The recent nomination of John Brennan to head the CIA is cause for much concern. Mr. Brennan withdrew his name for consideration in 2008 for the same post because of agreement and involvement with the enhanced interrogation and rendition programs of the Bush Administration, the only recantation on his part has been the admission that "waterboarding" is torture. Brennan has been a close advisor to President Obama and has been the architect of Obama's illegal drone strike program. To have a person such as Brennan heading an organization that many think should be abolished is very troubling to any of us who feel the long arms of the government are reaching too far in the pursuit of terrorists and terrorism. His nomination brings to mind Obama's refusal to prosecute Bush, Rumsfeld, and Cheney on war crimes, perhaps Brennan would have been one of them brought up on charges, he certainly agreed with all of it.

Terrorism is defined as "The use of violence and threats to intimidate or coerce, especially for political purposes".

The director of the NSA under Ronald Reagan Lt. General William Odom said: "By any measure the US has long used terrorism. In '78-79 the Senate was trying to pass a law against international terrorism – in every version they produced the lawyers said the US would be in violation."

In Obama's drone policy anytime a missile is fired from a drone and kills a Muslim the victim is always described as a "militant" Obama's definition of a militant is any man over the age of 16 who happens to be anywhere near a combat zone. White House officials have been caught numerous times lying about how many civilians have been killed and especially the new nominee John Brennan. Glen Greenwald has done extensive research on the drone strikes and his figures of those killed do not agree with those of U.S. officials.

Newly-declassified documents prove that the federal government treated peaceful protesters as terrorists. The FBI deemed Occupy Wall Street to be a terrorist organization. The documents state that Occupy is dangerous because they could disrupt normal business and have a detrimental effect on financial institutions. It is very disturbing to me that the FBI would take the side of and try to protect banks and other highly profitable institutions instead of peaceful citizens many of whom have been the victims of those institutions and their nefarious ways of conducting business.

The Occupiers that I met were bright, peaceful people who only wanted to change this country for the better and were in no stretch of the imagination terrorists.

In a radio interview, Wall St. Journal reporter Julia Angwin, made an observation that the US surveillance regime has more data on the average American than the Stasi ever did on East Germans, more than Stalin had on Russians or Hitler on Germans.

In this country today the following could get one designated as a terrorist and has.

Being young and living near a battle zone.
Reporting or doing journalism
Speaking out against government policies
Criticizing the Drone program
Recognizing global warming and being vocal
Paying cash at an internet café
Questioning Wall Street shenanigans
Investigating factory farming
Being anti nuclear

Jonathan Turley a very well respected lawyer and a consultant on homeland security and the constitution has concluded that this government feels it can assassinate or indefinitely detain Americans anywhere in the world without due process of law. And it has.

Chris Hedges, Daniel Ellsberg, Naomi Wolf and others recently won a permanent block from a federal judge against the NDAA (National Defense Authorization Act) and its provision to allow the indefinite detention of U.S. citizens. The Obama attorneys immediately filed an appeal to overturn, which makes one think that they have already have and are continuing this practice.