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Congressman Calls for Arrest of Security Researcher
Christopher Soghoian writes "Yesterday, I published a tool that allows you to Create your own boarding pass for Northwest flights. This was an attempt to document the fragile and broken state of identity/security for domestic flights in the US. Today, Congressman Markey (D-Mass) has called for my arrest." From the ABC article: "'I don't want to help terrorists or help bad guys do bad things on airplanes, but what we have now is what we in the industry call security theater. It's made to make you think you're secure without actually making you secure,' Soghoian said. 'As a member of the academic research community, I consider this to be a public service.' Soghoian admits that he hasn't actually tried to use one of the boarding passes yet."
I think you should be arrested too. Your little "experiment" is dangerous and illegal. Carrying a gun past the security checkpoint just to show that the checkpoint sometimes misses detecting weapons is a crime. You sir, have committed a similar crime. My only advice to you is: get an attorney and watch out for your cornhole.
Just look at the way Mark Foley got treated for sending an email to someone over 18. He's got the R after his name.
Don't think there's a double-standard? Look up Gerry Studds, with the big old D after his name. He actually porked a 17-year-old page in the ass, and he got to serve another decade.
Just like you can't spell DMCA without the D.
Dems get a free pass in this country when they do something stupid.
I think you're forgetting about his contacts with folks UNDER 18, schmuck.
Besides, considering he's part of the gay-baiting, family-values, anti-sex right, it just shows he's a perv AND a big fucking hypocrite.
God, you Republicans are a bunch of whiny professional victims. "ooooh oooh oooh. We control the presidency and both houses. Woe is us, woe woe woe. The media bought our Iraq war story hook, line, and sinker. Damned liberal media! Christians are being oppressed in the US, even though there's a church on every block and the prez got elected as a born-again nutjob. Whine whine whine!!"
God.
SHUT.
UP.
"Unfortunately, the Supreme Court takes a very loose view of what the Constitution says."
VERY loose. Consider the phrasing of the 2nd Amendment, which is VERY clear:
"Amendment II
A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed."
Regardless of how you interpret "A well regulated militia", there's no denying that "the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed" is stated as an imperative.
Or, more subtle:
"Amendment IX
The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people."
Then, look at:
"Amendment XVI
The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes on incomes, from whatever source derived, without apportionment among the several states, and without regard to any census or enumeration."
And, consider:
"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commerce_Clause"
Then consider that the 16th Amendment didn't, and couldn't, extend the Federal Government's taxing ability beyond the things over which it was given jurisdiction by the original Constitution and its other Amendments... and THAT interpretation was upheld by the Supreme Court.
Now, if you're a US Citizen, earning wages from purely intrastate commerce activities (e.g. you live in Wyoming, and the company for whom you work is incorporated in Wyoming): The Federal income tax doesn't apply to your income from wages, by definition - it's not "interstate commerce", nor "foreign commerce", and, despite the fact that the 16th Amendment is stated as vaguely as possible, it still must be held in accordance to the rest of the Constitution, and its Amendments.
Basically, the rights of the Federal Government, are, where they overlap in the Constitution and Amendments, only the least of all possible interpretations, all things considered, and those must benefit the Citizens, and NOT the Federal Government.
And THAT has been upheld, too, over the years.
Of course, that's not how it works now: Everyone assumes that the Federal Government has the right to tax intrastate commerce, simply because, that's the way it has been, since World War II (because, of course, had the Federal Government NOT taxed the income of all of the people in the military, they'd have gone broke, trying to pay them).
But, I'd like to wrap this cynical dissertation up, with a brief discussion of money, in general.
It probably hasn't come to the attention of most of the Slashdot audience, since most of the active posters are in the very high 6-digit UID range, and, are also most likely victims of the US public education system, but, money is a fiction.
I'm going to state that again. Then, I'm going to give you the means, whereby you can discover for yourselves, that that statement is true.
Money is a fiction.
It's not real.
The ONLY reason that the US economy, and every other economy in every other country around the world functions, is because everyone has bought into the delusion that "money" is real.
Proof:
Take a Federal Reserve Note, of whatever denomination you wish, to a Federal Reserve Bank, and ask for it to be redeemed.
Now, most of you won't even bother, so, I'll give you an easy out: Send an email to any Federal Reserve Bank, and ask what would happen, if you did that.
If you don't know how to email them, do a Google search for "Federal Reserve Bank email contact"... that'll get you started.
Wait for the reply. You won't get one. Or, if you do, it won't answer the question "What would I get if I tried to redeem a Federal Reserve Note at a Federal Reserve Bank?"
Now, you might be wondering: What's your point?
My point isn't that money isn't necessary, but, that it isn't necessary that it be created and distributed the way that it is now, so long as we all are in accord with HOW it is created and distributed.