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Act On Total Information Awareness
pberry writes "The EFF Action Center has two new alerts (1, 2) on stopping "Total Information Awareness." TIA is a collection of DARPA-funded initiatives that are very scary.
The project is headed by Admiral John Poindexter and has no implementation guidelines thus far. In other words, it is misguided to say that these tools will be used in any particular way, but it is clear that if they do what they say they will, America could be a very scary place to live."
The only way to halt TIA is to overwhelmingly convince a lot of people that they would be hurt if TIA were implemented.
However, abuses of TIA by bureaucracies and, indeed, by corporations, are a slow creeping disease that impacts only a small percentage of the population.
The question is: when the abuses grow to the point where a lot of people do disagree with them, will those people have the power to change what they see wrong?
By that time, however, disagreement with TIA will be viewed as "aiding and abetting terrorists" and could be accompanied by suspension of various rights, particularly voting.
People don't seem to care if they get a cure that's worse than the disease.
"Provided by the management for your protection."
Many people think that Osama bin Laden could not possibly have found support from other Arabs without the anger that comes from the U.S. government supporting the killing of Arabs in Palestine. If you are a U.S. citizen, you should know that you contribute over $900 of your money for every man, woman and child in Israel for the purpose of buying U.S. weapons from U.S. weapons manufacturers, so that they can make more profit. You contribute that amount every year. This policy is bad for Jews, it is bad the Arabs, and it is bad for U.S. citizens. Giving money for weapons to a country involved in a conflict is like throwing gasoline on a fire. There are always people who want to kill others and destroy property; for them it is like an adult video game.
See my article about this: What should be the Response to Violence? The article needs updating, but there are many links to important, well-respected news sources.
If you don't begin taking action now, the hidden forces inside the U.S. government will take over completely.
Seriously, all the info required to catch the hijackers was *already in government hands,* specifically in the FBI's hands. The FBI, being too busy chasing "eco-terrorists" (read: people who torch unoccupied SUVs), just didn't work with in the information.
... go ahead. I for one am losing sleep wondering when the DoD will decide that my politics and credit card purchases make me a "terrorist." Hear that? The predator drones are coming to a jeep near you!
Spying on the populace is NOT THE DoD's JOB; there is no way in hell we should tolerate the militarization of domestic intelligence, and there's no way we should hold our genitals as the DoD assembles massive amounts of private info, especially when there are much easier ways of preventing terrorism (not giving money to terrorists, having the FBI do its job, etc).
Anyways, remember the last time the DoD mass-militarized domestic security? We got internment camps on the West Coast.
But if being a sucker allows you to sleep better at night
from http://www.mnftiu.cc/mnftiu.cc/war17.html :
"When John Pointdexter speaks, is there still that flashing sign above his head that says, 'ALERT: I am a lying sack-of-shit felon'?"
Sure, he helped sell arms to Iran in order to fund right-wing terrorists in Nicaragua. Sure, he lied under oath to the public while doing it. But that's no reason not to, uh, give him the keys to one of the most comprehensive, militarized systems to spy on the entire citizenry of the USA with no judicial review whatsoever. After all, in this post-911 world, everything has changed.
Are you a patriot, or are you a terrorist?
Because if you're not with us, you're against us.
And if you're not a patriot, you're a terrorist.
A patriot has nothing to hide from his [sic] Country. A patriot is glad, glad with all his heart to hear that his country is taking the initiative, a patriot supports the party -- if the party wants to know whom Sam or Sally is speaking with, let the party know. If the party wants to know where every Citizen is, what every Citizen does, what every Citizen knows, then let the party know.
A patriot believes. A patriot is the opposite of the dissident.
A patriot does not support laws that allow terrorists, those who do not believe in the strength and ideals of our country, to hide behind anonymity. A patriot does not support anarchy, the total chaos that results when you allow dissidents to mess with public awareness, to spread their lies about our country.
And a patriot does not call for public hearings, checks and balances, handcuffs to hold the hand of Justice, to keep our men [sic] in uniforms -- who believe -- from doing what they believe in, what Americans -- real Americans, not bleeding-heart-liberals need for their protection.
A patriot does not question.
You're either with us, or against us.
If you're not a patriot, you're a terrorist.
I guess I'm a terrorist.
Keep your data out of the databases. Use cash, ask marketers to remove your name from their lists. Use cash. Use cash. Use cash.
If you've got a "shoppers club" card with your name attached to it. Give it up. Cut it up. Get another one - without your real name and address.
Encrypt your IM traffic with others that are capable. Put SSL on your web server.
Adopt IPv6. Setup IPsec on IPv4/v6 connections. Use SSH (duh!). Get an anonymizer.com account. $30 bones for a year. You can get a 6-month free trial if you sign up as a member of the EFF. $25 bones. You get a sticker. Spend a little more and you get a hat or a T-shirt. Do it.
If you've got flash, watch this.
No need to contribute "useful" data to the databases, right?
If you've got flash, watch this. Good political flash cartoons at this site. Go up a level to see more.
It's been almost completely concluded that 9/11 happened because of US Intelligence failures.
