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Published by: Mike Banks Valentine Privacynotes
privacy@privacynotes.com www.privacynotes.com
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November 21, 2002 Issue #035
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.....IN THIS DIGEST.....
// -- MODERATOR COMMENT -- //
~ Mike Banks Valentine
// -- CONTINUING DISCUSSION -- //
"Big Brother is Here - Finally" ~ Ronni Rhodes ~ Moderator Comment
// -- PRIVACY NEWS -- //
"The Latest in Privacy Issues"
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// -- MODERATOR COMMENT -- //
Last week I mentioned that I was stunned how little news coverage
surrounded the latest announcement of a Bush administration's
"Total Information Awareness" or "TIA" program, to be headed by
Admiral John Poindexter, of Iran/Contra fame. The media attention
was very limited but for a New York Times article three weeks
ago. Since then there has been little attention paid to this program,
but I want to review the news links that I'm aware of and ask
that subscribers send any additional news story links to Privacynotes
as I believe this is one of the most serious attacks against personal
privacy ever seen! As I said in my comments last week, I believe
Big Brother is Here - Finally. TIA is his name.
In Privacynotes issue #31- I listed an opinion piece at C|Net
from David Holtzman in which he satirizes about a Total Information
Awareness type of system. This was before the TIA system was announced
publicly. I laughed along with him when he said,
"Analysts call this predictive capability an 'Indications and
Warning' system, although no one has ever come close to building
anything this broad in scope. Some might also say that's a laughable
idea."
Re-reading that piece is highly recommended in light of the
TIA proposal. Go to:
http://news.com.com/2010-1071-962828.html
The John Markoff New York Times article followed on November
9th announcing TIA (right after issue #33 of Privacynotes was
distributed).
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/11/09/politics/09COMP.html
The week of November 14th I commented on that story and referenced
the official pentagon web site outlining this absurd program.
Go to:
http://www.darpa.mil/iao/TIASystems.htm
I also mentioned the William Safire opinion piece that subscriber
Ronni Rhodes points out below in her comments. Go to:
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/11/14/opinion/14SAFI.html
Registration required, read and understand the NYTimes privacy
policy!
Then on Thursday evening November 14th Nightline did a segment
on TIA. You can watch that on RealVideo or read the recap on the
web site by visiting the ABC News Nightline page at:
http://www.abcnews.go.com/sections/nightline/Nightline/nl021115_homeland.html
Rob Morse of the San Francisco Chronicle added his commentary
yesterday titled, "Fighting terror by terrifying U.S. citizens"
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2002/11/20/MN218568.DTL
That may seem like a fair amount of coverage for a story with
lesser implications for your life. But I'm going to suggest that
if this program moves forward and is not stopped dead in it's
tracks, that we will all be very sorry we paid so little attention
to it before it became a monster.
David Holtzman commented in his piece at C|Net before TIA was
announced
Satire--the aim of this article--helps force people to examine
the implications of their positions. Polarized posturing often
leads to highly hairy outcomes, and nothing causes fuzz to sprout
like some good old incomprehensible technology. The big question
is, how much surveillance do we need to accomplish the goal of
reasonable protection? Extreme solutions don't solve problems
better--they just introduce new pain. Al-Qaida will eventually
be wiped out, but the bureaucrat at the Department of Motor Vehicles
and his buddies will be sniggering over your sexual proclivities
for years. Years? That's right. And if you think that we're going
to build and then throw away an information system this complex
and expensive, I have some old voting machines in Florida to sell
you.
Please pay attention to this issue now and let your elected
representatives know how you feel before Big Brother (TIA) arrives.
// -- CONTINUING DISCUSSION -- //
==> TOPIC: BIG BROTHER IS HERE - FINALLY
From: Ronni Rhodes
William Safire, who is NOT known as an alarmist or anti-government
activist, published an article on this very topic:
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/11/14/opinion/14SAFI.html
Registration required, read and understand the NYTimes privacy
policy!
