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Archive for April 3rd, 2008

HACKING DEMOCRACY

Posted by kandylini on April 3, 2008

http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewMovie?id=271431024&s=143441

New York, NY- The disturbingly shocking HBO documentary HACKING DEMOCRACY bravely tangles with our nation’s ills at the heart of democracy. The film the Diebold corporation doesn’t want you to see, this revelatory profile follows a tenacious grandmother from Seattle, Bev Harris, and her band of extraordinary citizen-activists as they set out to ask one simple question: How does American count its votes? From Florida and California to Ohio and Washington State, filmmakers Simon Ardizzone and Russell Michaels starkly reveal a rotten system riddled with fraud, incompetent election officials, and electronic voting machines that can be programmed to steal elections. Equipped only with a powerful sense of righteous outrage, the activists take on voting machine manufacturer Diebold, exposing unsettling security holes in the company’s equipment that may have botched the 2004 election in key states. They even go dumpster diving at a county election official’s office in Florida, uncovering incendiary evidence of miscounted votes.

The HBO documentary HACKING DEMOCRACY is now available for purchase and download on the iTunes Store. HACKING DEMOCRACY is one of the many critically acclaimed films from the Docurama Films’ extensive library of award-winning documentaries and independent films that are becoming accessible on iTunes. New Video, a leading digital aggregator of independent video content, is the parent company of Docurama Films and through their relationship, highly sought after films like HACKING DEMOCRACY are becoming available on the iTunes Store, the world’s most popular online music, and TV and movie store. Movies are $9.99 (US). Films that can already be downloaded on iTunes include “The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill”, “Sir! No! Sir!” and “Heavy Petting”.

Patricia Keim, New Video’s VP of Marketing said on behalf of New Video, “New Video is thrilled to make HACKING DEMOCRACY available to iTunes and we are very pleased to be a part of the impeccable work that iTunes is doing.”


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REAL ID vs the States

Posted by kandylini on April 3, 2008

http://www.news.com/FAQ-How-will-Real-ID-affect-you/2009-1028_3-6229517.html

FAQ: How will Real ID affect you?

By Declan McCullagh
Staff Writer, CNET News.com
February 7, 2008 4:00 AM PST

Editor’s note: A May deadline looms as just one flash point in a political showdown between Homeland Security and states that oppose Real ID demands. This is the last in a four-part series examining the confrontation. Today’s installment is a set of frequently asked questions, or FAQ, that we hope explains how the Real ID law affects you.

 

The Real ID law is touted by Homeland Security officials as an anticrime and antiterror measure, but is steadfastly opposed by some state governments on privacy and sovereignty grounds. Computer scientists also have raised concerns about how its creation of a national interlinked database would work in practice. Keep reading for more on Real ID.

Q: When does the Real ID Act take effect?
On May 11, a little more than three months from now. But states like California that have agreed to comply and ones like Pennsylvania that have requested a deadline extension are not affected–driver’s licenses from those states will continue to work for entering federal buildings and flying commercially.

Some states seem to have requested an extension as a tactical maneuver with little intention of ever complying. Washington and Idaho may fall into this category. A spokesman for Idaho Gov. C.L. “Butch” Otter told us: “We’ve asked for an extension, but we still have serious concerns and reservations about it and its future here is to be determined.”

Q: Who’s going to have trouble flying or entering federal buildings starting May 11?
Residents of the five states–Maine, South Carolina, Montana, Oklahoma, and New Hampshire–that have firmly rejected Real ID. Fifteen states and the District of Columbia have not decided yet, meaning they could fall into this category too.

Q: So if I live in Maine, South Carolina, Montana, Oklahoma, or New Hampshire, and I want to fly out of any U.S. airport starting May 11, what happens?
The Bush administration has not answered that question. The Transportation Security Administration referred our questions to the Department of Homeland Security. A Homeland Security spokesman told us: “That’s an operational, ongoing issue at this point in time. We’ll need to be a bit closer in.”

