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Canadian Minister Lies On Net Surveillance Claims

Posted by kdawson on from the pants-on-fire dept.

An anonymous reader writes "As we discussed last month, the Canadian government has introduced Internet surveillance legislation that requires ISPs to disclose customer information without a warrant. Peter Van Loan, the Minister in charge, claims that a Vancouver kidnapping earlier this year shows the need for these powers. Michael Geist did some digging and revealed this as a lie — the Vancouver police acknowledge that the case did not involve an ISP request and the suspect is now in custody."

21 of 155 comments (clear)

  1. STOP THE PRESSES! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

    A politician lied? Oh my God, this is the most unexpected thing in the history of the universe. Everybody! Stop whatever it is you're doing and pay attention to the one and only lying politician in the world!

    1. Re:STOP THE PRESSES! by tomhudson · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Oh, come on. It's his JOB to know. The guy either lied or he's incompetent. Either way, fire the bum!

    2. Re:STOP THE PRESSES! by selven · · Score: 3, Insightful

      So if you do something bad, but do it a lot, it becomes normal and acceptable?

    3. Re:STOP THE PRESSES! by vadim_t · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Yep, we should completely ignore it and let the lie stand unchallenged, so that a bad piece of legislation can become a law for the wrong reason.

    4. Re:STOP THE PRESSES! by Tx · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Or perhaps he was simply misinformed or mistaken.

      So you mean that rather than being a liar, he might just be ignorant and incompetent? It's the job of politicians to get their facts straight when formulating the laws of the land. Our politicians are always complaining that people don't trust them any more, and that young people are disillusioned with politics. Well perhaps if we could trust what they fecking said, then that wouldn't be the case. It doesn't matter one jot whether this guy flat out lied, or whether he somehow conveniently got his facts wrong, it's just yet another event to knock the credibility of politicians back into the gutter.

      --
      Oh no... it's the future.
    5. Re:STOP THE PRESSES! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

      The only thing this story proves is recall and referendum legislation is desperately needed. In fact we need to change the Canadian constitution to accomplish it.

    6. Re:STOP THE PRESSES! by value_added · · Score: 3, Insightful

      It's the job of politicians to get their facts straight when formulating the laws of the land.

      A noble sentiment for an ideal world.

      In the real world, regrettably, democracies tend to have constitutents (known in the world of software development and systems administration as "lusers"), who expect their elected leaders to deliver. Shortsighted and selfish, to be sure, but that's another subject. The salient point is most don't care how they deliver or what the facts really are, so long as they get what they want.

      As for the correctness of facts, it's the job of the press to inform us, which means checking the facts as stated and reporting accordingly. For whatever reason, the press isn't doing their job, and the responsibility has fallen to an enterprising University professor and his blog.

      Both the politican the press should be taken to task for their failings, but kudos to Michael Geist for his efforts.

    7. Re:STOP THE PRESSES! by Opportunist · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Only proves that democracy is the dictatorship of the stupid.

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    8. Re:STOP THE PRESSES! by shentino · · Score: 4, Insightful

      The problem with politicians is that they are people in a position where they can largely ignore the law.

      I think anyone, no matter how honest he THINKS he is, will sooner or later succumb to tempation and abuse his power.

    9. Re:STOP THE PRESSES! by joocemann · · Score: 2, Insightful

      You don't fire politicians, you hang and eviscerate them. Ask the Italians.

      Firing them would require a whole dismantling of systematic corporatism/cronyism along with a wait for them to finish their term in office. And we all know that doesn't work at all.

      I'm still way too happy to feel the need to take it that far. I think we all are, which would be a good explanation as to why 'we the people' haven't done anything about the atrocities of government for a century or more. Wouldn't you agree? I don't see a stone in your hand, nor mine.

      I honestly thought legislation about weapon controls would blow the 'revolution threshold' for NRA members... apparently they, too, are too happy to have cold dead hands.

      Really think about it... how fucked are we? Not that bad... not bad at all, really.

    10. Re:STOP THE PRESSES! by RelaxedTension · · Score: 5, Insightful

      He got asked about it and instead of giving the honest answer (i.e. "I dunno, but I'll ask my experts and come back to you") he made up some answer. Why? Because for some odd reason people expect politicians to have an answer for everything.

      I gotta call bullshit on this one. As stated earlier, it's specifically his job to know this. He is writing a law that he knows will erode personal rights of privacy, and also knows the backlash that is possible. If he is not fully aware that he has "enhanced" the story, then he has no business writing the law in the first place.

    11. Re:STOP THE PRESSES! by Bigjeff5 · · Score: 3, Insightful

      It's the same concept as trying to boil a live frog. If you just throw it in boiling water it will immediately jump out, foiling your attempt to boil it. If, however, you throw it in cool water and slowly heat it, the frog won't jump out. It will stay comfortable while it cooks, up until the point at which it is cooked enough that it dies.

      Had legislatures simply dumped all the laws, restrictions, etc. that we have now on the founding generation, there would have been a major revolt. It would never work. But if you change just a few things a year, over the course of decades and centuries the population will tolerate quite a lot, because no one issue is big enough to fight for. Space them out a bit and the tolerance threshold is never reached.

      One day we'll just wake up dead. ;)

      --
      Security is mostly a superstition... Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. - Helen Keller
  2. Re:Lessons from the Bush Administration. by Philip+K+Dickhead · · Score: 2, Insightful

    What, lying on surveillance claims?

    What should he lie on? Is it more comfortable than a latex-based memory-foam?

    --
    "Speaking the Truth in times of universal deceit is a revolutionary act." -- George Orwell
  3. Lips by the+eric+conspiracy · · Score: 5, Insightful

    An old but all too often true observation:

    How do you tell if a politician is lying?

    His lips are moving.

  4. Tory cabinet minister lies by jhylkema · · Score: 1, Insightful

    And in a related story, the sun rose this morning, in the East specifically.

  5. Of course it is a lie... by Foobar+of+Borg · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Tyranny-loving politicians always try to scare the shit out of you to make it seem like they have no choice but to take your freedoms away. And it is always something horrible, like kidnapping or child rape. That way, if you don't give them what they want, then *you* must be responsible for their kidnapping/rape/death since you stood by and didn't let them do anything.

    --
    Similar to the upcoming US election results
    1. Re:Of course it is a lie... by Drakkenmensch · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Think about the CHILDREN! Won't somebody PLEEEEEEASE think about the CHILDREN!!!

    2. Re:Of course it is a lie... by Opportunist · · Score: 3, Insightful

      I'd rather be responsible for the death of a single person than for the death of the liberty of everyone.

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    3. Re:Of course it is a lie... by tomhudson · · Score: 3, Insightful

      He was absolutely convinced she was 17 (which is what the girl's mother told him

      An out-and-out LIE. He admitted during the hearing for the plea bargain that he KNEW she was 13. The mother also testified under oath at the grand jury that she had told him she was 13, because she was surprised that he wanted a model that old - most kid models are younger.

      He's a pedophile. Cunnilingus, vaginal, and anal sex, after doping her up. That's not just "a momentary weakness", as he's tried to argue. He was prescribed 150mg qualudes, but the one he gave her was 500mg, and he tried to dispose of another 500mg when he was arrested - probably part of his "date kit."

      That his films aren't worth watching is just a bonus.

  6. back-door downloader lawsuits for mafiaa. by plasmacutter · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Customer information without a warrant.. why does that sound familiar?

    --
    VLC FOR MAC IS DYING! IF YOU DEVELOP, PLEASE SAVE IT!!
  7. Well its seems obvious that survelance is needed. by 3seas · · Score: 2, Insightful

    over some government officials....