Their databases are a jumbled mess of COLLECTION with a really
   crappy AI sorting out the data.

   Their latest project was working on comprehending cultural
   metaphors to better interpret movements of forces. Great idea,
   *love* the concept... but botched it entirely. [whoever the
   successor to ARPA is.. I forget their new name.. they were
   working on it].
   TOTALLY messed it up.
   Oh wait - nvm.. that's the military's databases that are messed
   up.

   The NSA's amounts to a gigantic neverending text file where they
   search for keywords. Perhaps a tad more sophisticated but
   Intelligence, rarely is.

   Our cultural assumptions keep getting in the way. They miss the
   *whole point* and are blinded by Americanism.

   I'm not the least bit worried about NSA, Homeland Security, or
   any of that. I'm about as public record as you can get. I gave
   up on my privacy in 2002 when Google released HUNDREDS of my
   ancient Usenet posts to the WHOLE FREAKIN' WORLD... and I was
   like, "shit, I think I talked about a sex fantasy on there when
   I was 19" and got it removed. It was a crappy fantasy too.

   Nope. here I am. You know who is far worse than any govt agency?

   Gossip + Media + Gossip. Far more damaging. Impossible to
   contain. Just start a rumor. Meangirls. 3 middle school girls in
   unison are FAR more powerful than any male govt agency with
   computers and a singular set of cultural misunderstandings.,
   even about their own people. Incompetence is the reality of most
   things. When you see a well put together story about THE FUTURE
   or HOW THINGS REALLY ARE, or SECRETS YOU SHOULD KNOW... and
   there's lots of Hyperbole and Drama... it's likely a lie. A
   sales product.

   If they ask for money or your allegiance, watch out.

   If they're incompetent and bumbling but well-meaning, I'm more
   likely to believe it. That's more normal. Of course,
   self-effacing is *also* a technique of sales and/or scame but
   it's not as commonly used.