One likely situation is that starting May 11, security checkpoints at all U.S. airports will have a Real ID and a non-Real ID line. Non-Real ID would be in the slow line, which Homeland Security predicts will involve “delays” and “enhanced security screening.” (One official with the Portland International Airport even joked about a mandatory “full body cavity search.”)

Q: Can I use a U.S. passport instead to get in the fast line?
Yes. If you don’t have one, you’d better apply soon. The State Department estimates four to six weeks for processing.

Will I be able to fly after May 11?

Starting May 11, unless your home state agrees to comply with the federal Real ID Act or unless it asks for an extension, you should expect problems going through security at airports. Click a state below to see what that state has told us about whether or not its ID cards will meet Real ID requirements.

Real ID by state

Alabama

Alabama plans to ask for an extension. “At this point, one option that’s being considered is a ‘hybrid’ approach to Real ID in Alabama, by which the state would offer compliant and noncompliant driver licenses and ID cards. We do plan to ask for an extension.”
–Dorris Teague, Public Information/Education Unit, Alabama Department of Public Safety

Alaska

“Alaska does indeed intend to request an extension to meet the requirements of Real ID. We haven’t submitted our extension request yet, but we fully intend to do so in the very near future.”
–Whitney Brewster, spokeswoman, Alaska Division of Motor Vehicles

Arizona

Arizona says that Homeland Security has said the state will “automatically get an extension” because of an existing plan to revamp its licenses, according to Jeanine L’Ecuyer, spokeswoman for Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano. That means its driver’s licenses and state ID cards will be treated as Real ID-compliant until December 31, 2009.

But L’Ecuyer added that final compliance is still an open question: “Will Arizona do Real ID? Maybe is the honest answer to that question.”

Arkansas

“We have asked for the first extension, but in the extension letter, we say we are not committed to implementing Real ID. We just need time to look at it and evaluate it.”
–Mike Munns, assistant revenue commissioner for Arkansas

California

California reiterated in January 2008 that it has no problems complying with Real ID. Its statement did, however, mention “privacy and funding issues, which continue to be a concern for California.”

Colorado

“We requested and received the extension until 2009, and we expect to be fully on the road to implementing Real ID satisfactorily by that point to get another extension in the future if we need to.”
–Mark Couch, spokesman for the Colorado Department of Revenue

Connecticut

Connecticut has not decided whether to comply with Real ID, reject it completely, or request an extension to keep its options open. “We are still studying the issue. (Department of Motor Vehicles Commissioner Robert Ward) remains supportive of the concept, but no firm decisions have been made.”
–Bill Seymour, spokesman for the motor vehicle commissioner.

Delaware

Delaware has not decided whether to comply with Real ID, reject it completely, or request an extension to keep its options open. “The DMV director and secretary are going to give a briefing to the governor next month, February. Because we’ve got until the end of March to decide…After they have this meeting with the governor is when we’re going to make our official choice.”
–Mike Williams, spokesman, Delaware Department of Transportation

Florida

Florida has not announced whether it will or will not request an extension. “Thanks to the leadership of our governor, cabinet, and legislature, Florida already provides our citizens a secure and safe driver license and identification card, and we are well postured to incorporate any changes that may be required. We applaud the federal government on their efforts to protect all of our citizens with the implementation of this act.”
–Ann Nucatola, public information director, Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles

Georgia

Georgia has not decided whether to comply with Real ID, reject it completely, or request an extension to keep its options open. The legislature has approved legislation authorizing the governor to reject Real ID if federal regulations do not “adequately safeguard and restrict use of the information in order to protect the privacy rights” of Georgia residents. “Our legislature has to make that determination within the next few months.”
–Susan Sports, public information officer, Georgia Department of Driver Services

Hawaii

Hawaii has filed for and received an extension. “We are moving forward on reviewing the rules and coordinating with the county DMVs to see how the rules can be implemented and coordinated.”
–Russell Pang, chief of Media Relations for Hawaii Gov. Linda Lingle

