Crony Capitalists and Spy Networks

Walking the Corridors of Corruption

One of the inevitable ramifications of the vast trawling US electronic spying programme appears to be playing out in New Zealand.  We are parties to an intelligence sharing agreement with the United States and Canada, Australia and the UK, entitled "Five Eyes".  The information shared includes--probably almost exclusively so--the kinds of electronic data on the activities of citizens now being collected ceaselessly by the United States. 

While the ostensible and immediate reason for the data gathering is to "get terrorists before they get us", what governments can do, they inevitably will do.  Since it is becoming clear that they can now spy comprehensively upon the thoughts, intents, and actions of citizens via electronic media, it is axiomatic that eventually they inevitably will do so--despite the protestations that this was never was, nor is now, the intent.  Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.  And there are few manifestation of absolute power more compelling than the panoptican state, where the government sees all and spies constantly and comprehensively on its own citizens.
 

Politicians are politicians.  They are inherently corruptible because they desire to gain and exercise power.  They need money to mount their campaigns.  They can easily become practitioners of the dark arts of crony capitalism, where paybacks are made to plutocrats in exchange for donations, gifts, and support.  It is a very small matter for influential crony capitalists to seek favours from beholden politicians which opens up access to the spying information treasure houses.  The rule is never, ever trust politicians without constant scrutiny and an elaborate system of laws, checks, and balances to reign in their native impulses towards corruption. 

In New Zealand it is possible we have seen one of the first examples of the US spy network being used to aid and abet some large donors to the Obama administration.  Of course, at the outset, we acknowledge that everything must be couched in the subjunctive mood because we are involved after all, with the "dark arts".  Fatuous conspiracy theories can spawn one a minute in such circumstances. 

Mr Dotcom--a German national, now a New Zealand citizen--is in trouble with the FBI.  Why would a New Zealand citizen be facing indictments and extradition to the United States?  Because he was the owner of Megaupload--a Hong Kong based file sharing company--which had fallen foul (allegedly) of US copyright laws.  Dotcom and his lawyers allege that some select visitors representing Hollywood companies who just happened to be large donors to the President and his party were give a private audience with the Vice President, Joe Biden asking for federal policing action against Dotcom.   It was a no-brainer.  Dotcom was not a US citizen; he could "legitimately" be spied upon.  The FBI was sicced onto the case, and the international snooping via PRISM and related US government spying programmes commenced. 

Via Five Eyes, the New Zealand spying agencies were roped in and involved.  Eventually, on behalf of the FBI, the NZ police conducted an FBI-style early dawn raid on Dotcom's house arresting everyone and seizing as much property as they could carry away.  Unfortunately for the FBI and the US authorities, the New Zealand High Court has shredded much of the case for extradition.  The authorities have been deemed to have acted illegally at some critical points.  Their case is teetering.


The NZ Herald has reported thus on the US PRISM connection with the US case against Dotcom:

Mr Dotcom, who faces extradition to the US on charges of copyright violation, said he believed the GCSB sifted through Prism data with his details prior to the arrest. "It certainly did involve Prism. GCSB relies heavily on US spy technology. The Five Eyes have one brain and it sits in the US."

Papers released in the Dotcom court case support the links to the Five Eyes network but crucially have the name of the intelligence system doing the actual spying deleted. The papers were released after it emerged the GCSB illegally spied on Mr Dotcom in the lead-up to the unlawful raid in which he was arrested. 

Documents show analysts tasked with organising the spying marked it as associated with the Five Eyes network. One document, classifying it as "Secret", listed the five member nations and stated: "Please enter into [name of system redacted] and mark as priority." The accompanying list is called "Selectors of Interest" and details a long string of information similar to that used in Prism. It includes cellphone numbers, driver licence details, email addresses, passport numbers, internet protocol and real world addresses.  Another document was headed up "Top Secret" and "rel to NZL/FVEY" (New Zealand/Five Eyes). It referred to "traffic volume from these selectors", showing information was intercepted.

Here is the problem: a capability set up to focus upon terrorists appears to be morphing to allow crony capitalists to lever the US government to spy on a commercial rival and to utilise the police powers of the Federal government on their behalf.  Not a terrorist in sight.  This is what President Obama is calling "modest encroachments on privacy".  Yes, they remain modest until you become the target.  Becoming a target may well be at the behest of those who do not like you and who have access to the ears of the government.  The easiest access is enjoyed by those who have money and who "donate".