Because who would you trust more than your telephone company?

Patriot Act Faces Revisions Backed by Both Parties - NYTimes.com

"Under the bipartisan bills in the House and Senate, the Patriot Act would be changed to prohibit bulk collection, and sweeps that had operated under the guise of so-called National Security Letters issued by the F.B.I. would end. The data would instead be stored by the phone companies themselves…"