Idaho

“We’ve asked for an extension, but we still have serious concerns and reservations about it and its future here is to be determined.”
–Jon Hanian, spokesman for Idaho Gov. C.L. “Butch” Otter

Illinois

“We have every intention to file for an extension.”
–Henry Haupt, spokesman for Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White

Indiana

“We do intend to comply, and we have filed for and received an extension. Over the past couple of years, we’ve done some security enhancements to our own system that we were going to do regardless of how Real ID rolled out.”
–Dennis Rosebrough, spokesman, Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles

Iowa

“Yes, Iowa will be implementing Real ID and we will be requesting the first extension.”
–Dena Gray-Fisher, spokeswoman, Iowa Department of Transportation

Kansas

“Kansas has obtained authorization for the extension, which gets us out to the end of 2009 and affords us the opportunity to see where we are, negotiate a few different things with our vendor and others. It gives us a little breathing room.”
–Carmen Alldritt, director of the division of vehicles, Kansas Department of Revenue

Kentucky

“A Real ID would be an entirely new document. The current KY license would not meet the new standard…Kentucky has asked for the extension.”
–Mark Brown, spokesman, Kentucky Transportation Cabinet

Louisiana

State officials have not responded to repeated requests for information about Real ID compliance. One bill in the state legislature asks Congress to repeal Real ID, while a response to a DMV survey says that “We believe that Louisiana will meet standards.”

Maine

Will not comply. “There is currently no effort being undertaken within the state to roll back the public law preventing the secretary from moving in the direction of Real ID. It is a situation where Mainers may face some inconvenience at airports come May 11.”
–Don Cookson, spokesman for Maine Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap

Maryland

Maryland requested a deadline extension. “We’re still going through 300 pages of federal guidelines. We’re currently evaluating those guidelines and then we’ll develop a program that is Real ID-compliant.”
–Jack Cahalan, spokesman, Maryland Department of Transportation

Massachusetts

“Massachusetts did apply for the waiver and received it. We are basically telling (drivers who call us) that we’ve gotten the exemption, which means that you are going to show your valid driver’s license to get on an airplane just as you have in the past until December 2009.”
–Ann Dufresne, spokeswoman, Massachusetts Department of Motor Vehicles.

After December 2009, states can apply for a second extension, but will receive it only if they’re taking affirmative steps to comply.

Michigan

Michigan has not decided whether to comply with Real ID, reject it completely, or request an extension to keep its options open. “At this point, we have not requested a waiver. We’re still trying to work out some of the details.”
–Kelly Chesney, spokeswoman for Michigan Secretary of State Terri Lyn Land. The state’s Web site
says: “There are still many unknowns…Michigan law changes will be necessary.”

Minnesota

“We did receive a letter from Homeland Security and it said that our extension had been granted, so that would mean that our documents, our driver’s licenses, and ID cards, are compliant until December 31, 2009.”
–Minnesota Department of Public Safety spokeswoman

Mississippi

No response to repeated inquiries.

Missouri

No response to repeated inquiries. The state Web site says: “January 11, 2008 the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released the final rule establishing minimum security standards for state-issued driver licenses and identification cards. The rule is 284 pages in length. The Missouri Department of Revenue is in the process of reviewing the rules to determine the impact to Missouri.”

Montana

Montana’s legislature has flatly rejected Real ID in a bill that the governor has signed into law. Gov. Brian Schwitzer has called on his colleagues in other states this month to join Montana in opposition to this “major threat to the privacy, constitutional rights, and pocketbooks of ordinary Montanans.” Lynn Solomon, a spokeswoman for the Montana attorney general’s office, told us: “Right now we’re not even sure that the existing Montana law allows us to ask for the extension. We’re just sort of sitting tight.”

