WH on NSA snooping: You can totally trust us.

[kentonio]

Given that the excesses of the surveillance programs started on his watch, he can certainly carry a significant portion of the blame. As can congress from both parties, and now Obama.

[Sava]

Doesn't your country have cameras everywhere?

[kentonio]

Oh I have more than enough blame left over for my own country.

[Sava]

Okay. It just seems odd to criticize a country for surveillance programs that are less pervasive than in your own country.

[kentonio]

Okay. It just seems odd to criticize a country for surveillance programs that are less pervasive than in your own country.

The CCTV thing is quite different, we're a much more urban society than yours, and we generally take a much different view on things like security cameras in public places. For one thing, most of the cameras you'll see here are business owned, although we do have plenty of council/police ones too. The only real fear however comes from the idea that one day government might use those cameras as part of a much broader network of public surveillance, and with the uncovering of these mass US led programs that now seems like a reality.

Don't get me wrong, GCHQ and others are more than capable of wanting to do that stuff on their own, but the US is paying them £500m a year to finance it and pushing them to expand their programs. Not blaming both governments would be foolish.

[regexcellent]

You don't get to say "it's different here because we feel differently."

[Sava]

double standards

stupid brits need to stfu and worry about their own damn country

at least we can still watch porn

[notyoueither]

Okay. It just seems odd to criticize a country for surveillance programs that are less pervasive than in your own country.

Less pervasive?

Yeah, let's ignore that every bit on the internet and a lot on phone lines is being stored, decrypted (when needed) and read or listened to at leisure by government agencies because heavens forbid somewhere, some one is doing something that doesn't happen in Chicago.

Here's a clue, buttwipe, if the NSA could not do to American citizens what they are obviously doing, they would pay the Brits or someone else to do it.

The problem isn't Brits with cameras, it's the lengths governments everywhere are going to monitor civilian behaviour. They would get a good jolly laugh about us, the peons, falling to fighting amongst ourselves over who's got the worst government.

Idiot.

[kentonio]

You don't get to say "it's different here because we feel differently."

Of course we do, CCTV is a strong crime fighting tool so there's a very real discussion to be had about the balance between public safety and privacy. The same way you tools think you need firearms to be free. None of this stuff is set in stone.

[Sava]

Less pervasive?

Yeah, let's ignore that every bit on the internet and a lot on phone lines is being stored, decrypted (when needed) and read or listened to at leisure by government agencies because heavens forbid somewhere, some one is doing something that doesn't happen in Chicago.

Here's a clue, buttwipe, if the NSA could not do to American citizens what they are obviously doing, they would pay the Brits or someone else to do it.

The problem isn't Brits with cameras, it's the lengths governments everywhere are going to monitor civilian behaviour. They would get a good jolly laugh about us, the peons, falling to fighting amongst ourselves over who's got the worst government.

Idiot.

The NSA doesn't have the manpower to spy on all Americans. There's way too much data. People share more information about themselves on Facebook.

Big deal. Emails are run through a giant filter and flagged.

JIHAD JIHAD JIHAD DEATH TO THE INFIDEL

There. Now you have been flagged.