Fight Big Brother!

While the Internet Safety Act is not the first bill to propose forced record retention of Internet traffic logs, it is by and large the most far reaching and demanding of such bills. While this lengthy bill has laudable provisions for the supposed prevention of child endangerment, it's requirement that virtually ever Internet access point in the country keep two years worth of utilization records is not just highly invasive it is ridiculously burdensome to small businesses and individuals.

Just because the European Parliament is comfortable with this level of potential privacy invasion does not mean that freedom-loving Americans should become so complacent on the issue. Proponents of such bills say that requiring Internet Service Providers to maintain activity logs for two years allows law enforcement to review past behavior once someone comes to their attention as a potential threat to young children. What ever happened to 'just cause'?

Now, let's talk about the REAL duck on the table. Have you read about any electronic records breaches lately? Hmmm??? So, the Government wants providers to keep two years of records on everyone's activities in case THEY need them to investigate your past history. Isn't it more likely that other savvy hackers will steal those records for malevolent purposes? Identity theft? Blackmail?

Oh, BTW, stop thinking that secure-HTTP will prevent data thieves from stealing your banking, health, and other private information. It was announced this week that the bad guys are improving their ability to sneak their way into your private HTTPS sessions

The Senate bill is S.436. The House bill is H.R.1076. Note them. Contact your representatives. Oppose them. I have written my own Representative, both my Senators, and the President. I've only done this three other times in the last 28 years.

Laudable goals and democracy

Yesterday, Nancy Pelosi was quoted as saying:

"Our priorities have tracked the Obama campaign priorities...The growth of our economy, the education of our children, the health of our people, the end of dependence on foreign oil and the end of the war in Iraq."

Those are my priorities as well. I plan to remind them if I see them going off track. This election reminded us all that this is OUR government. WE sent them there. WE are the boss of them! (grin) Don't let them forget it. Watch what goes on. If they do something that irks you, DON'T let them get away with it. On the flip side, if they want to do something that they're having a hard time getting support for among their peers, write them and tell them that you agree with them ... and then write some of the other folks and tell them too.

It's high time that we run our democracy, like a democracy. (Some would say that it's a republic, but it works the same way.)

Here is a great speech from "An American President" about what it means to be President, how politics works, and what it means to be a citizen of this country. Obama is great, but I would love to vote for Andrew Shepard.

I got spammed by John McCain

I have only registered with two web sites with any sort of political agenda: One.org and MoveOn.org. I typically support left-of-center ideals. So, imagine my surprise when a campaign plea from John McCain showed up in my inbox over night. I can't imagine how they got my email address. It could not have been from a site that I visit that is sympathetic to his cause. Could he be so desperate as to have bought large blocks of address lists in hopes of garnering even a tiny bit of additional support today?

This election will hinge on tiny margins in several key states. I hope everyone who is physically and legally able to get out and vote makes the effort today. We are in the worse shape that we have been in since the Depression. Make your voice heard. Regardless of whose brand of solution you are warmer to, speak up. Even if you would rather see a third party in power, vote for them. So many people on this planet do not have the right to speak their mind to those in power. It is both a privilege and a responsibility to do so when you can.

Good ridance, and good bye

While this may not seem very charitable of me, this news made me smile and say "It's about time." Suharto is yet another example of a despot's rule being supported and extended by the West. While his wresting of power from his predecessor, Sukarno was seen as an improvement, neither man could be seen as a humanitarian in the treatment of his own people.

I haven't looked too closely to see how many evil rulers we are currently supporting in the name of "democracy" (read: capitalism). How much longer will we continue to support the likes of Pervez Musharraf, a man who took power in a coup d'etat and then suspended the constitution when the Pakistani Supreme Court challenged his reelection?

While the opposition may not be pro-United States, do we support leaders who support us, regardless of their own actions within their borders? Or, do we support the ideals that we say are so dear to us?