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John Kerry May Bring Happy NSA Surprise for Poles (Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland)

 

"Visa procedures will simplified to the point that it becomes essentially automatic. Now we'll be spared the hassle of having to submit to an often embarrassing conversation with the American consul. It will be enough for a Mr. Kowalski, in a phone conversation with anyone - say his wife, to hint that he wants to go to America, and the NSA surveillance system will unerringly catch it, check what it has accumulated on the Kowalskis in its databases, and within 48 hours they will receive an answer from the Consulate ... most likely registered letter with the coveted visa to the Land of Liberty."

 

By Mariusz Zawadzki

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Translated By Halszka Czarnocka

 

November 5, 2013

 

Poland - Gazeta Wyborcza - Original Article (Polish)

Secretary of State John Kerry and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk at the Chancery in Warsaw, Nov. 5, 2013. What they discussed would be hard to fathom by reading their respective press releases - but spying and visas were undoutedly on the agenda.

EURO NEWS VIDEO, FRANCE: Secretary Kerry stops off in Europe to try and calm the political waters over spying, Nov. 5, 00:01:07RealVideo

Why is Secretary of State John Kerry arriving in Warsaw on Tuesday? The Foreign Ministry press release speaks of "the development of bilateral cooperation," but gives no further details, doubtless hoping to pleasantly surprise us.

 

The Foreign Ministry also informs that, "during the visit, discussions will focus on the direction of bilateral cooperation between Poland and the United States." That is an incredibly valuable revelation, as some expected that the topic would be India's plans for a Mars expedition!

 

The communication also states that, "both chief diplomats will discuss the prospects for joint projects in the area of security" and "exchange views on the current international situation."

 

Such statements are very much needed. Indeed, they are of a rich tradition, the beginnings of which could first be seen in the 1980s, when Mikhail Gorbachev, first secretary of the Soviet Communist Party, arrived in Poland for a friendly visit. Party and state authorities reported in advance on what would be discussed with the honored guest, all of which was praised as "the manifestation of a new information policy and the transparency of socio-political life." It was noted with satisfaction that "time has run out for the instrumental treatment of the public, of misleading it and informing it only after the fact."

 

It's a real blessing that the Foreign Ministry is continuing on this course and doesn't mislead us Poles, and as in the case with Kerry's visit, informs us about everything in such a clear manner.

 

Of course, there will always be malcontents and obsessive seekers of criticism. They will point out to the Ministry that the statement says not a word about those two to four million telephone calls which, according to Der Spiegel, are redirected from Poland to the NSA's databases every day, i.e.: as part of U.S. surveillance.

 

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We don't know whose conversations these are. The German weekly claims they are Polish, which means that like the Germans, French and Spanish, the NSA is eavesdropping on us on a massive scale. On the other hand, the heads of American intelligence, who were last week interrogated by Congress, suggest something else - that the NSA doesn't collect these conversations alone, but is helped in the task by its European allies.

 

Theoretically, one could imagine that German intelligence is eavesdropping on the French and Poles, French intelligence on the Germans and Spaniards, Spanish intelligence on the French, and Polish intelligence on the Germans, and they all share their spoils with the Americans. At the same time they can retain a clear conscience, since they didn't permit monitoring or collecting their countrymen's calls themselves, and when it comes to spying on foreigners, this can be done without restriction.

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The idea of cross-surveillance may seem crazy, but it would be very much in keeping with the American style. After all, the whole circus at Guantanamo, and among others, a secret CIA prison in Poland, were intended to enable them to detain suspects at will and waterboard them to their hearts' content, without formally breaking American law, since everything was done outside U.S. borders.

 

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Secretary of State Kerry greets a bakery worker in Warsaw, Nov. 5.

 

Whatever the solution to the puzzle over the millions of phone calls mentioned by Der Spiegel, no doubt the government owes Poles an explanation.

 

I hurry to satisfy the impatient that we will hear one as early as Tuesday afternoon, during a joint press conference with both chief diplomats. Minister Sikorski will announce that indeed, we actually pass to the NSA all telephone calls by Poles, as well as their addresses, fingerprints, numbers, and the contents of their bank accounts, etc., in exchange for which Big Brother Barack will abolish the need for Poles to apply for American visas. Perhaps this isn't 100 percent certain, as that would require the consent of the unruly Congress, but visa procedures will simplified to the point that it becomes essentially automatic and unnoticeable to travelers.

 

Now we'll be spared the hassle of having to go to Warsaw or Cracow to submit to an often embarrassing conversation with the American consul. It will be enough for a Mr. Kowalski, in a phone conversation with anyone - say his wife, to hint that he wants to go to America, and the NSA surveillance system will unerringly catch it, check what it has accumulated on the Kowalskis in its databases, and within 48 hours they will receive an answer from the Consulate. Most often it will be a registered letter with the coveted visa to the Land of Liberty, which they will be able to glue in their passports themselves.

 

This is precisely one of those "directions of bilateral cooperation" mentioned in our Foreign Ministry's statement, albeit without further details, just to give us a pleasant surprise.

 

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Posted By Worldmeets.US Nov. 5, 2013, 12:19am