I just heard yesterday about the new NSA data center in
Utah. And now that I typed that
sentence, I suppose the NSA’s digital file on me just grew slightly. This monstrosity (here’s a link) literally
serves no other purpose than to beef up the NSA’s ability to monitor, examine,
and store digital information. And it’s expensive. Costing between $2 and $4 billion to
construct and furnish, and another $20,000,000 per year to operate, it
literally creates a few dozen jobs, mostly maintenance and security. Regardless of one’s view on government, I
think it is fair to assert that the government will make use of the tools we
give it, and if we give them bigger, shinier, tools, they will make use of them
to greater effect.
If these dudes were already trampling our constitutional
rights without this immensely powerful surveillance tool, then are we really
expected to believe that their infringements will not increase in scope now? Oh yeah, and isn’t our country running a frighteningly
large deficit right now? Seems like
maybe we should balance the budget before building multi-billion dollar oppression
factories.
Apparently Utah was chosen in part because of the “patriotism”
of Utahans. God help me if the NSA ever
approvingly describes me as patriotic.
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