US ambassador to Germany hauled over the coals over Merkel spying allegations

[Platapus]

This is why the United States gets upset when the Chinese "hack" into our systems, but is strangely silent when China gets upset when the US "hacks" in to their systems.

Espionage is always legal in the first person - our espionage programs. It is only in the second or third person -- your or their espionage programs that it becomes illegal.

Part of the hypocrisy of Realpolitik is that countries often act "surprised" when one country does to them what they are doing to the other country.

Renault: Everybody is to leave here immediately! This cafe is closed until further notice. Clear the room, at once!Rick: How can you close me up? On what grounds?Renault: I’m shocked, shocked to find that gambling is going on in here!Employee of Rick's: [hands Renault money] Your winnings, sir.Renault: Oh, thank you, very much. Everybody out at once!

[Feuer Frei!]

So BBC tells me today that the spying on Angie's mobile has been going on since early 2000. And Obama knew nothing about it. WTF?
Playing dumb? I think so.

The general feedback i've been getting, via BBC reports, when questioning department heads and various organisations, including the UK PM is that it's all ok to spy on people, and perfectly fine to spy on your allies.

The justification most agree on is that the countrie's security comes first and that, for example, in PM Cameron's words is that anyone that questions the necessity and reason for spying on individuals, no matter who they are, is to be criticized denounced as some evil-doer who has no right questioning the moral implications, not to mention the legal implications in some cases and the justification on select targets.

Once again, i say wtf?

If i was Angie, i would be furious. Livid.

If the Germans were spying on Obama since early 2000, what would be the implications of that?
Big bad Germany? I can see it now, the ignorant hate rhetorics bleated i bet.

It shouldn't be a shock that spying on other countries has gone on since ww2.

But what should be a shock is spying on your allies, indeed moreso the leader of a allied country!

Alliance my arse.

The US worried that Germany will become a super power (again) and rise up against the European nations and take Lebensraum?

What a joke.

EDIT:

I'll add this:

NSA monitored calls of 35 world leaders after US official handed over contacts

http://www.theguardian.com/world/201...-leaders-calls

[Mr Quatro]

I don't have time to read everything the NSA whistleblower Snowden said or divulged to outside sources, but how can anyone be sure that what was said was what he really said?

Someone is making money off of this reporting that the NSA did this and the NSA did that and who they did it to. Who can tell what the truth is besides the NSA and they are not about to admit to or claim or disclaim anything, because that is their very nature.

I suspect and ponder all of this news is a way to make waves and lots of money ... life goes on.

One thing I do know Russia now knows a lot more than it did and how the NSA works. All that's left is for another country to get caught up in this spying effort to obtain classified information

One thing I do know Russia now knows a lot more than it did and how the NSA works.

Do you really think they didn't know already?
All this has meant is that the average Russian and the average American now knows a little bit about the huge scale at which phone calls are recorded.

[Jimbuna]

Pretty much how I see it.

[TarJak]

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-10-2...eports/5051220

Spain is the next to jump up and down about the same thing.

[TarJak]

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-10-3...encies/5056534

We get tarred with the same brush.

The whole partisan political crap being spouted here is laughable. I don't think either party can claim any moral high ground here because the spying on allies has been going on since the dawn of time. BO has just been left standing when the music stopped.