>>Yeah, just like it was the same hysteria from the same groups when Stalin was eavesdropping on his citizens. They'll never learn.
>
>Stalin also had this nasty little habit of having people executed. I hardly think we are discussing the same level of surveillance.

I dunno. Disappearing off the street all of a sudden and ending up in a foreign country for "rendition" isn't execution, but it's quite a change from "normal" too.

There were (are) laws on the books implemented after certain irregularities were discovered about FBI/CIA activities years back, when the "threat" was rabble-rousers taking to the streets. Those outlawed activities were serious then but not now?

Let's assume that there's a law currently on the books that forbids the FBI from collecting information on citizens without a court warrant. The intent of such a law (if there was one) is pretty clear.
But under the guise of a declaration of war and employing modern MBA techniques of conforming to the LETTER OF THE LAW it could be argued that if they let someone non-governmental do the "collecting" of such information, then the FBI or CIA just purchased it and stored it, they would not be breaking the law.
Would that be OK with you? I think we have a right to expect our governments to respect the spirit/intent of our laws.

cheers