it's amazing what a little public scrutiny can accomplish

Secret court sides with Yahoo, orders U.S. to declassify Prism surveillance ruling

(Reuters) - A secret U.S. court overseeing government domestic surveillance activities has sided with Yahoo Inc and ordered the Obama administration to declassify and publish a 2008 court decision justifying Prism, the data collection program revealed last month by former security contractor Edward Snowden.

The ruling could offer a rare glimpse into how the government has legally justified its spy agencies' data collection programs under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA).

Judge Reggie Walton of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court issued Monday's ruling. The government is expected to decide by August 26 which parts of the 2008 opinion may be published, according to a separate court filing by the Justice Department.

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The government has long argued on the grounds of national security that the surveillance courts' proceedings must be secret. Public and political reaction to Snowden's revelations has put pressure on that position.

In June, Senators Jeff Merkley, a Democrat from Oregon, and Mike Lee, a Utah Republican, introduced a bill that would require the government to declassify significant court rulings concerning the FISA court and its supervision of secret wiretapping programs.

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it's a good first step, but i'd prefer if the supremes simply forbade the existence of a US star chamber -- an infamous british secret court -- or, failing that, forbade it from keeping its rulings secret and demanded that it allow proper appeals of its rulings. also, i'd like the star-shaped spots on my flying pony to spell out "the price of freedom is eternal vigilance".