Appeals Court Rules NSA Phone Program Not Authorized by Patriot Act - wsj

[Zenaan Harkness]

On 5/8/15, dans at openmailbox.org <dans at openmailbox.org> wrote:
> Good news I guess, a small victory.
>
> However I think that is just a simbolic victory, useful only to make
> more people to become aware about surveillance. With the new
> technologies and with all the infrastucture already done record and
> collect the metadata of the phones is too easy, too cheap, too tempting
> to don't do it. And NSA will continuous doing it.
>
> In the other hand I can understand that the civil libertys groups of US
> take care of US citizens, but can any american take care of the people
> of other countrys? We can't legally apeal to any court of US, and we are
> under US goverment's surveillance too.

Do you mean "we as in individuals, can't appeal to a USA court to
protect the liberty of an individual who is not a USA citizen and not
physically in the USA"?

Let's get clear on the assumptions and challenge them lest
assumptions, apathy and a desire for others do your work for you
("someone's -really- gotta fix 'my chosen problem'") get's a hold of
your go button and won't let go :)

An individual can make a claim to a court, if they have standing in that court.

Simplistically this means a USA citizen can make a claim (begin a
case) in a USA court (things like age limits etc come into play of
course).

But there's no point making a claim (e.g. for injunction or for
damages) unless the authority (eg a court) that you appeal to has
authority over your target.

Authority in this case also means that your chosen court has authority
in the jurisdiction of your claim; that is, you must make your claim
in respect of the appropriate law(s) for the court you have chosen -
e.g. a lowly Magistrates' Court generally can not (or at least, will
not) make rulings in respect of the constitution, nor of common law.

I don't know about any individual trying to take care of the "liberty
of the people of other countries" but an individual USA citizen may be
able to make a claim against a USA citizen or some part or member of
the USA government in respect of (your "alleged") illegal "foreign"
activities.

An individual backed by 100 other individuals in a class action may
experience greater success.

Every problem has a solution, but just may require thinking outside the box.

IANAL, IANA USA citizen, IANA USA resident.