Nebraska

“Nebraska has requested and has been granted an initial extension. That extension does not require you to technically commit to Real ID compliance–it says we need some time, and that’s what we said, we need some time. Whether or not Nebraska is ultimately going to be compliant is really for the most part right now in the hands of the legislature.”
–Beverly Neth, director, Nebraska Department of Motor Vehicles

Nevada

Nevada has applied for a deadline extension. “Certainly this is something that the governor supports and believes is important, although he believes in some respects it is an unfunded mandate and that the federal government should assist the states with the funding,” Melissa Subbotin, spokeswoman for Nevada Gov. Jim Gibbons, told us.

New Hampshire

New Hampshire last year enacted a law that prohibits the state from changing its driver’s license and identification card laws to comply with Real ID. It doesn’t appear that is going to change. “As it stands now, the only action that has been taken is legislation to keep us out of it. There would be no way that the state could pass amending legislation or undo that within that time frame; it’s just not going to happen. I don’t see that anything could be done in the intervening time to change it,” Jim Van Dongen, spokesman for the New Hampshire Department of Safety, told us.

New Jersey

New Jersey has not decided whether to comply with Real ID, reject it completely, or request an extension to keep its options open. Mike Horan, a spokesman for the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission, said there are a number of factors that the state is considering, including cost and wait times at the DMV. “Are the Real ID requirements going to add 15 minutes more to a person’s wait? Are we going to need a new computer system to manage the requirements? We’re in a bit of a fiscal crisis like many states across the country. That’s a major concern–there are so many things that are in need of money.”

New Mexico

New Mexico has applied for the first deadline extension from the Department of Homeland Security. “We have not made a final decision on whether we are going to implement Real ID or not,” said David Harwell, a spokesman for the state department of taxation and revenue, which issues driver’s licenses. “We are in the process of studying all of the regulations that were issued by Secretary (Michael) Chertoff several weeks ago.”

New York

New York has already received an “unsolicited extension” from the Department of Homeland Security as part of a recent agreement to change its driver license policies, said Jennifer Givner, deputy press secretary for Gov. Eliot Spitzer.

North Carolina

North Carolina said it will request an extension if it’s necessary for state residents to travel after May 11, but has not yet done so. “We’re feeling that we are on track to follow along the Real ID plan as it is right now. We don’t see any situation at this point where our citizens’ driver’s licenses would be in jeopardy and keeping them out of federal buildings or off of airplanes…Basically we feel like we’re in a good place.”
–Marge Howell, spokeswoman, North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles

North Dakota

North Dakota has applied for a deadline extension. “Our application is stating that we’d like the extension and we would still like to reserve the opportunity to investigate committing to full implementation,” said Linda Butts, deputy director of driver and vehicle services, North Dakota Department of Transportation. “The other thing that’s muddying the water is that so many of these rules are long-term and seem to continue to mutate and change a little bit, so that’s another thing I think all states are looking at is the cost of implementation. Are these truly going to be the rules in 2015? Will the rules today be the rules that are implemented five, seven years down the road?”

Ohio

Ohio said this month that it has applied for an extension and was the first state to receive one.

Oklahoma

Oklahoma’s legislature has approved legislation saying that Real ID “is inimical to the security and well-being of the people of Oklahoma” and, therefore, “the state of Oklahoma shall not participate in the implementation of the Real ID Act.” Paul Sund, spokesman for Oklahoma governor’s office, told us: “I’m not aware of any repeal efforts, but our legislature does not convene until February 4.”

Oregon

Oregon has requested and received an extension. In the longer term, however, the state may not comply. “Oregon hasn’t made a decision for or against compliance with Real ID. But since the final federal rules were released January 10, our legislature is likely to put that on its 2009 agenda.”
–David House, spokesman for the Oregon Department of Motor Vehicles

Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania has requested and received an extension. In the longer term, however, the state may not comply. “We’re undergoing a comprehensive review of those regulations right now to look at some potential options, the cost that would be involved and also the impact to the citizens of Pennsylvania. Being granted this initial extension just allows us more time to do that and allows the citizens of the commonwealth to continue using their state driver’s licenses and IDs through December 31, 2009.”
–Danielle Klinger, spokeswoman, Pennsylvania Department of Transportation

Rhode Island

Rhode Island has applied for and received the first deadline extension from DHS, according to state DMV spokeswoman Gina Zanni. “Our governor supports the Real ID initiative,” Zanni told us. “We have applied for part of the grant money that has been made available…we’d sure like some money.”

