Not content to secretly eavesdrop on American citizens without a warrant, the Bush administration is now demanding that internet search engines such as Yahoo and Google turn over millions of internet search requests and IP addresses.
Why? According to court papers obtained by the San Jose Mercury, the administration 'depicts the information as vital in its effort to restore online child protection laws that have been struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court.' The government claims it needs the data to 'understand the behavior of current Web users, [and] to estimate how often Web users encounter harmful-to-minors material in the course of their searches."
Sounds like another big fishing expedition. Are the requests legal? Yahoo and others have already complied, but Google is refusing to. According to its attorney, 'Google's acceding to the request would suggest that it is willing to reveal information about those who use its services. This is not a perception that Google can accept.'
When will our nation's leaders ever learn?
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