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Old 12-12-2013, 11:41 PM   #1
IamSam
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US launches giant, world-sucking octopus!

This is a bit amusing.

America Is Launching A Giant, World-Sucking Octopus Into Space


Quote:
One of the National Security Agency's partners is launching a spy satellite with a classified payload into space on Thursday night -- and its logo is an angry, globe-gripping octopus.
....
The Office of the Director of National Intelligence, which also oversees the NSA, tweeted pictures of the launch preparation. That spurred Christopher Soghoian, of the American Civil Liberties Union, to give the spooks some free advice: "You may want to downplay the massive dragnet spying thing right now. This logo isn't helping."
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Old 12-13-2013, 02:22 AM   #2
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Sam!!!!!!

How you honey?
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Old 12-13-2013, 08:19 AM   #3
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Sam... good catch
I'm glad you're back

NY Times


DAVID E. SANGER
December 12, 2013
Obama Panel Said to Urge N.S.A. Curbs

Quote:
WASHINGTON — A presidential advisory committee charged with examining
the operations of the National Security Agency has concluded that a program to collect data
on every phone call made in the United States should continue,
though under broad new restraints that would be intended to increase privacy protections,
according to officials with knowledge of the report’s contents.
<snip>
But then, who is kidding who ?
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Old 12-13-2013, 01:22 PM   #4
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Thanks, guys! When I came across Mr. Octo-pussy, I couldn't resist - "Perfect for the Cellar gang!" thinks I.

Lamplighter's graphic is great. I think I'll design a T-Shirt using it.
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Old 12-13-2013, 02:33 PM   #5
toranokaze
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At this point they give zero fucks about pretense. "Nothing is beyond our reach"
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Old 12-13-2013, 02:43 PM   #6
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good to see you Sam!! merry christmas!

on a different note, I haven't done my own independent research on this topic yet, but it smacks of The Onion.



Seriously.

"Nothing is beyond our reach." ? a giant globe-encircling octopus? it strains belief. But I will keep my mind open as I read further. either way, it is ... amazing.
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Old 12-13-2013, 02:58 PM   #7
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Howdy, Sam!
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These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA, EPA, FBI, DEA, CDC, or FDIC. These statements are not intended to diagnose, cause, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. If you feel you have been harmed/offended by, or, disagree with any of the above statements or images, please feel free to fuck right off.
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Old 12-13-2013, 04:27 PM   #8
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Quote:
...but it smacks of The Onion...
V, FWIW I copied the logo Scientific American (via Google search for "NSA octopus")
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Old 12-13-2013, 05:17 PM   #9
tw
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BigV View Post
but it smacks of The Onion.
Or Mad Magazine. Upgrade artwork in Mad Magazine and many will know it must be true.

Who do you think is a trusted source for Fox News?
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Old 12-13-2013, 06:35 PM   #10
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Poor tw; still thinks Fox News is the Enemy.
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Old 12-13-2013, 07:45 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BigV View Post
good to see you Sam!! merry christmas!

on a different note, I haven't done my own independent research on this topic yet, but it smacks of The Onion.



Seriously.

"Nothing is beyond our reach." ? a giant globe-encircling octopus? it strains belief. But I will keep my mind open as I read further. either way, it is ... amazing.
Nice try, but no cigar-smoking octopus. Actual responses by Forbes Magazine are seldom quoted in The Onion:



Quote:
Forbes points out that other launches, including those by NASA and, most recently, SpaceX, are also well-covered on social media, but the fact the spy agency's launch contains a classified payload, probably carrying spy satellites, has many concerned. Following the Edward Snowden leaks, which include the numerous ways the National Security Agency has spied on individuals, privacy is a national concern and any perceived act of spying merits some scrutiny.

It also doesn't help that the NRO launch includes a mission patch with an octopus astride the globe and the slogan "Nothing is beyond our reach," says Forbes. As the author, Kashmir Hill, says, it's almost as if the NRO and the ODNI do not understand the public's sensitivity to any invasion of privacy or it is their dubious attempt at a joke. For many, it could be considered an act of trolling, with the NRO playing into the public perception of U.S. spy agencies. The presumed spy satellites could gather communications and data from around the world.
So, is it trolling or just another revelation that can be traced back to our friend, Mr. Snowden?

PS Merry Christmas back at you!
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Old 12-13-2013, 08:23 PM   #12
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What if...

NSA management realizes, they can never monitor everything and everyone,
so failure with all this world wide digital surveillance is their ultimate destiny.

So for a $1,000 Personal Service contract and $25 worth of hardware store paints,
they get an student intern to create a logo and have it painted atop a NASA rocket.
All that is left is a world-wide press release about the launching.

That logo is soooo intimidating to terrorists, the terrorists all decide
to quit terrorizing and they all go back home.

Then, NSA takes credit each year for keeping America safe...
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Old 12-13-2013, 08:25 PM   #13
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I think terrorists are the only ones who don't fear the NSA.
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Old 12-13-2013, 10:01 PM   #14
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NROL-39 is probably a radar imaging satellite for military reconnaissance. Part of a constellation of four to replace the aging Lacrosse satellites.
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Old 12-13-2013, 11:01 PM   #15
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TW, here's one description I found...


H+ Magazine
By: Peter Rothman
Published: December 9, 2013

NROL-39 Nothing is Beyond Our Reach
Quote:
Formally known as*ELaNa II / GEMSAT the unclassified auxiliary mission also included a variety of NASA student designed CubeSats.
<snip>
NROL-39 *carried the Government Experimental Multi-Satellite (GEMSat) payload into orbit in a specially designed Aft Bulkhead Carrier, part of the Atlas V Centaur upper stage. The GEMSat payload contains 12 CubeSats, or “nanosatellites.”

The CubeSats perform a variety of unique scientific experiments and demonstrate high-technology operational concepts. Sponsored by the NRO’s Mission Integration Directorate and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) Launch Support Program, these CubeSats were developed by a number of laboratories, universities, and government entities across the United States.

The NRO-sponsored CubeSats included:
• Two developed by Aerospace Corporation, called AeroCube-5 (AC-5),*will demonstrate new technologies for pointing and tracking between two*identical CubeSats. AC-5 will also record launch environment data such*as pressure, temperature, and vibration; and will demonstrate a deorbit*device.
• One developed by the Air Force Institute of Technology, ALICE, will test*the performance of an advanced carbon nanotube array, which has great*potential for smaller, lighter, and more energy-efficient satellite propulsion.
• Four developed by the United States Army — one called SNaP,*two SMDC-One, and one TacSat-IV — will demonstrate nanosatellite*communication capabilities.

The NASA-sponsored CubeSats, part of NASA’s Educational Launch of*Nanosatellites (ELaNa) mission, included:
• Two developed by Montana State University Space Science and*Engineering Laboratory and funded by the National Science Foundation,*called FIREBIRD, a space weather mission that will seek to resolve*questions pertaining to microbursts in the Van Allen radiation belts.
• One developed by California Polytechnic State University, IPEX, will*validate direct broadcast, autonomous science, and product delivery*technologies supporting advancement of the Intelligent Payload Module*for the proposed Hyperspectral Infrared Imager earth science decadal*survey mission.
• One developed by University of Michigan, called MCubed-2,*will demonstrate an advanced on-board data processing system.
• One developed by Medgar Evers College, City University of New York,*CUNYSAT-1, will monitor satellite spin, battery, and solar panel*efficiencies.

But then, all that gobbledegook may just be to intimidate the terrorists.
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