In one of the most sweeping attacks on free speech in America, the Arizona legislature has passed a draconian bill that would criminalize speech on the Internet (“any electronic or digital device”) that prosecutors consider “obscene, lewd or profane language or . . . suggest[ing] a lewd or lascivious act if done with intent to ‘annoy,’ ‘offend,’ ‘harass’ or ‘terrify.’” The law is largely undefined and is in my view facially unconstitutional. The law would drive a stake in the heart of free speech. Yet, people like Bill Clinton have been calling for such a crackdown on Internet speech for years.
Read more here.
Showing posts with label government arrogance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label government arrogance. Show all posts
Thursday, April 05, 2012
Saturday, November 12, 2011
Library and Archives Canada fought to keep us from knowing how shitty the RCMP behaved in the 60's
Newly declassified records from the early 1960s show that even as Tommy Douglas called for a probe of RCMP spying, the Mounties were actively investigating the national NDP leader's political sympathies.
Douglas pointed in April 1963 to the case of a Regina woman who was regularly interrogated by the RCMP, noting the top Mountie had dismissed her story as fiction. He pushed for a special Commons committee to look into the matter...
...Library and Archives Canada, which now holds the Douglas file, fought for six years to keep the pages secret. They were disclosed to The Canadian Press after a federal judge ordered the archives to review the nine-volume intelligence dossier with an eye to releasing more.
Wouldn't you just love to know the crap they are doing *now*?
Read more here.
Douglas pointed in April 1963 to the case of a Regina woman who was regularly interrogated by the RCMP, noting the top Mountie had dismissed her story as fiction. He pushed for a special Commons committee to look into the matter...
...Library and Archives Canada, which now holds the Douglas file, fought for six years to keep the pages secret. They were disclosed to The Canadian Press after a federal judge ordered the archives to review the nine-volume intelligence dossier with an eye to releasing more.
Wouldn't you just love to know the crap they are doing *now*?
Read more here.
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Assh*le at FBI off the hook for extreme stupidity, reckless driving and monumental arrogance
A federal judge in Detroit has dismissed a lawsuit against the U.S. government over the wreck of a $750,000 Ferrari driven by an FBI agent.
Judge Avern Cohn said in his recent decision that the crash of the 1995 F50 sports car was "certainly unfortunate," but cited a law making the government immune to lawsuits when property is in custody of law enforcement.
Michigan-based Motors Insurance believes an agent and a federal prosecutor were out for a joyride in Lexington, Ky., in 2009 when the agent lost control of the Ferrari. The government has refused to pay for the car, which had been stolen and was being kept as part of an investigation.
Judge Avern Cohn said in his recent decision that the crash of the 1995 F50 sports car was "certainly unfortunate," but cited a law making the government immune to lawsuits when property is in custody of law enforcement.
Michigan-based Motors Insurance believes an agent and a federal prosecutor were out for a joyride in Lexington, Ky., in 2009 when the agent lost control of the Ferrari. The government has refused to pay for the car, which had been stolen and was being kept as part of an investigation.
Liberal MP Jim Karygiannis: Idiot of the Day
Classic government thinking. Until you can outlaw the dumb things young people will do...
Damn, I'm just giving them ideas.
A fatal high-speed crash in Toronto over the weekend that tore a car in two pieces has strengthened a federal lawmaker's resolve to force a law requiring all new cars to be fitted with speed limiters.
Liberal MP Jim Karygiannis, the member for Scarborough-Agincourt, said the collision Monday at Kennedy Road and Finch Avenue East underscores the need for the electronic devices that restrict a car from exceeding a particular speed.
Read more here.
Damn, I'm just giving them ideas.
A fatal high-speed crash in Toronto over the weekend that tore a car in two pieces has strengthened a federal lawmaker's resolve to force a law requiring all new cars to be fitted with speed limiters.
Liberal MP Jim Karygiannis, the member for Scarborough-Agincourt, said the collision Monday at Kennedy Road and Finch Avenue East underscores the need for the electronic devices that restrict a car from exceeding a particular speed.
Read more here.
Friday, May 27, 2011
Americans better get used to the fact that the Patriot Act is permanent
Governments never ever give up power voluntarily.
The US Congress has voted to renew three expiring provisions of the anti-terrorism Patriot Act which increase surveillance powers.
