Big Brother
Jill Lawless
Associated Press
Fri, 09 Jan 2009 21:32 UTC
London - A civil liberties group on Friday criticized new British rules that will require Internet service providers to keep records of every e-mail sent or received in the country for up to a year.
The rules, which come into effect by March 15, implement a 2006 European Union directive. Service providers will not store the content of e-mails, and the government says there is no threat to individual privacy.
But Shami Chakrabarti, director of the rights group Liberty, said she was worried the government would seek greater powers.
Graeme Paton
UK Telegraph
Fri, 09 Jan 2009 20:45 UTC
Schools could be fitted with futuristic face scanners which screen pupils' faces with an invisible infra-red light as they attempt to enter the building to keep out strangers.
The system, which is being trialled in a UK school next week, can also be used to allow children to take out library books and buy their lunch.
It is among a host of high-tech security measures introduced in schools in a bid to keep pupils safe.
Anna Gorman
Los Angeles Times
Fri, 09 Jan 2009 17:43 UTC
The Justice Department defends the new policy as an important crime-fighting tool. Activists see it as a violation of privacy.
Beginning today, the U.S. government will collect DNA samples from people arrested and detained for suspected immigration violations, despite concerns that the move violates their privacy rights.
The new Justice Department policy also will expand DNA collection to people arrested on suspicion of committing federal crimes. Previously, the government only obtained DNA from people convicted of certain crimes.
The Huffington Post
Thu, 08 Jan 2009 19:05 UTC
TMZ has released the incredible video of
Josh Brolin's arrest outside of a Shreveport bar last summer, along with his "W" costar Jeffrey Wright.
In the video, viewers see Brolin and Wright standing hugging as they are sprayed with pepper spray and then separated by cops. Brolin is made to kneel and is handcuffed while Wright gets laid out on the street and repeatedly tasered, as the cellphone camerawoman screams in protests.
Other video from patrol cars was also
recorded by cop cars last July but not released.
Democracy Now
Tue, 06 Jan 2009 18:49 UTC
AMY GOODMAN: We turn now to a story out of Austin, Texas that's shocked social justice activists nationwide. A prominent Austin-based activist named Brandon Darby has revealed he worked as an FBI informant in the eighteen months leading up to the Republican convention. Darby has admitted to wearing recording devices at planning meetings and wearing a transmitter embedded in his belt during the convention. He is expected to testify on behalf of the government later this month in the trial of two Texas activists who were arrested at the RNC on charges of making and possessing Molotov cocktails.
In a statement, a group of Austin-based activists called the Austin Informant Working Group condemned Darby. The group says, "[T]he emerging truth about Darby's malicious involvement in our communities is heart-breaking and utterly ground-shattering to those of us who were closest to him." The statement goes on to raise suspicions Darby may have gone beyond spying on the accused activists but in fact encouraged and provoked them into breaking the law.
thesugarcubes.net
Wed, 07 Jan 2009 20:08 UTC
A friend of mine had to go through such an irritating experience with the facebook administration; according to Ibrahim Mughrabi, facebook has deleted content on his personal profile related to the "Zionist attacks on Gaza". He says he's been contacted by the administration and warned that he'd be suspended from posting stuff on facebook if he continues to do so!
So much for free speech and equal rights for everyone in this world.
But nothing will stop us from telling the truth, not facebook nor any other news/social network.
Jonathan Head
BBC News, Bangkok
Tue, 06 Jan 2009 14:19 UTC
The new Thai government has ordered ministries to act more decisively against those who violate laws protecting the image of the monarchy.
© Getty Images
The government of new PM Abhisit, pictured, contains many ardent royalists
The new minister for information and technology said the government was already blocking 2,300 websites deemed offensive to the monarchy.
It was seeking permission to block 400 more.
The information ministry says it has set up a round-the-clock "war room" to combat websites containing content critical of the monarchy.
James Vicini
Reuters
Mon, 05 Jan 2009 12:48 UTC
Wanted by the FBI: agents, language specialists, computer experts, intelligence analysts and finance experts.
The FBI said on Monday it had launched one of the largest hiring blitzes in its 100-year history involving 2,100 professional staff vacancies and 850 special agents aimed at filling its most critical vacancies.
The agency, which seeks to protect the United States from terrorist attack, fight crime and catch spies, among other duties, said it currently has more than 12,800 agents and about 18,400 other employees.
David Leppard
The Times
Mon, 05 Jan 2009 22:15 UTC
The Home Office has quietly adopted a new plan to allow police across Britain routinely to hack into people's personal computers without a warrant.
The move, which follows a decision by the European Union's council of ministers in Brussels, has angered civil liberties groups and opposition MPs. They described it as a sinister extension of the surveillance state which drives "a coach and horses" through privacy laws.
Derrick Henry
New York Times.com
Sat, 03 Jan 2009 01:19 UTC
© Mel Evans/Associated Press
PROTEST Hundreds objected to the mandated flu vaccinations.
The state's new law requiring young children attending licensed pre-school and child care centers to get flu vaccinations will be tested this week when thousands of children return to classrooms and playrooms after the long holiday break.
New Jersey, the first state in the nation to require flu shots for young schoolchildren, set a Dec. 31 deadline for parents to obtain flu vaccinations for their children.
It was part of a new policy requiring a total of four additional immunizations for schoolchildren over the objections of some parents who worry about possible risks from vaccinations.
The requirement applies to children between 6 months and 5 years who are attending licensed day care and preschool programs. State public health experts said that flu shots for young children are important for overall public health.
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