Not so fast... (Score 2)

First, I'm not sure that Echelon-like programs are useless. There are a variety of threats to the public safety that existed during the cold war and continue to exist now, which can be prevented to some extent by the information gathering that Echelon provides. Admittedly, organisations, particularly those in the government, will tend to try to justify their own existence/collect more funding/etc. But more is required to demonstrate that the NSA has overstepped their bounds.

Additionally, it is easy to talk vaguely about the universal human rights that our founding fathers established, but, frankly, its rather naive. Remember, many of our founding fathers were supporters of slavery. And just in case you thought they were ardent supporters of freedom of speech, read about the Alien and Sedition Act. Essentially, it limited voting and free speech to prevent opposition to the party in power. Fortunately, it did not last long.

If you want to talk about rights violations, state what rights you're talking about, how they're specified in our constitution and how they're being violated. Its not sufficient to mention human rights, and then expect us to all agree that the NSA is evil. I've lived in the US all my life, too. And I am not proud of all the things the US government has done. But until you can provide me with examples supported by sound reasoning, I see no reason why I should be ashamed. And even then, I reserve the right to disagree with your judgement.