Senate Wants Database Dragnet

Doc Ruby writes "Wired reports that the "Senate could pass a bill as early as Wednesday evening that would let government counter-terrorist investigators instantly query a massive system of interconnected commercial and government databases that hold billions of records on Americans".

Comments

Wednesday evening?

[ChipMonk]

Isn't it a little late to be reporting this? How are we supposed to Slashdot Congress at this late hour?

Riiight

[Donoho]

Many have trouble accurately querying databases within the same company. If these government agencies have the brain power (internal or contracted) to pull this off then they can have my information.

Re:Riiight

[MonkeyGone2Heaven]

Actually, having the government inacurately querying these databases is what scares me. The last thing I want is to be scooped up in some anti-terrorist sweep because some doufus doesn't know his joins.

Of course, they'll be just as certain I'm a terrorist as they were that Saddam Hussien had vast stocks of WMD when we invaded Iraq.

domestic terrorists?

[dresseduptoday]

Ah, so it has struck US politicians that threats to the nation may (at least in theory) come from people who are not forreign nationals. Not that I envy those of you who live there, regardless of nationality. Freedom used to be cherished, and covernment control and distrust of own citisens in the former eastern block used to be scorned. Bring that point of view back! Your fears are scores for your enemies. _ /Bjorn.

Tips and Tricks?

[vettemph]

We need to come up with a "How To Blend In" document that teaches folks how to limit trackable transactions, make all your travel look like company business and vacations, where to find the books you want without anyone knowing your reading them and so forth. ie.:Imagine how hard it would be for the cops to give speeding tickets if every one of us drove a "black sedan". BLEND IN!

Of course we also need to figure out how to fill the database with so many fake "flags" that it becomes useless.

now where is that silver hat i usually wear?

Just who is the enemy?

[Whammy666]

Why are the majority of these new anti-terrorism laws targeting American citizens? Al-Qaeda is largely based in foreign countries and consists of foreign nationals. Yet the focus of Asscrofts et. al. anti-terror efforts has been to find new and creative ways to spy on US citizens.

What's wrong with this picture?

Re:What about foreigners ?

[Anonymous Coward]

As it is, it's quite hard being a foreign national in the US presently, even if you are just a student.

With the new SEVIS system in place, whatever little privacy you had is gone. It's mandatory for you to provide information on your current whereabouts to the authorities.

I interned at a national lab this summer, and it was mandatory for me to notify my mentor of my whereabouts - if I was leaving town, even on weekends, I had to inform him. He would call me up every three hours to find out where I was. During weekdays, I had to call him up and get his permission before leaving for lunch.

Rights? You do not have those.

United States of America ceased to be the land of the free a long long time ago.

You do not have any liberty here. Get over it. You're not wanted if you are foreign national. Your color and your race will be used against you, no matter what. I get pulled over at airports all time time because of that.

I do not blame the people, because the people are nice. But the administration and the people running the country are not.

They do not care about the principles that this country was built on. Sad.