I've been posting lots of civil rights and freedom of speech items and
articles lately.  It's not the only thing going on in my life. I've just been
busy and not felt in a sharing mood. I think it's good to get this information
out or it's just something to think about idly. I'm not trying to make
everyone into activists, I don't even consider myself an activist, but I think
being aware of things going on around you is important too. 

Excerpt from EFFector    Vol. 17, No. 7    March 2, 2004      donna@eff.org

A Publication of the Electronic Frontier Foundation  ISSN 1062-9424 In the
279th Issue of EFFector:

* Let the Sun Set on PATRIOT - Section 207: "Duration of FISA  Surveillance of
Non-United States Persons Who Are Agents of a  Foreign Power"

Welcome to part three of "Let the Sun Set on PATRIOT," an EFFector  series on
the battle to let some of the most troubling provisions  in the USA PATRIOT
Act expire, or "sunset."  Each week, we profile  one of the 13 provisions set
to expire in December of 2005 and  explain in plain language what's wrong with
the provision and why  Congress should allow it to sunset.  This week we look
at section  207, which extends the duration of secret government wiretap
orders and search warrants.

Section 207 makes wiretap orders and physical search warrants  issued by the
FISA court last longer.  The FISA court is a secret  panel of judges
established by the Foreign Intelligence  Surveillance Act of 1978 to authorize
government surveillance  in foreign intelligence and terrorism investigations.

Prior to PATRIOT, FISA wiretaps had a maximum duration of 90  days and could
be extended in 90-day increments.  PATRIOT now  allows a maximum duration of
120 days, with one-year extensions  available.

Also prior to PATRIOT, FISA warrants for physical searches and  their
extensions were good for no more than 45 days.  Now the  warrants are good for
up to 120 days, with extensions for up to  one year.

FISA wiretaps and search warrants already lack many of the  safeguards that
prevent govnerment abuse of criminal taps and  warrants.  For example, orders
are issued using a lower legal  standard than the "probable cause" used in
criminal cases and  are subject to substantially less judicial oversight,
while  surveillance targets are never notified that they were spied on.  
Therefore, time limits are a key check on this secret  surveillance power:
they help ensure that the government intercepts only particular conversations
between particular  people, and searches only particular places for particular
evidence, regarding particular crimes, as required under  the Fourth
Amendment.

The time limits for FISA wiretaps and searches were already  generous compared
to taps and warrants available to the FBI  in criminal investigations.  For
example, regular criminal  wiretaps are issued for 30 days, with 30-day
extensions  available.  A 30-day criminal tap on average intercepts the 
communications of nearly 100 people, most of whom are innocent bystanders. 
FISA taps, which now last at least  four times as long (and sometimes up to a
year!), are bound  to violate the privacy of many more innocents.  Yet 
PATRIOT weakened these checks without the DOJ ever having  to show that the
previous time limits had hindered  earlier investigations.

Even before PATRIOT, if the time limit on a FISA wiretap or  search warrant
was running out, the FBI could go back to the  FISA court for an extension, or
in the case of an emergency,  could even conduct searches or wiretaps without
FISA court  approval.  Therefore, PATRIOT 207's extension of the FISA time 
limits is an unnecessary expansion of power with only one clear  "benefit": it
reduces the amount of paperwork the FBI has to  do in order to maintain
continuous surveillance.  This  paperwork isn't unnecessary busy work - it's a
procedural  check designed to protect our rights under the U.S.  Constitution.
 Needlessly reducing such checks on secret  police power doesn't make us safer
from terrorism.  Instead,  it makes us less safe from government abuse of that
power.

EFF strongly opposes renewal of Section 207, and we urge you  to oppose it,
too.  We also support the Security and Freedom  Ensured Act (SAFE Act, S
1709/HR 3352) and encourage you  to visit EFF's Action Center today to let
your  representatives know you support the bill: <http://action.eff.org/action/
index.asp?step=2&item=2866>

We'll look at Section 209, which makes it easier for the FBI  to listen to
your voice mail messages.