I find it disheartening that government is using the vague umbrella
of "Homeland Security" to invade our most personal spaces. I fully
support President Bush and his colleagues in the War on Terrorism,
but must we carry this crusade into each and every living room
in the country? Shouldn't we be expending our resources to correct
some of the excesses of the I.N.S., for example, instead of tracking
our own citizens?
I strongly urge people to contact their representatives and
let them know that this proposed "security" measure is outrageous.
Best regards,
Ignite Your Site with Sound and Motion! http://www.wbcimaging.com
[ Moderator Comment ] The following post was sent anonymously
as a comment to the William Safire column mentioned by Ronni Rhodes,
above. The contributor wishes to remain anonymous for now. I imagine
more of us will opt to remain anonymous if things continue in
the current vein politically. Will privacy advocates be called
'Terrorist Sympathizers' or some equally absurd thing because
we seek to maintain personal privacy?
From: Anonymous
> If the Homeland Security Act is not amended before passage,
here is what will happen to you: Every purchase you make with
a credit card, every magazine subscription you buy and medical
prescription you fill, every Web site you visit and e-mail you
send or receive, every academic grade you receive, every bank
deposit you make, every trip you book and every event you attend
all these transactions and communications will go into what the
Defense Department describes as "a virtual, centralized > grand
database."
Could this be true?? and not be front page . If so we are in
bigger trouble than I ever thought. How could any politician allow
this? This is so far from of the people by the people and for
the people.
// -- PRIVACY NEWS -- //
Moderator note: There are two ways to access previously listed
privacy news stories. One is to visit Privacynotes archives, the
other (simpler) way is to visit
http://privacynotes.com/privacy_news.html
where I also keep a privacy news archive.
Questioning Mitchell Wagenberg can be unnerving, not least because
he is apt to videotape the encounter through his eyeglasses or
through a rivet on his belt. "I might as well just give the ballgame
away right now," he said here recently after an hour's conversation,
fumbling to reveal a minuscule camera in his shirt button. "Of
course, I am completely wired, talking to you. Everything's being
recorded." Mr. Wagenberg, known as the "king of the hidden camera"
to a tiny elite of news media and law enforcement representatives
who regularly employ him, may be a privacy advocate's worst nightmare.
He has made a business of turning private moments into very public
affairs.
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/11/20/arts/television/20HIDD.html
Registration required, read and understand the NYTimes privacy
policy!
The drive to kill all privacy in financial dealings and communications
is nearing a conclusion. The control freaks are winning, and your
privacy is just about gone. The imminent signing of the Homeland
Security bill, a governmental reorganization with many antPrivacynotes
provisions, is just one more blow. It follows last year's ill-named
USA Patriot Act, which shredded civil liberties in its zeal to
give law enforcement and security people every tool they needed
to investigate terrorism threats. As usual, key provisions have
had no debate or scrutiny. Meanwhile, a secretive court has sided
with the Bush administration -- easily the most hostile to liberty
in our lifetime -- in greatly expanding law enforcement's surveillance
capabilities. The decision blows new holes in what was left of
the Fourth Amendment, even as it pretends to support constitutional
rights.
http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/4559828.htm
Anyone who worries that the war on terrorism will inspire an
era of unprecedented government spying on Americans has new cause
for concern. The top-secret Foreign Intelligence Surveillance
Court of Review handed the government broad new authority yesterday
to wiretap phone calls, intercept mail and spy on Internet use
of ordinary Americans. The Supreme Court and Congress should reverse
this misguided ruling. In May the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance
Act Court, a lower tribunal established in 1978 to oversee domestic
spying by the government, issued a stern rebuke to the Justice
Department for its practices. The court identified 75 instances
in which the F.B.I. had abused its authority, in some cases by
making false statements in eavesdropping applications.
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/11/19/opinion/19TUE2.html
Registration required, read and understand the NYTimes privacy
policy!
