The US Director of National Intelligence, Michael McConnell, has given a number of law enforcement and civilian agencies access to some of the most advanced intelligence tools the American government possesses. Responding to a request from the Homeland Security Secretary, McConnell authorised unprecedented levels of access which will directly affect American citizens.
The Wall Street Journal reports:
Access to the high-tech surveillance tools would, for the first time, allow Homeland Security and law-enforcement officials to see real-time, high-resolution images and data, which would allow them, for example, to identify smuggler staging areas, a gang safehouse, or possibly even a building being used by would-be terrorists to manufacture chemical weapons.
Of course, this isn’t done magically the way Hollywood invariably depicts it. The majority of American citizens who think about this scenario (which probably translates to a small minority of all American citizens) will see what Hollywood has been showing time and time again: a very efficient operator keys in the known co-ordinates of a Really Bad Guy, and several computer screens automatically zoom in on high resolution real-time imagery of the despicable villain’s location. Which is not how it works at all.
The more accurate scenario would involve a small army of analysts systematically scrutinising imagery possible containing information relevant to their work. The majority of the information they will observe involve the private lives of regular citizens, people who want nothing more than to go about their daily business without being watched while doing it.
Ever see the Google Earth image of a topless woman sunbathing next to the pool in her back yard? Now multiply that fuzzy resolution and imagine an intelligence analyst looking at that. Because they do. Every day. Presumably, analysts are professional enough not to dwell on information that isn’t relevant to their work, and presumably checks and controls prevent them from giving in to temptation and sneaking a look at the car parked outside an ex lover’s house, but opening up access to this system also means relaxing those checks and balances.
The reasons given for wider domestic use of this system are mostly illogical. Satellite imagery of the whole of the United States is already available to all who need it, for both federal and civilian purposes. Real estate developers, mining companies, environmental activist, hikers, even bored teenagers already access satellite images of the United States. However, these aren’t clear enough for spying on people, but perfectly suitable for practical use. Which means the push for higher resolution images is part of the greater culture of the US federal government insinuating itself into the lives of regular citizens, sapping their freedom and privacy bit by bit.
Some weapons in the modern arsenal are simply too powerful for every day use. Nuclear and biological weapons, for example. And some intelligence gathering tools. The potential for abuse is simply too high to allow their use for purposes of domestic intelligence.
The price of freedom is eternal vigilance. - Thomas Jefferson
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