The four-year extension was approved in the Senate just hours before the deadline at midnight (0400 GMT).
The bill was then sent to the House of Representatives, where it passed by a 250-153 vote.
The Patriot Act was brought in under President George W Bush in 2001 after the 9/11 attacks.
US President Barack Obama is now due to ratify the bill, officials said.
Read more here.
The US Congress has voted to renew three expiring provisions of the anti-terrorism Patriot Act which increase surveillance powers.
The four-year extension was approved in the Senate just hours before the deadline at midnight (0400 GMT).
The bill was then sent to the House of Representatives, where it passed by a 250-153 vote.
The Patriot Act was brought in under President George W Bush in 2001 after the 9/11 attacks.
US President Barack Obama is now due to ratify the bill, officials said.
Read more here.
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Supreme Court sides with politicians and not with you and me
Was this ever in doubt?
The public does not have a right to access all documents in the offices of cabinet ministers or the prime minister, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled Friday in a unanimous decision.
The top court upheld a Federal Court of Appeal decision, and sided with the federal government in a decade-old legal battle with the information commissioner.
Had the federal government lost its case Friday, it could have vastly expanded the scope of Canada's access-to-information law and potentially have allowed Canadians to get a closer look at the inner workings of the Prime Minister's Office and ministers' offices, including who they meet with on a daily basis.
Read more here.
The public does not have a right to access all documents in the offices of cabinet ministers or the prime minister, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled Friday in a unanimous decision.
The top court upheld a Federal Court of Appeal decision, and sided with the federal government in a decade-old legal battle with the information commissioner.
Had the federal government lost its case Friday, it could have vastly expanded the scope of Canada's access-to-information law and potentially have allowed Canadians to get a closer look at the inner workings of the Prime Minister's Office and ministers' offices, including who they meet with on a daily basis.
Read more here.
Sunday, April 10, 2011
Thursday, April 07, 2011
Google and Facebook help fight France's unethical data law
France, or any government for that matter, has zero right to do this.
Of course, that's not a concern to governments...
Google and Facebook are among a group of net heavyweights taking the French government to court this week.
The legal challenge has been brought by The French Association of Internet Community Services (ASIC) and relates to government plans to keep web users' personal data for a year.
Wtf do they want it for?
The law obliges a range of e-commerce sites, video and music services and webmail providers to keep a host of data on customers.
This includes users' full names, postal addresses, telephone numbers and passwords. The data must be handed over to the authorities if demanded.
Police, the fraud office, customs, tax and social security bodies will all have the right of access.
All people we can trust...completely...
Any government who asks for this level of access needs to be viewed with deep suspicion.
Read more here.
Of course, that's not a concern to governments...
Google and Facebook are among a group of net heavyweights taking the French government to court this week.
The legal challenge has been brought by The French Association of Internet Community Services (ASIC) and relates to government plans to keep web users' personal data for a year.
Wtf do they want it for?
The law obliges a range of e-commerce sites, video and music services and webmail providers to keep a host of data on customers.
This includes users' full names, postal addresses, telephone numbers and passwords. The data must be handed over to the authorities if demanded.
Police, the fraud office, customs, tax and social security bodies will all have the right of access.
All people we can trust...completely...
Any government who asks for this level of access needs to be viewed with deep suspicion.
Read more here.
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Mayor Ford plans to make Toronto much blander than it already is
OMG, the citizens are expressing themselves through art! Art not commissioned and paid for by a corporation!
This has to stop!
905 aesthetics for everyone!
Mayor Rob Ford announced a major blitz of graffiti Wednesday.
Ford’s graffiti pledge came alongside the city’s annual 20-minute makeover announcement.
During the election campaign, Ford vowed to tackle graffiti, proclaiming he would “clean this city up once and for all” and within six months “I guarantee there will not be graffiti,” he said on the campaign trail.
I hope the artists of this city declare war on this nasty "little" man.
The most horrific part of the story: city hall's plan to "work closely with the arts community to create legal murals"
Let that sink in folks. "Legal" murals...
“There is no question, my friends, that art is beautiful,” Palacio said.
But the art that this will produce will be of surpassing hideousness.
Unless it is a life sized tableau depicting the main events in the lives of Our Glorious Leaders, The Brothers Ford.
There must be a wall big enough, somewhere. The dancing hippos scene from Fantasia would be perfect inspiration.
