Hey NSA, SS and FBI...We're DUmmies and not worth spying on

[Tucker]

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10022490563

MineralMan (51,236 posts)

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The Surveillance State and DU - There is No Connection There.

Last edited Mon Mar 11, 2013, 04:47 PM USA/ET - Edit history (1)
Every once in a while, someone posts a worried-sounding thread about surveillance by our federal government of online communications and messaging. For some reason, people seem to believe that there is some enormous office somewhere that is full of people running down leads gleaned by a supercomputer that is filtering everything posted on the Internet.

There is such an office, and there are such supercomputers, no doubt, but given the sheer amount of new information posted daily on the Internet in all of its complexity, there are Boolean filters discarding almost everything found by those supercomputers, even if it contains keywords of interest to the government. The reason for that is that there simply are not enough human resources available to actually look at and investigate every person who has posted something mean about the government. The numbers make that completely impossible.

So, somewhere in the algorithms used by the NSA or whatever other organization is involved in peeking in on the Internet, there is the equivalent of this pseudocode Boolean operator:

IF messagesource = democraticunderground.com THEN DISCARD

DUers aren't that interesting, really. We aren't out there with guns and bombs and plots to overthrow anything. The DU TOS prohibits most postings that directly involve any sort of seditious actions. We mostly post one thing or another from some other source on the Internet and then engage in discussions of whatever is posted. We're just not dangerous, we DUers.

Now, there are some really, really ugly websites out there, with some truly threatening postings on them. Some of us have seen them, and they're not places like freerepublic.com or most of the usual places where people post ugly things and vague threats. There are plenty of websites we're not looking at or that we don't even know about for the supercomputer to lurk on. DU is not even close to being of interest.

Truly. We can go wherever we want on the Internet, read whatever we wish and post about it here without any concern that Agent Mike is somewhere spending his days poring over our collective output. It's simply not that interesting. Nobody's worried about DUers and what they think, because we pose no risk to anyone.

Simple logic will inform anyone that what is written above is true. There are simply not the human resources numerous enough to bother with the relatively innocent stuff posted on DU. It is simply not that important.

As you can see in my signature line, this post is nothing more than my opinion. Take it for what you think it is worth.

The DUmp has more federal fly's circling the filth than than they have tracking radical muslims. OWS should have given you a clue.

Hekate (20,366 posts)
6. The squirrel collects activated almonds

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I'm disappointed. All this time I've had a crush on Agent Mike.

I'd bet the DUmmy was born a male, then had a sex change.

Vinnie From Indy (8,388 posts)
3. I think you are dead wrong

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History provides ample evidence that a HUGE amount of investigative resources have been used to spy on non-violent, political entities. Recent examples include the OWS movement, anti-war protestors and protestors at the GOP convention.

Cheers!

Party pooper.

Vinnie From Indy (8,388 posts)
8. No worries!

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I just think that there is plenty of evidence that our govt. has wasted a great deal of money spying on open, non-violent orgs.

The democrat party is a violent org. The bombed black churches in the south. They owned, sold, beat and sold slaves. Even in modern times, obama wants to kill American citizens with drones.

geek tragedy (22,789 posts)
5. We don't know whether they're surveying DU or not.

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That goes for any site, and for any communication no matter how private.

And there's really no guarantee that can be written into law to prevent them from doing it. Bush showed that.

In any event, private sector abuse of privacy is a bigger concern to me--both from corporate giants--Google and Facebook et al--as well as from malware/hackers/cybercriminals.

There are a lot more people interested in my credit cards and bank accounts than there are in my political opinions.

What bank account? If you have any CC's, they're the secured type.

hootinholler (20,295 posts)
15. You have no clue how this shit works

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I have no time to explain it to you right now other than to say you are way off base in your assumptions.

Simple logic will inform anyone who has any real knowledge of data mining what what you wrote is wildly inaccurate.

MineralMan (51,236 posts)
22. Actually I do have a clue.

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Last edited Mon Mar 11, 2013, 06:26 PM USA/ET - Edit history (1)
Thanks, though.

No you don't. Every time you post "obama" or any words that is a trigger, your post is noted.

cthulu2016 (7,402 posts)
20. Bravo Sierra!

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Our intelligence people are so ****ing clueless that they probably infiltrated the Columbia Record Club.

Seriously... they are always snooping on anything with the slightest hint of being left of Dick Cheney.

And they are much likelier to give political message boards greater scrutiny, not less.

That doesn't mean the typical DUer has anything to worry about, of course.

I think he means bull shit.

cliffordu (28,818 posts)
24. If they're so ****ing smart,

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why don't they let us know who the *******ed sockpuppets are so we can 86 'em and THEY can get back to doing their jobs....


Like trolling DU....??

[Maxiest]

Um yeah...

Who has the violent protests? 

Who has the The Environmental Terrorists?

Let me give you a clue, it isn't anybody on the right.

[Maxiest]

Another thing...

Donner.  He sounded almost exactly like 90% of you on DU.

