Yeah, you could be mad about the NSA, if it'd do any good...

I'm sure there are a few people that are still a little surprised on some of my stances regarding the recent Edward Snowden-leaked information that has brought the National Security Agency and their surveillance practices back into the public eye.

Granted, the libertarian in me is irritated, but the part of me that pays attention is remarkably unmoved, because as I mentioned on last night's show- there have not been any laws broken by the NSA. Period. Somehow, a federal court ruled cellphone users have no expectation of privacy. Forget the whole Fourth Amendment issue for a second- try telling your girlfriend she has no expectation of privacy if she catches you checking her text messages or her call history. Get back with me after the ass whippin and let me know how that worked out for you.

Besides that, at least a quarter of the Internets posted the link to the seven-year-old story in USA Today about the same thing. The exact same damn thing. You add the fact nothing illegal, morality notwithstanding, has went down with the fact this has already been going on for pretty much the last decade anyway, and you get the answer as to why no one in Washington seems particularly outraged about it. I can't say I was surprised that Saxby Chambliss or Lindsay Graham came out in support of the NSA, nor really to an extent when Dianne Feinstein jumped on board. I was a little taken aback by Al Franken taking less time than I thought to develop a taste for the kool-aid, but I did enjoy Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner (R-WI) getting in a huff over the NSA revelations. 

Yep, the guy who helped write the Patriot Act has a problem with the NSA data mining. The irony is thick with this so-called scandal. Guess Sensenbrenner has some pretty whack shit on his phone.

Don't get me wrong, you can be mad about how the NSA is rolling. You can complain, and protest, and call for change until someone throws a handful of dimes at you just to shut you the fuck up, but government-as-usual will never let the Patriot Act expire. Never. And judging by the way voting patterns have trended in the 21st century, government-as-usual is not going anywhere anytime soon.