The pink colour of the tutus would have to be changed, out of respect of course.
Read more here.
Ed Vaizey: Today's Threat to the Net
England's Ed Vaizey, Minister for Culture, Communications and Creative Industries is another of those snivelling politicians who think it is completley within their right to police and censor the Net.
These people are a danger, if only for the arrogance they have in thinking their opinions matter over anyone else.
Behold.
We [Open Rights Group] have received a reply from Ed Vaizey, Minister for Culture, Communications and Creative Industries, about new website blocking discussions.
He has confirmed that discussion are ongoing between rights-holders and Internet Service Providers about 'self-regulatory' site-blocking measures.
We believe website blocking is a bad idea, especially on a self-regulatory basis where vital judicial oversight is bypassed.
The good news is that he has promised to invite civil society groups to participate in future discussions on the matter. In our reply we suggested, alongside Open Rights Group, that he consider Global Partners, Liberty, Article 19, and Consumer Focus.
You can help by writing to your MP explaining why website blocking is a bad idea and why it's important civil society groups are represented.
24 March 2011
Dear Jim
Thank you for your letter of 28 February about our recent meeting with stakeholders to discuss alternative plans for site-blocking measures in the Digital Economy Act (DEA).
Jeremy and I met with key players from the digital economy on 23 February to discuss developing new ways for people to access content online. Coming out of this meeting was a proposal for a Working Group to be formed to look at industry self-regulatory measures to tackle online copyright infringement through site-blocking.
I recognise that it is very important that consumer interests are considered very carefully, and we will be inviting consumer representative groups to participate in future discussions on the issue.
ED VAIZEY MP Minister for Culture, Communications and Creative Industries
We must do all we can to make sure governments leave their slimy paws off the Net. They motivations for doing so are never, ever as they state.
Read more here.
These people are a danger, if only for the arrogance they have in thinking their opinions matter over anyone else.
Behold.
We [Open Rights Group] have received a reply from Ed Vaizey, Minister for Culture, Communications and Creative Industries, about new website blocking discussions.
He has confirmed that discussion are ongoing between rights-holders and Internet Service Providers about 'self-regulatory' site-blocking measures.
We believe website blocking is a bad idea, especially on a self-regulatory basis where vital judicial oversight is bypassed.
The good news is that he has promised to invite civil society groups to participate in future discussions on the matter. In our reply we suggested, alongside Open Rights Group, that he consider Global Partners, Liberty, Article 19, and Consumer Focus.
You can help by writing to your MP explaining why website blocking is a bad idea and why it's important civil society groups are represented.
24 March 2011
Dear Jim
Thank you for your letter of 28 February about our recent meeting with stakeholders to discuss alternative plans for site-blocking measures in the Digital Economy Act (DEA).
Jeremy and I met with key players from the digital economy on 23 February to discuss developing new ways for people to access content online. Coming out of this meeting was a proposal for a Working Group to be formed to look at industry self-regulatory measures to tackle online copyright infringement through site-blocking.
I recognise that it is very important that consumer interests are considered very carefully, and we will be inviting consumer representative groups to participate in future discussions on the issue.
ED VAIZEY MP Minister for Culture, Communications and Creative Industries
We must do all we can to make sure governments leave their slimy paws off the Net. They motivations for doing so are never, ever as they state.
Read more here.
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Venezuela does to the Net what all governments would love to do
Ah the good old days, when the population was silent and knew its place.
The Venezuelan parliament passed a law banning for the first time Internet content that promotes social unrest, challenges authority or condones crime, fueling outrage by the opposition...
...The new law expands 2004 restrictions on content in radio, television and print media. In an unprecedented move, it now also includes content from the Internet and electronic subscription services, making webpage managers "responsible for the information and content" published on their websites."
It is meant to crack down on media content that "makes an apology of crime," "promotes unrest in the population" or "challenges legally established authorities."
Read more here.
The Venezuelan parliament passed a law banning for the first time Internet content that promotes social unrest, challenges authority or condones crime, fueling outrage by the opposition...
...The new law expands 2004 restrictions on content in radio, television and print media. In an unprecedented move, it now also includes content from the Internet and electronic subscription services, making webpage managers "responsible for the information and content" published on their websites."
It is meant to crack down on media content that "makes an apology of crime," "promotes unrest in the population" or "challenges legally established authorities."
Read more here.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
