power like exposure. That is why we need a strong, free press, “Sunshine Laws,” whistleblowers and protection for them, independent inspectors, and strong sanctions for those caught misusing and abusing their power. In a democracy, power exists to serve the common good and not the wealthy and connected few.
So, perhaps some good will come from Edward Snowden’s revelation–which is really more a reminder. Perhaps the so-called Patriot Act–which is not at all patriotic–should be repealed. Perhaps the negotiation of “trade treaties” in secret should end.
I’m afraid that what the public doesn’t know can hurt them. Let’s end the secrecy now!