South Carolina

South Carolina has enacted legislation saying the state “shall not participate in the implementation of the federal Real ID Act.” Beth Parks, spokeswoman for the South Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles, told us: “Yes, it is true that South Carolina is a non-participatory state for Real ID. The South Carolina legislature is the only entity that can change that position. We are comparing the new regulations to the proposed regulations and our previous cost estimates. Once we have completed our review, we will provide information to South Carolina lawmakers and answer any questions they may have.”

South Dakota

“We’ve applied for an extension and received one, but we have not committed to Real ID yet,” said Mitch Krebs, press secretary for South Dakota Gov. Michael Rounds.

Tennessee

“The Department of Safety is conducting a detailed review of the final rules in order to fully evaluate the impact Real ID implementation will have on the citizens of the state of Tennessee. While we anticipate filing an extension, no official request has been signed as of this date. Keep in mind, an extension request is not necessarily an indication of our intent to comply.”
–Mike Browning, spokesman, Tennessee Department of Safety

Texas

Texas has not decided whether to comply with Real ID, reject it completely, or request an extension to keep its options open. “We’re still reading the fine print.” –Tela Mange, spokeswoman, Texas Department of Public Safety

Utah

Utah has requested and received a deadline extension. “Our driver’s license division is not a policy-making body. It would be up to the legislature and the governor. We are currently going through our legislative session–it just started. That will be one of the topics, whether to go through with it.”
–Sgt. Jeff Nigbur, spokesman, Utah Department of Public Safety

Vermont

“Vermont requested and was granted an extension until December 31, 2009.”
–John Zicconi, spokesman, Vermont Agency of Transportation

Virginia

Virginia has not decided whether to comply with Real ID, reject it completely, or request an extension to keep its options open. “The Virginia DMV is currently reviewing the regulations to determine our next steps.”
–Melanie Stokes, spokeswoman, Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles

Washington

Gov. Christine Gregoire signed legislation last year prohibiting the state from implementing Real ID unless the federal government provides funding and greater privacy protections. But, in an apparent effort to avoid inconveniencing state residents in May, Gregoire requested a compliance extension. “By not filing an extension, effective May 11, Washingtonians would have automatically been subject to additional security screenings at airports and federal buildings,” Gregoire said in a recent statement. It also said: “I will not allow for confusion and chaos at our busy airports. This extension will allow our residents to continue use of their Washington state driver license or ID card to board planes and enter federal buildings…The federal regulations on Real ID compliance are ambiguous, and I share funding and privacy concerns held by many state legislators.”

West Virginia

West Virginia has not decided whether to comply with Real ID, reject it completely, or request an extension to keep its options open. “In West Virginia we are still weighing our options based upon the recent changes to the act’s requirements.”
–Susan Watkins, spokeswoman, West Virginia Department of Transportation

Wisconsin

Wisconsin has not decided whether to comply with Real ID, reject it completely, or request an extension to keep its options open. “We’ve not made a final determination regarding next steps for Wisconsin as it relates to Real ID,” said Patrick Fernan, operations manager for the Wisconsin Department of Motor Vehicles. “We have not requested an extension as of yet.”

Wyoming

Wyoming plans to request a deadline extension. “Unless the law for implementation of Real ID is changed in Washington D.C. or our Wyoming Legislature passes legislation not to comply with the Real ID, we will work toward implementation,” said Jim O’Connor, support services administrator for the Wyoming Department of Transportation. He added, however: “We are concerned about this unfunded federal mandate and the effect it will have on the people of Wyoming.”

