UPDATE: 1/21/13 -- CNSNews.com clarified Andrea Hernandez refused all participation in the newer RFID badge system, including the new badge itself at John Jay High. She requested to use her old ID to communicate distinction, as refusing to participate in the program opposed to giving the appearance of blending in with other children compliant with the program.
BTC - WIRED.com's mods may not publish my comments. My efforts to inform to Dave Kravets concerning a $300 million education disbursement went directly to the Internet ethers, unrecognized.
That's okay. That's why when Brooking's doesn't like what I have to say, I can publish here. BeatTheChip is a pretty reliable public interest source on identity surveillance measures anyway.
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Here is what went muzzled:
"John Jay is simply embarassed. They underestimated the endurance run Texans will go opposed to invasive state-sponsored tracking devices. Everyone does. It appears they rescinded an offer to allow Hernandez to wear the badge without the RFID chip over a week ago during court proceedings. The day the news broke a $300 million disbursement for education came from the Texas Land Commission. John Jay and the NISD without a doubt would qualify for that funding for more immediate concerns or could even negotiate on funding ... {to} reconsider their badge program and perhaps soften the landing for any fiscal losses in adopting the program and hiring lawyers to fight this case. It won't change the fact that there are 2 bills in the Texas legislature now to cut off possible funding for adopting RFID in the future. At the end of the day the NISD was duped. They overinvested in a system without calculating public support or privacy risk mitigation ahead of time. That means a business loss to the school as an investor. They're now sacrificing Hernandez to ego and attempting to make her lose her education. Whomever is in charge is losing the forest for the trees. There is an election coming up. We know there will be a challenger to give that chair [to someone] who might make Texas education better by well thought out choices with the public's funding vs. costly public embarassments."
John Jay High is fighting to *not* educate a Christian child in Texas. The NISD's case with the public hasn't got a snowball's chance in hell of making it if they don't get a course correction matching the public's real interests.
Good luck. Texas Senator Estes joined the effort, filing a bill to ban RFID in schools, aligning legislation with Rep. Kolkhorst's House bills, according to the Weatherford Democrat yesterday.
