You probably had no idea, but representatives from Silicon Valley, Hollywood and the U.S. government came together earlier this week to privately discuss how they could jointly fight ISIS propaganda online. Never mind the fact that ISIS is the child of reckless and inhumane preemptive wars of aggression perpetrated by the U.S. government. Such introspection … Read more
This morning, I read a fantastic article by Nathan J. Robinson in Current Affairs titled: Unless the Democrats Run Sanders, a Trump Nomination Means a Trump Presidency. Several months ago, I would have disagreed with this statement, but today I think it’s entirely accurate. One thing Clinton supporters remain in complete denial about (other than the fact most Americans … Read more
Below are links to some of the more interesting and important reads I came across today, but will not be publishing on in detail. U.S. Sought Data From 15 Apple iPhones in Last Four Months (FBI wants a lot more than data from one phone, Reuters) The End of the Establishment? (Excellent read by Robert Reich) It’s Time to … Read more
Several days worth of links. Enjoy. FBI’s Own Actions Likely Made Farook’s iPhone Data Inaccessible (For the can’t make this up files, TechDirt) Decrypting an iPhone for the FBI (Bruce Schneier on Apple vs. FBI, excellent read) Is Apple Picking a Fight With the U.S. Government? (Very good article from 2014, Slate) Here’s a Way … Read more
Speaking less than three days after coordinated terrorist attacks in Paris killed 129 and injured hundreds more, Mr. Brennan complained about “a lot of hand-wringing over the government’s role in the effort to try to uncover these terrorists.” What he calls “hand-wringing” was the sustained national outrage following the 2013 revelations by Edward Snowden, a former National Security … Read more
If you still haven’t heard of the psychotic violence perpetrated on a high school girl by Senior Deputy Ben Fields, it’s time to get up to speed. If you want a gauge as to how far this society has fallen, this is all you need to see. First, a little background from the AP: COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — … Read more
Before I get into this post, I want to thank everyone for all the congratulations and kind well wishes on the recent birth of our first child. Mom and baby are doing great, and we couldn’t be happier. Now let’s get back to the business of liberty. There’s a privacy destroying bill moving through Congress called … Read more
When it comes to law enforcement and privacy: just follow the damn Constitution. – Rep. Ted Lieu I had never heard of Rep. Ted Lieu before a reader sent me an article highlighting his impassioned and intelligent statement in opposition to unconstitutional NSA surveillance. Mr. Lieu is a freshman member of Congress from California’s 33rd district, … Read more
The now-discontinued operation, carried out by the DEA’s intelligence arm, was the government’s first known effort to gather data on Americans in bulk, sweeping up records of telephone calls made by millions of U.S. citizens regardless of whether they were suspected of a crime. It was a model for the massive phone surveillance system the … Read more
Revelations about the NSA’s programs reveal the extraordinary extent to which the program has invaded Americans’ privacy. I reject the notion that we must sacrifice liberty for security — we can live in a secure nation which also upholds a strong commitment to civil liberties. This legislation ends the NSA’s dragnet surveillance practices, while putting provisions in … Read more