The Young Turks

Take for example today's Wall Street Journal editorial board. They writes that "the reality is that, because of these lawsuits, the telephone companies now won't cooperate without the legal protection of a court order. That's how pernicious these lawsuits are.

Exactly! We don't want telephone companies  cooperating without court orders!

How is it possible that the Wall Street Journal editorial board, which claims to be conservative, can be for government power unchecked?

The Wall Street Journal editorial board goes on to write, "We asked one phone company executive what he'd do, after Friday's expiration, in response to a government request for cooperation. His answer was blunt: 'I'm not doing it. If I don't have compulsion, I can't get out of court [and those lawsuits]. . . . I'm not going to do something voluntarily.' Having talked to telecom executives, we can tell you this view is well-nigh universal."

Again they write this as if it is a bad thing. The security of our nation should not be based on how much the executives like the current administration. These companies should work with the government because they have been given a lawful order, vetted by an independent judiciary.

The Journal concludes: "What we have here is a remarkable display of the anti-antiterror minority at work. Democrats could vote directly to restrict wiretapping by the executive branch, but they lack the votes. So instead they're trying to do it through the backdoor by unleashing the trial bar to punish the telephone companies. Then if there is another terror attack, they'll blame the phone companies for not cooperating."

No we will blame the Bush administration for muddying the water where there was no need. For wasting our time on stupid political debates, instead of trying to find the best system for keeping this nation safe.

This editorial again proves that current conservatism is more about corporatism than patriotism or rule of law.