They're Mining Gold In Them Their Phone Numbers.
Joe American
05/12/2006

Bush claims they are not data mining; using phone records of American citizen's looking for calling patterns without a warrant, without suspicion of any criminal or terrorist activity is data mining and they have hit the mother load. A phone number can be used to match a person or persons to an address, which can be linked to social security numbers in the IRS database. It could also be linked to other databases including but not limited to state drivers license records as well as state and federal voter and tax records for that address. With a phone number, an address, a drivers license number and social security number any transaction involving the phone number, the residents at the address, drivers license number listed at the address or the social security numbers listed at that address could be tracked. It's great for tracking normal every day citizen's financial, legal and other transactions. How useful the information will be in stopping terrorist is hard to say.

One problem with the theory that it will help catch terrorist is; with the NSA tracking phone use why would terrorist use a phone? Terrorist and other bad guys know phones can be bugged and cell phones can track your location using the GPS system embedded in cell phones. More than one terrorist has been blown up using his cell phone because of the GPs system in his phone and only the really dumb ones would not realize that phone use may be hazardous to their health. Osama bin Laden used his satellite phone to trick American satellites by having an aide carry his satellite phone in a different direction. Terrorist and other bad guys are using the phone less to discuses business, and when they do they would probably use a pay phone or a disposable cell phone or pull a Osama bin Laden and use the phone as part of their plans.

Another problem is who owns the phone number and who use's the phone are not always the same thing. Some people get phones in their name for family members or someone who may not be able to get a phone of the own, some let others use there phones, some may be victims of ID Theft, lost cell phone, cell phone theft or cell phone cloning. Will calls made by the non-owner be consider part of the owners calling circle?

Another problem is security of the data what happens if a data breach occurs, someone hacks the database, or a computer is stolen, or a memory stick is stolen or an Accidental Data Breach. Examples of Accidental Data Breaches are E-mail's sent to the wrong e-mail address, bad web pages, lost computers, computers sold without the hard drives securely formatted.

The biggest problem is it's against the Forth Amendment or it was before Bush got into office. Bush's version and our version of the constitution and the Bill of rights seem to differ, President Bush has disobeyed more than 750 of our laws asserting that he has the power to set aside any statute passed by Congress when it conflicts with his interpretation of the Constitution. Do you trust his interpretations after Iraq, Katrina, his interpretation the war was over, his interpretation Rumsfeld is doing a good job or his creative reinterpretation of the Geneva Convention, which may have lead to prisoner abuse? The use of phone records to find out who you call without your consent, without any reason to suspect you of any crime and without a warrant is an unreasonable search and should not be allowed. Do you really trust the Bush administration with your phone number, before answer remember this administration declassified top secret intelligence and may have outed a CIA office to protect their butts now answer the question?