Washington, D.C.

The nation’s capital has not decided whether to comply with Real ID, reject it completely, or request an extension to keep its options open. “The DC DMV is still deciding on next steps,” said public information officer Janis Hazel. “Nothing further to report at this time.”

Q: If I live in one of those noncompliant states, how do I access federal buildings, including courthouses, veteran’s hospitals, Social Security offices, and so on?
At airports, at least, you can get in the slow lane and eventually get past security. There’s no equivalent option for federal buildings that require ID: it appears that you’ll simply be denied access unless you have a passport or military ID. (Remember, of course, that not all federal buildings require ID.)

Ironically, one option for federal agencies is to stop requiring photo ID completely. Another is to be liberal in what they accept as valid identification; you could always try your Sam’s Club card or library card instead. Homeland Security already has relaxed supposedly strict rules about what ID is accepted at border crossings.

Q: Will the federal government issue more regulations about when I have to show a Real ID license?
Probably. One Homeland Security official told Congress last year that Real ID could be used for “reducing unlawful employment, voter fraud, and underage drinking.” Another recently suggested that Americans buying cold medicines like Sudafed with pseudoephedrine could be required to show Real ID.

Q: Does Homeland Security have the authority to do that kind of expansion, or can only Congress expand Real ID?
Homeland Security has the authority. The text of the law says that, starting May 11, “a federal agency may not accept, for any official purpose, a driver’s license or identification card issued by a state to any person unless the state is meeting the requirements of this section.” Official purpose is defined to include “any other purposes” that Homeland Security thinks is wise.

The potential list of “purposes” could be long. Real ID could in theory be required for traveling on Amtrak, collecting federal welfare benefits, signing up for Social Security, applying for student loans, interacting with the U.S. Postal Service, entering national parks, and so on.

Q: What about buying firearms?
That’s an open question. Homeland Security last month refused to rule out requiring Real ID for firearm purchases in the future.

When asked about requiring Real ID to buy a firearm, Homeland Security replied: “DHS will continue to consider additional ways in which a Real ID license can or should be used and will implement any changes to the definition of ‘official purpose’ or determinations regarding additional uses for Real ID consistent with applicable laws and regulatory requirements. DHS does not agree that it must seek the approval of Congress as a prerequisite to changing the definition in the future.”

Q: Which presidential candidates voted for Real ID?
All of them who were members of Congress at the time voted for Real ID except Rep. Ron Paul, a Republican.

The vote in Congress was overwhelmingly in favor of the proposal, part of a broader government spending and tsunami relief bill that was approved unanimously by the Senate and by a vote of 368 to 58 in the House of Representatives. Sens. Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, and John McCain voted for it.

Q: What kind of information about me is going to be stored on the Real ID card?
This hasn’t changed substantially since our earlier FAQ published nearly three years ago. At a minimum: name, birth date, sex, ID number, a digital photograph, address, and a “common machine-readable technology” that Homeland Security approves. The card must also sport “physical security features designed to prevent tampering, counterfeiting, or duplication of the document for fraudulent purposes.”

Q: Does “common machine-readable technology” mean RFID?
Not at this point. Homeland Security has said it is not requiring that states use RFID chips, or radio frequency ID chips, in Real ID licenses. Instead, what’s required is a two-dimensional barcode called PDF417. Many states already print this or a similar barcode on their driver’s licenses.

Q: Will the information about me on the PDF417 barcode, such as my home address, be encrypted to prevent a bank or a bar or any other business from swiping it and adding me to their database?
No. Homeland Security said it would be too much work “given law enforcement’s need for easy access to the information.” It is, however, “open to considering technology alternatives to the PDF417 2D bar code in the future to provide greater privacy protections,” which could mean RFID chips in the future. U.S. passports already have RFID chips embedded.

