Pentagon admits it: They use predator and reaper drones here to spy on Americans.
Man 1: We said we'd never do that.
Man 2: And now we'll never use 'em to blow up people.
Man 3: Wedding party!
I’m so shocked and surprised that this could happen. Why, it matches my shock and surprise upon reading the article at this link: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-watch/wp/2016/03/10/surprise-nsa-data-will-soon-routinely-be-used-for-domestic-policing-that-has-nothing-to-do-with-terrorism/?tid=pm_opinions_pop_b .
I recall predicting on Doonesbury in 2012 that American drones would be turned on their own people. Of course the “liberals” howled with frothing-mouthed outrage at that prediction.
Before I retired, we used to test drones over US soil. How else? Over friendly soil with no real chance of them being compromised. We’d fly them around dams, traffic, football games. All of it great practice. If you’re going to look for something or someone in an urban environment, you have to practice over said urban environment.
Just as we practiced infiltrating somewhere by infiltrating and setting up mock command centers and mock underground forces in US cities. Dallas, Atlanta, LA, NY, Chicago, you name it. We’ve done that for decades, so I dunno why people got their panties in a twist over Jade Helm. We used to practice infiltrating and exfiltrating on small, seldom-used county airports all over the US. We’d fly in on choppers and fast rope down, mock-secure the area, then be picked up quickly, all without the local citizenry being the wiser.
Remember, our troops are from mostly conservative areas of the nation. They are going to be unwilling to bomb or take over their home areas. Trust your sons, daughters, cousins, etc, to do the right thing.
Practice makes for fewer casualties. We all want our troops to come home. We used to chase each other all over Fayetteville, NC, trying to set up guerilla armies and contacting sources of information and “indigenous” rebel leaders and the like.
And how can we practice unmasking terrorists on US soil without practicing on US soil? We could simply pretend that the occupation group of ranchers was a terror cell and monitor them to test new techniques where the lives of US troops and civilians were not on the line in case a technique didn’t work.
Don’t worry about DoD drones, worry about the drones the FBI has. I would bet that the FBI asked, and was given permission, to use spy satellites to monitor the occupation ranchers.
As for the I-phone, the NSA can probably crack it, but doesn’t want to advertise they can. If Bad Guys think the I-phone is safe, they will use it more and play into the NSA’s hands.
The problem with the government wanting to break into encrypted smartphones is Snowden showed you can’t trust them to behave ethically. Once they are able to read everything, they will read everything. Except for the phones owned by the real bad guys who will use an add on unbreakable encryption scheme. Of course hackers will soon pick up on what ever scheme they adopt and they will start breaking in and take advantage of everyone’s personal information. There is no good technical solution, so why can’t we have a little privacy?
It’s pretty standard for every new military technology to get handed over to the narcs about a week after we swear it’s only for use against terrorists.
Remember, our troops are from mostly conservative areas of the nation. They are going to be unwilling to bomb or take over their home areas.So, bombing them libruls in the cities is OK, then.
The full list of domestic drone flights for spying purposes was denied by the Pentagon. The drones were to be used for search and rescue missions and DoD training exercises. The rapid advancements in drone technology and military use resulted in the Pentagon establishing interim guidance in 2006 over the user of domestic drone flights. It was this policy that allowed spy drones to be used to assist civil authorities once approved by the US Secretary of Defense. As technology becomes cheaper and more powerful, our privacy laws are not strong enough to ensure that the new technology will be used responsibly and consistently with democratic values.
Flash Gordon over 8 years ago
They got Bin Laden. That’s enough. Bring our troops home.
mattro65 over 8 years ago
I’m so shocked and surprised that this could happen. Why, it matches my shock and surprise upon reading the article at this link: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-watch/wp/2016/03/10/surprise-nsa-data-will-soon-routinely-be-used-for-domestic-policing-that-has-nothing-to-do-with-terrorism/?tid=pm_opinions_pop_b .
King_Shark over 8 years ago
I recall predicting on Doonesbury in 2012 that American drones would be turned on their own people. Of course the “liberals” howled with frothing-mouthed outrage at that prediction.
hawgowar over 8 years ago
Before I retired, we used to test drones over US soil. How else? Over friendly soil with no real chance of them being compromised. We’d fly them around dams, traffic, football games. All of it great practice. If you’re going to look for something or someone in an urban environment, you have to practice over said urban environment.
Just as we practiced infiltrating somewhere by infiltrating and setting up mock command centers and mock underground forces in US cities. Dallas, Atlanta, LA, NY, Chicago, you name it. We’ve done that for decades, so I dunno why people got their panties in a twist over Jade Helm. We used to practice infiltrating and exfiltrating on small, seldom-used county airports all over the US. We’d fly in on choppers and fast rope down, mock-secure the area, then be picked up quickly, all without the local citizenry being the wiser.
Remember, our troops are from mostly conservative areas of the nation. They are going to be unwilling to bomb or take over their home areas. Trust your sons, daughters, cousins, etc, to do the right thing.
Practice makes for fewer casualties. We all want our troops to come home. We used to chase each other all over Fayetteville, NC, trying to set up guerilla armies and contacting sources of information and “indigenous” rebel leaders and the like.
And how can we practice unmasking terrorists on US soil without practicing on US soil? We could simply pretend that the occupation group of ranchers was a terror cell and monitor them to test new techniques where the lives of US troops and civilians were not on the line in case a technique didn’t work.
Don’t worry about DoD drones, worry about the drones the FBI has. I would bet that the FBI asked, and was given permission, to use spy satellites to monitor the occupation ranchers.
As for the I-phone, the NSA can probably crack it, but doesn’t want to advertise they can. If Bad Guys think the I-phone is safe, they will use it more and play into the NSA’s hands.
Happy Two Shoes over 8 years ago
President Trump will run the NSA with your best interests in mind, nudge nudge, wink wink.
Theodore E. Lind Premium Member over 8 years ago
The problem with the government wanting to break into encrypted smartphones is Snowden showed you can’t trust them to behave ethically. Once they are able to read everything, they will read everything. Except for the phones owned by the real bad guys who will use an add on unbreakable encryption scheme. Of course hackers will soon pick up on what ever scheme they adopt and they will start breaking in and take advantage of everyone’s personal information. There is no good technical solution, so why can’t we have a little privacy?
Kip W over 8 years ago
It’s pretty standard for every new military technology to get handed over to the narcs about a week after we swear it’s only for use against terrorists.
Cerabooge over 8 years ago
Remember, our troops are from mostly conservative areas of the nation. They are going to be unwilling to bomb or take over their home areas.So, bombing them libruls in the cities is OK, then.
Mr. Blawt over 8 years ago
The full list of domestic drone flights for spying purposes was denied by the Pentagon. The drones were to be used for search and rescue missions and DoD training exercises. The rapid advancements in drone technology and military use resulted in the Pentagon establishing interim guidance in 2006 over the user of domestic drone flights. It was this policy that allowed spy drones to be used to assist civil authorities once approved by the US Secretary of Defense. As technology becomes cheaper and more powerful, our privacy laws are not strong enough to ensure that the new technology will be used responsibly and consistently with democratic values.