Afghanistan, June 2013

It’s nice, I suppose, that the Edward Snowden matter has us thinking and talking about what we’re willing to sacrifice in the name of national security. It would have been nicer if we’d thought to do this thinking and talking back in 2008 when the FISA Amendments Act was passed,1 making the FISA court even more of a rubber-stamp than it already was.

We’re also sacrificing the lives of young men and women in Afghanistan. The purpose of this sacrifice hasn’t been clear for years, maybe because we haven’t been thinking or talking about it.

Afghanistan, June 2013


  1. Or late last year, when the Act was extended for another five years. Any bets on whether the nation will still be paying attention when the Act comes up for another renewal in 2017?