Friday, September 30, 2011

The Best Among Us by Chris Hedges

To be declared innocent in a country where the rule of law means nothing, where we have undergone a corporate coup, where the poor and working men and women are reduced to joblessness and hunger, where war, financial speculation and internal surveillance are the only real business of the state, where even habeas corpus no longer exists, where you, as a citizen, are nothing more than a commodity to corporate systems of power, one to be used and discarded, is to be complicit in this radical evil. To stand on the sidelines and say “I am innocent” is to bear the mark of Cain; it is to do nothing to reach out and help the weak, the oppressed and the suffering, to save the planet. To be innocent in times like these is to be a criminal. 
 Ask Tim DeChristopher. 
Choose. But choose fast. The state and corporate forces are determined to crush this. They are not going to wait for you.    

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

TSA Finally Speeding Up The Airport Fast Lane

c/o Forbes
"If you are a member of CBP’s Global Entry, Nexus or Sentri Trusted Traveler programs, you may be able to access certain dedicated screening lanes. In conjunction with this service, CBP is installing Global Entry kiosks at certain Canadian airports where travelers are pre-cleared to enter the U.S. so they do not have to go through immigration or customs at a U.S. port of entry. Kiosks are, or will be installed at Vancouver, Ottawa, Montreal and Toronto by the end of this month although when I was in Montreal last week CBP knew nothing about the program. 
CBP will be issuing members of the Global Entry program a Sentri RFID card for a $15 processing fee. Sentri is currently being used at the Otay Mesa, San Ysidro, and Calexico border crossings in California and the El Paso (Stanton Street Bridge) crossing in Texas."


:::MORE HERE:::

RELATED Smart Card ID NEWS:
“The top contactless applications during the next five years are projected to be bank cards, government and healthcare ID cards, transportation and physical access cards. These four applications are projected to account for around 99% of units shipped in 2016.”

:::MORE HERE:::

Intermission: Don't Fence Me In

BTC- Posthumous commentary by King of Funk, James Brown.

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Rep. Rehberg’s homeland security bill is scary stuff

The National Security and Federal Lands Protection Act is co-sponsored by Rep. Denny Rehberg, and it is exactly the kind of Big Government Montanans don't tolerate. All of us should be up in arms over the prospect of this bill. It infringes on our constitutional rights in the name of freedom - much like the controversial REAL ID Act. In fact, this bill builds off of REAL ID.

:::MORE HERE:::

TRUTHOUT--Limitless Space: Computerized Dataveillance Since 9/11

Please check out this selection in the Ten years later: Surveillance in the Homeland series for Truthout

It's time to explore #Nymwars.

Monday, September 26, 2011

REDUX: E-Verify mandate, The Legal Workforce Act, "Not a jobs bill"

c/o Immigration Law Center
"While Chairman Lamar Smith (R-TX) promises that his mandatory E-Verify legislation (HR 2885) is a jobs creation bill, the mark-up of the bill in the House Judiciary Committee last week proved that it is anything but. Though the bill passed the committee by a 22-13 party line vote, the debate in committee and amendments offered make it crystal clear the bill would actually yield job losses. The debate leading up to the committee mark up also shows just how fractured conservatives have become on this issue—and much of it focuses on concerns over jobs. In fact, an unlikely coalition of progressive and conservative organizations joined together to oppose the bill, turning a host of job arguments upside down."
:::MORE HERE::: 

Here is second life for news that matters:

US Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack calls E-Verify "unworkable"


E-Verify Bill Survives Judiciary Committee, But Faces Opposition on Many Fronts


"E-Verify E-Vicerates Labor Market"


Connecticut:"Enhanced ID is driver's choice"

BTC Commentary- I just figured I would make you aware that printing the words "Not for federal purposes" is part and parcel Real ID regulatory compliance.  I know it's an annoying detail, but you deserve to know what's going on with your State.  For instance, if you flip over a California license, you'll probably see the words "Not for federal purposes" on the back.  This is California's way of disengaging federal hardball over Real ID.  They did this by being first in line to submit to 90% regulatory compliance at the DMV and then telling everyone they're not going along with Real ID, "because that's bad!"  I don't think a yachting, wine and cheese state like Connecticut would be much different -do you?  It's not really much of a choice after all, is it?

Information-sharing network beset with technology woes

NIST Information Security and Privacy Board (ISPAB) Meet on FISMA