Spying On The Innocent

This article details some of the absurdity of the Maryland terrorism list wherein peaceful people who never committed any crime and never planed to do so were labeled as terrorists. Remember, people still claim that the president has the power to indefinitely detain a U.S. citizen living in the United States after merely labeling them an enemy combatant. A term the government was unable to define even at the Supreme Court. Also remember that the people detained as enemy combatants are tortured prior to determination of guilt or complicity in any criminal act.

We don't have any examples yet of someone being detained and tortured merely for exercising their First Amendment rights by expressing a liberal opinion and hopefully we will never see any. This is still the danger we have to be aware of when a government takes these kinds of powers for itself. The above article details how intelligence that repeatedly says these people were not dangerous leads to them being labeled as terrorists and in many cases misidentifies what these people were involved with and where they were. If these cops really thought these people were terrorists and a danger to the country I would hope that they would be more careful with the information they gather so as to actually know where someone was on a certain day rather then place them on the opposite side of the continent. Here we are seven years after 9/11 and we still haven't learned the lessons about putting quality people between us and the enemy and not wasting time and taxpayer dollars on witch hunts.

The Walk of Shame: A Shameful Roundup

Saving the best for last.

First, a new study shows that half of all American doctors prescribe a placebo to their patients, and most of them that do, do not inform the patient that the medication will not do anything for their condition. The study goes on to say that doctors usually use pain medication, vitamins, or stress medications rather than the sugar pill one usually associates with placebo.

This throws into question medical ethics and the doctrine of informed consent. It would be possible to meet the standard of informed consent and still get the beneficial effects of a placebo. It also raises questions of further wasting money in the already inefficient American medical system.

This strikes me as similar to the use of tazers since in both cases a professional with a fiduciary duty to the people is using a device as a shortcut around dealing with the psychological difficulty's of the individual they are faced with at the time. It's lazy. It's laziness that has harmful consequences.


Second, the McCain campaign volunteer who claimed to have been attacked and beaten by a black man who carved a "B" into her face to signify Barrac Obama, admitted to lying about the attack. Apparently the woman is mentally unstable and probably did it to herself.


Lastly, we have the Maryland police spying scandal. The state police went to public meetings of politically left protest organizations and entered the names of participants in a database of persons suspected for involvement in terrorism. So essentially what we have is a law enforcement body labeling as terrorists, U.S. citizens who are exercising their constitutionally guaranteed first amendment rights without any evidence that any crime had or would be committed.

The ACLU were the ones credited with this story seeing the light of day because of an information request. This week the state started sending out letters to people who's names are on the list. There are varying accounts of what the letters say or what their purpose is. Questions need to be answered like; why were these people targeted, was it because they were politically liberal, why not investigate groups like the KKK which is already listed as a terrorist group, what prompted this spying, will the victims be able to see what is in their file, what criteria are used to determine someone is a terrorist, how does someone get their name off the list, is it possible to remove someones name?

This again gives an answer the question, "if you aren't doing anything wrong, what do you have to fear?" These people were not doing anything wrong. One officers reports even showed that these people were not planning on doing anything wrong. Yet they were labeled as terrorists. At this point we still do not know why. Again, most people don't concern themselves with the draconian methods of dealing with suspected terrorists since 9/11. Except we have been repeatedly shown that one does not need to do anything wrong to be labeled a terrorist and be subjected to torture. But then again, this woman seems to think that protesters, or anyone that is vocal about their political opinions deserves to be given the third degree.

The Walk of Shame

The old media continues to refer to this story in the terms most favorible to the Bush administration. I (and some former intellegence experts) want to point out some misconceptions that seem to be floating around. First, FISA already gives the president authority to listen to the phone conversations of any terrorism suspect. Its a legal, judge approved warrant, and the backlog is a myth. Second, if the warrentless wiretapping provision expires tomorrow, the wiretapps that are already in place under that law, get to stay in place for up to a year.

If President Bush already has everything he says he needs to protect us then what is in this bill he isn't talking about, and why would he want it passed? At the very least what Bush, the cowards in the Senate, and the business community want is a policy statement that it OK for a company to break the law and violate the rights of innocent American citizens as long as someone in the government asks. I may have misunderstood but I thought the reason Fred Thompson wanted Nixon impeached was because Nixon thought the President was above the law.

I am suspicious of this story

They claim the government spying on us was terminated due to an irresponsible lack of keeping up with bills.

Walk of Shame

As much of a dickhead as Bill Maher is occasionally, he sums up this year's biggest douchbags that should be filled with shame and remorse but are even more worthy of hate because they aren't asshamed.



