[tommycollison]

We're not against any form of surveillance ever, we just think that over-broad NSA/GCHQ spying as it currently exists violates the Constitution.

Maybe we'll agree some day that this level of surveillance is a price we're willing to pay, but that needs a rigorous and well-informed public debate.

Our letter ends by calling on the U.S. government to "bring the NSA back within the bounds of the constitution," not to scrap the NSA entirely.

Hope this clarifies. :-)

[XorNot]

So why on campus then? "on campus" implies this is a campus specific issue, hence the aforementioned security cameras.

The NSA/GCHQ is a nation-state level issue, effecting populaces on the same scale.

[tommycollison]

Well, headline aside, we feel the NSA/GCHQ overreach is a problem that particularly affects students, since college is a time for exploration, creativity, and freedom. The private realm is the only place any of these things reside, and we're concerned about the erosion of online anonymity.