Klassic Kolbert: So You’re Living in a Police State
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Hey, kids! I don’t know whether you’ve heard, but our wonderful, freedom-loving, principled and courageous Democratic-led Congress passed a FISA bill today. Among other things, this totally necessary and vital* bill gives the telecoms who complied with the Bush Administration’s illegal wiretapping orders complete civil immunity for their role in violating our civil rights (and President Bush can preemptively pardon the telecoms for any possible criminal liability before he leaves office). It also says that the President can request eavesdropping — no matter how illegal — and, so long as he says that it’s to save us from terrorists, courts will be required to dismiss any lawsuits brought against companies that comply.
But hey, that’s not really a loss of our Fourth Amendment rights. As Stephen Colbert tells us in this still-relevant clip, it’s “Freedom Plus”!
So You’re Living in a Police State — Government spying on its citizens means gaining limits on those freedoms – Freedom Plus.
Thanks, Congress!
*That’s the party line, anyway, but it’s false. The FISA law of old wasn’t expiring (there’s no “sunset provision” on it); the only thing that’s about to expire are the surveillance orders issued under the highly controversial “Protect America Act” (legalized warrantless wiretapping for a one-year period); some of these orders expire next month. And the old FISA law would have been more than sufficient to continue lawful surveillance on those subjects, as necessary.
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15 Comments
July 9th, 2008 at 6:45 pm
“Presto Betrayo!”
Stephen looks gorgeous in this clip. amirite?
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July 9th, 2008 at 11:22 pm
Right on.
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July 9th, 2008 at 7:06 pm
I feel so comfortable with the current administration. Not.
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July 9th, 2008 at 7:22 pm
1984, 24 years too late.
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July 9th, 2008 at 7:33 pm
This is disturbing news. I was especially disappointed to read how Obama voted.
Thank goodness for the great Stephen video. Unfortunately, it’s funny because there is some truth to it.
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July 9th, 2008 at 8:14 pm
He looks great now, but damn, he was smokin back then.
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July 9th, 2008 at 8:25 pm
“… things about this administration that angered and frightened you over the first couple of years of their reign and then over time you’ve come to accept as the new normal.”
Thank you Jon Stewart, couldn’t have said it better myself.
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July 9th, 2008 at 8:44 pm
This is my absolute favorite of Stephen’s TDS segments!
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July 9th, 2008 at 9:00 pm
that was a great clip, and yeah I’m pretty infuriated about the dems and FISA as well. but i’m gonna hold back on an excessively political rant and just say, i love how Jon playfully says at the end, “Stephen, I don’t think that was dark enough…” So true… that was some pretty dark stuff!
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July 9th, 2008 at 9:08 pm
I’m glad this clip is one so many of you rate as a fave; it’s about the only silver lining to this depressing, infuriating day.
mrtigger001,
I hear you on the “excessively political rant” bit. I’ve been trying (and failing) to hold mine in all day. I’m so royally … [breathe] … upset about the FISA vote, I can’t even put it into words. I tried (when I was emailing and calling Congress), but now all that’s left is for me to go to Accountability Now, the ACLU and the EFF and see how much I can afford to give to them. It’s a sad day for anyone who cares about the Constitution. Perhaps later (if I’m feeling equal to it) I’ll write a thank you card to Sens. Feingold, Dodd, et al, for tilting at the windmills and at least trying to stop this all from taking place.
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July 9th, 2008 at 11:11 pm
The sweet irony of this clip on the loss of privacy, is the the whole time he was in the kitchen, I was thinking: “Hey, could that be Stephen’s actual kitchen?” and then “Hey, maybe that’s Stephen’s actual neighborhood.”
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July 9th, 2008 at 11:29 pm
Haha. I was wondering that as well, but in this case, we weren’t actively spying on him:)
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July 10th, 2008 at 9:23 am
I had the exact same thought. I think the the last bathroom scene was the TDS audience bathroom that you can use while you’re waiting to get into the show. I vaguely remember that sink.
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July 10th, 2008 at 9:27 am
I was laughing hysterically through the whole segment. Thankfully, it’s funny enough to dull the exceptionally depression overtone of the whole situation. Stephen’s dark humor just cripples me into laughter.
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July 10th, 2008 at 9:41 am
Congress…the new enemy within
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