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Deafening Silence

Like Major General Jalil Khalaf, I find myself wondering, "Where are the intellectuals? Why is everyone silent?" In Basra, General Khalaf's charge, the question has more violence associated with it. However, here in the United States, the question, though perhaps not as serious in consequence on an individual level, is just as serious. Where is the opposition? Why are most of those who oppose the W regime quietly submitting to ever-greater governmental intrusions and controls into the lives of the individual citizen? Why are our legislators not more forcefully opposing the degradation of our freedom? Why is the mainstream news media complicit in the militarization of American society and the reduction of the federal bureaucracy and branches of government into a fascist dictatorship?

If we keep compromising submitting to a bully, he'll keep taking whatever he can until there is nothing meaningful or worthwhile left.

The Scent of Rage

According to the principal deputy director of intelligence, Donald Kerr, the American people need to reconsider what they consider to be known as "privacy." This, of course, follows in the wake of the revelation of AT&T's involvement in the terrorist surveillance program. This week is the week to pressure your Senator, especially if they are on the Senate Judiciary Committee. Of course, he is an appointed official who has to worry about his superiors above in producing quotes. Otherwise, he might have said something rational. Stranger things have happened.

Another Big Fuckin Suprise

This is one of those things that is actually news of the situation being worse than previously known. However, noone will take any notice because everyone already assumed it was this bad. Basically, ATT was tapping EVERY FUCKING CALL, EMAIL, OR BIT OF INFORMATION you transmited over their lines.

Thats really fucking important!

The question being tossed around in the courts and the legislature is weather the government can tap calls involving foreigners because its pretty fucking clear that tapping the calls of a US citizen is illegal. But thats exactly what they have been doing.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/politics/2004001159_spying08.html?betterheadline

Big Suprise

So Comcast was billing the government for the surveilance of our calls. This means we were getting screwed twice by them. Once when they take our freedoms and rights away illegally. And again when they bill us for it. Remember, when the government fucks you in the asshole they are also robbing you for the privlege.

My e-mail to Sen. Herb Kohl

The text of my letter to Sen. Russ Feingold was different because he already has a statement on his webpage indicating his stance against immunity for the telecom industry. I encourage you all to write to your elected representatives and urge them to hold the collaborators accountable and vote against any imunity from civil action.

As a member of the Judicial committee I implore you to not include any provision in the domestic spying program to give the telecom industry immunity from prosecution. I ask you to hold them responsible for their actions in eroding the rights of the American people. If the White House will not give the committee the documents they require, I humbly suggest the committee not approve any program for domestic spying. The way I see it the administration doesn't really have a bargaining chip here. The Judicial Committee says to them "we need these documents to give you the program you want." And the administration replies by demanding the committee wright the legislation the way it wants or they wont release the documents you need. It sounds like the administration is putting the cart before the horse. I haven't really heard any arguments in support of immunity, which makes me nervous. It is as if everyone believes the immunity is a foregone conclusion. The only serious argument I have heard in favor of immunity from prosecution for the telecom collaborators is that; if sued, the companies may have to testify about issues of national security. Which may be a legitimate concern, how would one know unless one receives the information from the administration, but couldn't the portions of any civil trial involving matters of national security be made secret? One need not throw the baby out with the bath water and hold these wrongdoers immune from action.

Preferential Rates

So how much does it cost to tap a phone using a National Security Letter? $1,000 per month, but only $750 on the monthly extension. It's good to know that the government gets screwed by Comcast as much as the rest of us.

CORRUPTION, FAILURE AND RAGE!

This is the first time congress has driven me to drink. I get the feeling it wont be the last, unless I stop caring about this country which is fuckin unlikely. These articles below treat this latest failure by the legislature and the Democrats as par for the course and really it is. Which is sad. Sad for us the American people. What I am so upset about is that the Democrats in the Senate Froeign Intelligence comitte have given the telecom industry immunity from prosecution for their participation in the illegal warrentless wiretapping program. In return they got from the Republicans the regulation that the Supreme Court required of them in the first place. So basically we lose because the Democrats still cant resist the same old tired arguments from the Republicans. They threatened to say the Democrats are week on terror and want to allow Bin Laden to hurt us poor defenceless people of the states. News flash for the Democrats, the Republicans will say that any and the argument is a red fucking herring.

This domestic spying program was going on before the attacks of 9/11. Think about that. That means this program did not protect us from Bin Laden. It existed and it did not contribute to our safety. That seriously impairs the likelihood that it will protect us from another attack in the future. Further, the Bush administration had all the information they needed to know about and prevent the attacks of 9/11. More information form huge piles of phone records will not make any of us safer.

Apart from that partisan piece of rhetoric, that I cant fucking believe continues to work, and that it does only goes to show how far out of touch the Democrats in Washington are, I have not heard any other arguments in favor of the domestic spying program. Hows that for a run-on sentence? So that means I have not heard any serious arguments in favor of the program. Even creationists put up more resistance.

