I prefer a more limited government, even if it means I'm slightly less safe from terrorists

Rep. Peter King's nightly lamentations on Fox News about terrorism notwithstanding, this sort of sums it up for me. Until I see any tangible damage or lives lost that wouldn't have been otherwise, I think it's more important for our government to maintain constitutional strictness than for it to know what Angela Merkel ordered from QVC at 3 in the morning. Nor am I convinced that these data-gathering programs are vitally necessary to stop terrorism.

And it's not about what it's supposed to do with phone calls, or what it has done with phone calls and emails. It's what it could potentially do at some point in the future with that information given the right motivation of the right politician.

If you dangle a carrot in front of a hungry donkey long enough, he'll find a way to get through the fence to get it.

Likewise, if you dangle the power that comes with this much data on people, in front of the right corrupt politician, he will find a way around the Constitution to access it....like maybe via the Patriot Act.