Yeah, an intelligence failure like this? Or this? Or this? Or this? As opposed to the US Gov planning to invade Afghanistan before 9-11, to get a nice fat oil pipeline in there, and thus pissing off Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia being the country that almost all the highjackers came from, and the country funding Al Q'aida (sp?), and... err... the country supplying a very large portion of the USA's oil needs.
This TIA thing is research into how to improve it and prevent another 9/11.
War is good for business; there's arms manufacturers to please. George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four has a good explanation, written by "Emannuel Goldstein"(sp?). It is also a nice handy tool to crush dissent. A simplistic example would be the way Ford in the UK filtered out, with the help of the government, "subversives" from job applicants, for fear of union activity. Now we all know how much the US Corporate Government loves worker's unions!
It has nothing to do with spying on anyone. And everything to do with spying on everyone, collectively. Googling for dissenters, if you will.
Try this: The disinfo quiz. And this: The ACLU Quiz.
The only intelligence failure in this world is that of the people happy to just sit on their lazy ignorant arses and be spoonfed the "news" by their governments and Big Corps, instead of taking a few minutes to find out what's really going on.
Sorry if I've hurt anyones delicate idealistic feelings, but it has to be said.
Ali
Ph33r m3!!!
Why has NOBODY asked the Security Services the following? I have posted this argument several times before.
Ask Security Services in the US, UK, Indonesia (Bali) or anywhere for that matter, to deny this:
Internet surveillance, using Echelon, Carnivore or back doors in encryption, will not stop terrorists communicating by other means - most especially face to face or personal courier.
Terrorists will have to do that, or they will be caught.
Perhaps using mobile when absolutely essential, saying - "Meet you in the pub Monday" (human bomb to target A), or Tuesday (target B) or Sunday (abort).
The Internet has become a tool for government to snoop on their people - 24/7.
The terrorism argument is a dummy - total bull*.
INTERNET SURVEILLANCE WILL NOT BE ABLE TO STOP TERRORISTS - THAT IS SPIN AND PROPAGANDA
This propaganda is for several reasons, including: a) making you feel safer b) to say the government are doing something and c) the more malicious motive of privacy invasion.
Government say about surveillance - "you've nothing to fear - if you are not breaking the law"
This argument is made to pressure people into acquiescence - else appear guilty of hiding something illegal.
It does not address the real reason why they want this information (which they will deny) - they want a surveillance society.
They wish to invade your basic human right to privacy. This is like having somebody watching everything you do - all your personal thoughts, hopes and fears will be open to them.
This is everything - including phone calls and interactive TV. Quote from ZDNET: "Whether you're just accessing a Web site, placing a phone call, watching TV or developing a Web service, sometime in the not to distant future, virtually all such transactions will converge around Internet protocols."
"Why should I worry? I do not care if they know what I do in my own home", you may foolishly say. Or, just as dumbly, "They will not be interested in anything I do".
This information will be held about you until the authorities need it for anything at all. Like, for example, here in UK when government looked for dirt on individuals of Paddington crash survivors group. It was led by badly injured Pam Warren. She had over 20 operations after the 1999 rail crash (which killed 31 and injured many).
This group had fought for better and safer railways - all by legal means. By all accounts a group of fine outstanding people - with good intent.
So what was their crime, to deserve this investigation? It was just for showing up members of government to be the incompetents they were.
As usual, government tried to put a different spin on the story when they were found out. Even so, their intent was obvious - they wanted to use this information as propaganda - to smear the character of these good people.
Our honourable government would rather defile the character of its citizens, rather than address their reasonable concerns.
The government arrogantly presume this group of citizens would not worry about having their privacy invaded.
They can also check your outgoings match your income and that you are paying enough tax. What do you think all this privacy invasion is for? The War on Terrorism? You poor dupe. All your finances for them to scrutinize; heaven help you if you cannot account for every cent.
The authorities try make everything they say sound perfectly reasonable.
e.g. Officials from US Defence Department agency have said that they want, "the same level of accountability in cyberspace that we now have in the physical world".
Do government currently keep records of everything that you touch in the physical world to analyse?
No they do not - So then, is that the same level of accountability?
They wish to keep an electronic tag on you, like some kind of animal. Actually it is even worse than this - like some pervert sex offender that they have to keep track of. Would any person of intelligence call that accountability?
Do not believe the lies of Government - even more of your money spent on these measures will not protect us from terrorists. Every argument they use is subterfuge - pure spin.
In UK, the RIP Act is unjust - dim-witted ill-informed MPs believed governments 'experts'. Remember - they will get everything about you, your phone calls, emails, TV viewing - everything.
Americans - the Total Information Awareness plan, USA Patriot act and Homeland Defence - you are more technologically aware, are you really that easily led?
I cannot stress enough - all your personal thoughts, hopes and fears will be open to them. I know from experience, as fact, they have no morals and will purposefully twist this information to use against you. I have documentary evidence of this - actual government agency case notes. Should government take legal action to deny that they pervert how personal information is used, then these documents may be viewed in a court of Law.
P.S. The United Nations World Intellectual Property Organization and the United States Department of Commerce are hiding the simple solution to trademark and domain name problem. The solution was ratified by honest attorneys. Please visit my site - not associated with United Nations WIPO.org. The United Nations WIPO deal with these conflicts - but are without honour and too cowardly to directly answer my easy questions (as are the US DoC).