The real purpose of the Patriot Act?
Extremely interesting post (with useful links) by Ed Brayton, in which he points out that previous practice in the US government has been to use surveillance to collect damaging information on powerful people to be used to coerce cooperation if such coercion were to be required. J. Edgar Hoover was expert in collecting this sort of information—indeed his hoard of blackmail-level material is how he was able to remain in office: no one dared oppose him for fear of what he would reveal.
It’s worth reading Brayton’s post. You can see the steps through which the US is abandoning freedom in favor of control.