General counsil for AT&fuckingT, Wayne Watts, argues that this is a dispute between the Legislative and Executive branch and so the telecom industry should be given immunity from prosecution for participating in an illegal activity at the request of the executive branch. The kind of argument that only a lawyer could appreciate. That doesnt make it a legitimate argument and the legal neuance should not cool your rage. Do you feel the rage?

The last point I want to make is that even if a branch of the government asks you to break the law, you are still breaking the fucking law.


http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/nation/bal-te.surveillance18oct18,0,4239460.story
http://web20.telecomtv.com/pages/?newsid=42051&id=e9381817-0593-417a-8639-c4c53e2a2a10&view=news

The Black Hole

Of all the things that the Dept. of Homeland Security is involving themselves in, I would have to say that legitimate production of music is probably not very relevant to their core mission. But, as this poor schmuck asks, "Where is this black hole?" Indeed, just where is this black hole in public policy and life that the Bush administration has so painstakingly crafted over the last six years?

Why Don't You Know You Are Free Wednesday II

To bring everyone in the class up to speed on what has transpired so far, the Bush Administration embarked upon a path to violate, in part or whole, the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act in February of 2001, well before the 9/11 attacks. At least AT&T, Verizon, and BellSouth were involved in the program as it was established. In the case of Qwest, though, the Bush administration met resistance in the person of Joseph Nacchio. Fast forward to today, Mr. Nacchio was sentenced to a six year jail sentence over the summer, in what some might call a political trial, especially given the fact that the defendant couldn't testify about classified information. Now the phone utilities involved in this heinous violation of the law are refusing to release details about their cooperation. Although the above pieces does describe the FBI's methodlogy behind the eavesdropping. But if a friend of a friend has a name close to 'Bin Laden,' you've probably been eavesdropped on.

Here's a brief refresher on the definitions of suspicion and reasonable doubt.

And Texas is the freest state in the union.

In related news, the House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly in support of a moratorium on state and local Internet taxes. Who are the two members of the House of Representatives that would be so bold as to vote against this? None other than Rep. Anna G. Eshoo, Democrat from California's 14th and Rep. Michael Turner, Republican of Ohio's 3rd. Rep. Eshoo represents Palo Alto, and has this statement strongly in favor of the moratorium on her website. The only reason she voted against it, is because it is temporary. The funny part is that Rep. Turner's vote was apparently an accident.

Why dont you know you are free Wednesday

Wired cares about your freedom, why dont you? I am gratefull to their consistent reporting on the domestic spying issue, because most othere news outlits dont follow this story as closely as Wired does. Thanks to them the public had access to ATT's internal documents detailing the spying program for a few days untill an injunction shut that down. Again I urge you all to wright your elected representatives and tell them you dont want any immunity for the telecom companies that were complicit in the illegal domestic spying program. They should be made to pay for their crimes.

http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2007/10/legally-questio.html

Veto Power. I Has It.

What I view to be a crutial test of the Democrats not just in congress but the whole party, is upon us. If they can muster the political will and power to override President Bush's promised veto of the child healthcare bill and then force through their rewright of the domestic servailence bill without giving immunity to prosecution to the telecom companies that were so eager to give away the freedom of their customers, our freedom, then the Democrats have regrown their balls and we the people stand a chance of continuing to have a democracy. If they can resist two presidential vetos then you and I as citizens can look foreward to getting some of our rights back, we can look foreward to a repair of some of the damage the Bush administration has done to the country, and we can be optimistic about democracy again. If the democratic party can realize why the last election was handed to them and develop the testicular fortitude to stare down the same old rhetorical BS the far right which passes itself off as the center has been spewing for the last 6 years.

http://www.reuters.com/article/industryNews/idUSN1539292620071015

We all suspected that the NSA has been tapping our calls all along but that doesnt make it any less outrageous.

http://www.webpronews.com/topnews/2007/10/12/accusation-domestic-spying-began-before-9-11

Telecommunication Problems

From another margin of business and industry, comes news of the Federal Universal Service Fund, which was designed to allow companies to build infrastructure in rural areas where it might not be otherwise profitable to do so. U.S. Cellular, in particular, has enjoyed the publication of two articles expressing concern about the move to limit the USF by the first of November, in Wisconsin and in Maine. According to one article, U.S. Cellular has spent almost $50 million since 2002 building towers in rural Wisconsin, yet the strength of their stock leaves much to be desired.

On a slightly unrelated note, the FCC has approved AT&T's petition to ignore some of the pricing and reporting regulations (and another) in a further attempt to coddle those companies that were supportive of certain programs. Programs, which it has been recently revealed, started well before their supposed start date sometime after 9/11. If this program is as illegal as it would appear, that would explain Mr. Bush's push for retroactive immunity for the compliant corporations. Also, an independent journalist has some interesting questions and pointed demands for Nancy Pelosi. It smells like COINTELPRO in here.