I think that we also forget in this age of reduced crime, that it doesn't matter whether or not something is illegal if you have no means of preventing someone

I think that we also forget in this age of reduced crime, that it doesn't matter whether or not something is illegal if you have no means of preventing someone from doing it or holding them responsible when they do. We discovered this situation not by uncovering the intrusion, but from leaked documents. The government has a lot of employees and likes to document its operations, which can lead to whistleblowing... organized crime has few employees, tight lips, and doesn't offer the same protection of whistleblowers. The problem here is not the NSA.