Humoring the Headlines: December 16, 2013

By Laurie Baron

Lawrence (Laurie) Baron
Lawrence (Laurie) Baron

SAN DIEGO―A federal judge declared that the NSA’s big data surveillance program is unconstitutional.   In the holiday spirit, the judge issued his ruling as a Christmas jingle sung to the tune of “Santa Claus is Coming to Town.”

You better not phone.  
You better not tweet.   
Even when you’re alone
Please be discreet.
The NSA monitors you.   

It’s making a list   
Of security threats. 
Wiping them out
With remote control jets    
The NSA monitors you.

It reads all of your email. 
It knows which games you play.    
If there’s anything suspicious,    
It will whisk you far away.

You better not leak
Any classified files. 
Or you’ll be detained 
For an indefinite while.   

The NSA monitors you

It knows what things you purchase
And where you’ve been dining.            
Until a Federal Court        
Outlawed such data mining.   

You better not phone.  
You better not tweet.   
Even when you’re alone.
Please be discreet.

The NSA monitors you

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Baron is professor emeritus of history at San Diego State University.  He may be contacted via lawrence.baron@sdjewishworld.com