[Big Don]

Um yeah...

Who has the violent protests? 

Who has the The Environmental Terrorists?

Let me give you a clue, it isn't anybody on the right.

who advocated killing Bush?

[Carl]

 

Rock head is trying to pick up where McGrath left off as the village idiot.

[chitownchica]

Au contraire DUmmie MM,
My company produces an engine that can ingest just about anything and map the data using concepts and context. There are other companies who produce competing products. It's not a small market.  Agent Mike is definitely watching.

[Mr Mannn]

How many times have I read DU plotting the violent overthrow?
How many death lists have they compiled?
How many visits from the SS have been visited upon Skinner and DU members?

Yeah. They've earned their reputation. They do it every day.

[Chris_]

Rock head is trying to pick up where McGrath left off as the village idiot.

Nature abhors a vacuum.

[Freeper]

How many times has the secret service called up $kimmer and had a chat about what some moonbat had posted at DU?
More than 1 for certain.

[franksolich]

Well now, I dunno.

During a conversation with a cop from Vermillion, South Dakota--this was last summer--he mentioned Skins's island, and my eyes popped out.

People around here aware of Skins's island are about as scarce as personable wymmins' libbers, and I inquired as to why he read the primitives.

"It's part of my job," he told me.

And the county sheriff here, apparently along with the whole police department of Omaha, regularly checks both Skins's island and the DUmpster, to see what the big guy's up to.

If I were a primitive, I'd be careful, what with so many cops watching me.  

[GOBUCKS]

Au contraire DUmmie MM

Please. As nadin has taught us, the proper term is "au cntrainere".

[wasp69]

MineralMan (51,236 posts)

The Surveillance State and DU - There is No Connection There.

Last edited Mon Mar 11, 2013, 04:47 PM USA/ET - Edit history (1)

So, somewhere in the algorithms used by the NSA or whatever other organization is involved in peeking in on the Internet, there is the equivalent of this pseudocode Boolean operator:

IF messagesource = democraticunderground.com THEN DISCARD

DUers aren't that interesting, really. We aren't out there with guns and bombs and plots to overthrow anything. The DU TOS prohibits most postings that directly involve any sort of seditious actions. We mostly post one thing or another from some other source on the Internet and then engage in discussions of whatever is posted. We're just not dangerous, we DUers.

Rockman, for a smarter-than-anybody-else-in-the-room liberal, you sure are an ignorant son of a bitch, do you know that?

There is such an office, and there are such supercomputers, no doubt, but given the sheer amount of new information posted daily on the Internet in all of its complexity, there are Boolean filters discarding almost everything found by those supercomputers, even if it contains keywords of interest to the government. The reason for that is that there simply are not enough human resources available to actually look at and investigate every person who has posted something mean about the government. The numbers make that completely impossible.

I'm going to share a word with you, Rockman.  A word that my children have a hard time understanding as well:

cu·mu·la·tive  /ˈkyoÍžomyÉ™lÉ™tiv/

Adjective
Increasing or increased in quantity, degree, or force by successive additions.

Very much like my children who can't seem to understand why dad loses his mind when they leave the damned refrigerator door open again, you DUmbasses fail to take into account just how often you spout "revolution" and other such rot on your cesspool of a website.  Just like my teenage children, you mental cripples think every occurrence is a singular event and not deserving of negative attention.

And just like my teenage children, you're wrong.

[chitownchica]

Please. As nadin has taught us, the proper term is "au cntrainere".

Suffice it to say, when she finds out that all her words are stored somewhere in a vault and subject to review, she'll cross the rubicon so fast it'll make her head spin.

[BlueStateSaint]

Suffice it to say, when she finds out that all her words are stored somewhere in a vault and subject to review, she'll cross the rubicon so fast it'll make her head spin.

But will she be carrying a riffle?

[chitownchica]

But will she be carrying a riffle?

You know it, along with the good rig. 

[Airwolf]

Well at least there is one DUmmy that's never heard of the Governments use of programs called "Echelon" And "Carnivore" . I mean it's not like they haven't had the means to listen and track anything a person says or does since at least the 1950's. Those big jets that sit over there at Offutt AFB not more then 20-=30 miles from me don't just sit there getting washed and waxed for nothing. Those EC-135s gather all kinds of Electronic Intelligence from the air from Radio to Television to Cell phone traffic and more. Same goes for the EA-6B. They have stopped IEDS and tracked Down cell phones and jam and track radar sites. The Government can see and hear anything if they want to. Then there are the EC-130's that not only do the same as the 135's but they can broadcast what they want to into anyones home. Would be great if all of them were used to jam MSNBC.

[Tucker]

It's only a rumor now, but, I wonder if DUmmies have heard that the video camera in a computer/ laptop or internet ready thin screen TV can be activated remotely, letting someone look into your house without your knowledge?

I repeat. It's only a internet rumor.

[GOBUCKS]

But will she be carrying a riffle?

A parenteral riffle.