Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with nsa

No strings attached, please!

Anonymous — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 18:10:54 -0800

Am I in the beginning stages of a "no strings" relationship? Not that I mind. Just started seeing this funny guy who is nice in bed, but not my really my type and not a good potential partner: he is much younger (I'm in my thirties), and our backgrounds, interests and personalities are really different. We've been on a few dates, about a week apart, with little communication in between. I'm hesitant to discuss our status because I don't want to hurt his feelings if he's actually into me, nor jinx it or something.

Is this the sort of thing you can just "fall into" or should we have some sort of conversation about it? Or set down rules? I don't really know. Also, I am totally fine with NSA, and would prefer it to dating him in a more romantic way. How do I keep this going? What to look out for? Private answers can be sent to pleasestringsno@hotmail.com. TIA.

NSA Surveillance in Las Vegas for Extortion

destro — Thu, 17 May 2007 13:20:13 -0800

Was there a story a year or two back about Patriot Act/NSA/FBI surveillance in Las Vegas being used for extortion against a casino? I distinctly remember something about it but can't find anything.

Response to: "If you've done nothing wrong, you have nothing to worry about"

WetherMan — Thu, 01 Jun 2006 10:18:47 -0800

I'm getting pretty tired of hearing the line "if you've done nothing wrong, you have nothing to worry about" in regards to what's happening right now in Washington. I've heard some long articulate responses to this, but what's a good one or two sentence response that succinctly points out the error in this line of thinking?

how do i ask out my friend's cousin?

twirlypen — Tue, 14 Feb 2006 04:10:43 -0800

how do i say this: "i like you and that other night was great, although slightly weird because you're my friend's really close cousin, but he seems cool about it, so, anyway, do you want to do that again sometime, even though it's been a month since that night?"- without coming across as wanting to be too serious or too casual or too weird? it was a night at his house, we ended up having a few touchy feely escapades on the couch while watching a movie with everyone else in the room unaware. in the end nothing more happened because we thought it was a bit iffy, her being my friend's cousin and all.

but, he's fine about it. problem is, i'm out of the state for three weeks for a job and don't have any way to contact her until i'm back. so, what would have been fine to say a day or three after the event is now a little strange. i'm not interested in anything totally serious, and neither is she (i'm told).

i've never set out to start a casual sort of relationship before. what's the equivalent of "do you want to go out on a date sometime?", and how do i say it given the month gap between that one night and talking to her again?

How to effectively, intelligently protest warrantless wiretapping?

Ash3000 — Mon, 13 Feb 2006 17:27:51 -0800

Say you wanted to organize a protest re: Bush's warrantless wiretapping... So I'm part of a group which is attempting, in the next two months, to put together a protest of the warrantless NSA domestic spying. I can't quite tell you what we want it to be, but I can tell you what we don't want it to be: your standard rally, i.e. trite, obvious, easy to ignore/eyeroll. Instead, we want something that'll attract attention (media or otherwise) to our group, the issue and what can be done about it in a reasonable, non-extremist manner...all while being creative, inventive, thought-provoking, preferably visually arresting, etc. To give an idea of the sort of event/conceit we're aiming for, it's generally agreed that the Frist filibuster at Princeton was downright brilliant, for all sorts of reasons.

So, any suggestions?

What are the legalities of taking an oath?

odinsdream — Thu, 09 Feb 2006 14:20:13 -0800

Why was Alberto Gonzales not under oath before the Senate Judiciary Committee? Specific legal nuances are what I'm looking for. On Monday, Attorney General Gonzales appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee to be questioned about the NSA wiretapping program. (Video available on c-span*)

Chairman Arlen Specter decided that he would not be sworn in, or given an oath.

What are the legal differences between being under oath or not in this circumstance? Why would Specter have even considered the question before coming to the hearing? Obviously, this was done for a specific reason - what is it?

I don't buy the "let's not insult Gonzales' honor" defense provided by Jeff Sessions.

I might buy the "it's perjury anyway" defense, if the oath didn't even exist.

* The debate over whether he would be sworn in or not begins during the Morning Session clip at 7:20, when it was announced that he wouldn't be sworn in, and continues at 12:00 when that decision is challenged by Patrick Leahy.

How could the NSA's snooping be foiled?

pracowity — Wed, 21 Dec 2005 10:57:47 -0800

Could the US government's efforts to scan the contents of everyone's email be overloaded by everyone routinely using encryption for every message? Is there some strong encryption software that could be used transparently with Google Mail and other common mail systems to encrypt everything sent and received? Something that could be distributed and installed automatically with, say, Firefox? What percentage of everyday email users would have to use such encryption to make it impossible for the NSA or anyone else to keep up with its scanning? (And, by the way, how about encrypting all Skype phone calls?)

Military Intelligence

Happydaz — Thu, 29 Jul 2004 17:02:58 -0800

Military Intelligence: I've thought about joining the military for about six years. Now it seems that it might become reality. I'd like to become an intelligence officer because it seems like I'd use a similar skill set to what I do now (I'm a journalist.) But what branch of the service should I check out? Army/Navy/Marines/Air Force/Coast Guard? What about the CIA or NSA? Anybody know people in any of these branches? [more inside] I have a four-year degree, great test scores and a clean background, which I understand is required. Most of all, I'm looking to join to build better self discipline and learn leadership skills (I plan to return to the newspaper business some day.) From what I hear, the Marines are best at leadership/discipline, and the Navy has the best intel people. Any insights, anyone?