Q: What kind of data will states share under Real ID?
Real ID will require states to share detailed information about anyone with a state ID card or driver’s license, perhaps through a network called AAMVAnet, which the Department of Transportation is paying to expand in hopes of supporting the massive amount of data that will be exchanged. Databases owned by Social Security and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will also be integrated. The idea is that this will allow documents such as birth certificates to be validated online.

Many of the details remain unclear because Homeland Security has not made final decisions, including about whether to build on top of AAMVAnet or expand a centralized federal database already used for commercial driver’s licensing. Computer scientists and privacy advocates unsuccessfully urged Homeland Security to reject Real ID as “unworkable” because of the security and scalability concerns.

Q: If there’s no encryption, is there at least a federal law saying that banks and bars and so on are prohibited from compiling databases of personal information based on Real ID licenses?
No. Some states like California and Texas have passed laws restricting the use of information from a swiped driver’s license. But there is no federal law.

Q: I heard something about Homeland Security giving states more time to issue Real ID-compliant licenses. What is the absolute deadline for all of this to be finished?
To make Real ID more palatable to state governments, Homeland Security extended the final deadline beyond what the text of the statute says.

In the final rule released last month, DHS said the deadline for all states to comply would be December 1, 2017. Only states that can prove they are well on their way to implementing Real ID qualify for this deadline extension.

Q: What does this mean for me if I live in one of the states that will eventually comply with Real ID?
It’s difficult to answer this question because state governments told us they haven’t had enough time to digest the final rules that Homeland Security published last month.

In general, state motor vehicle agencies will be required to verify that you are who you claim to be, which could require that you provide additional paperwork and original documents. This could mean higher costs and longer wait times at the DMV.

Q: Why do we have Real ID, anyway?
It depends on who you ask. The Bush administration will tell you that it stems from the 9/11 Commission’s suggestions, and it’ll make the country safer. The administration will also point out that some of the September 11 hijackers had fake driver’s licenses.

Critics respond by saying the September 11 hijackers could have just as easily boarded those flights using foreign passports. Another criticism is that Real ID licenses are tantamount to a national ID card, something unique in American history.

Q: What about religious objections?
Thousands of Americans do not have photographs on their driver’s licenses or state ID cards, usually because of religious objections. Approximately a dozen states currently allow this, but Real ID does not. Therefore, those licenses without photos will not be valid for flying or federal buildings starting May 11.

Q: Is there any chance that the next administration or Congress will roll back these requirements before they kick in?
It’s a little early to tell. Obama and Clinton have both expressed some concerns about Real ID, while McCain enthusiastically supports it.

Q: Is all this really going to happen? Or could Homeland Security change its mind?
Yes, it’s possible that something could change. But neither Homeland Security nor the non-Real ID states show any signs of blinking. In addition, any legal changes would probably have to originate with Congress–where a proposal to amend Real ID has been stuck in a Senate committee since February 2007.


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Twilight of the Psychopaths

Posted by kandylini on April 3, 2008

http://www.agoracosmopolitan.com/home/Frontpage/2008/01/02/02073.html

by Dr. Kevin Barrett

  Twilight of the Psychopaths
   

“Our society is run by insane people for insane objectives. I think we’re being run by maniacs for maniacal ends and I think I’m liable to be put away as insane for expressing that. That’s what’s insane about it.” – John Lennon, before his murder by CIA mind-control subject Mark David Chapman

When Gandhi was asked his opinion of Western civilization he said it would be a good idea. But that oft-cited quote, is misleading, assuming as it does that civilization is an unmitigated blessing.

Civilized people, we are told, live peacefully and cooperatively with their fellows, sharing the necessary labour in order to obtain the leisure to develop arts and sciences. And while that would be a good idea, it is not a good description of what has been going on in the so-called advanced cultures during the past 8,000 years.

Civilization, as we know it, is largely the creation of psychopaths. All civilizations, our own included, have been based on slavery and “warfare.” Incidentally, the latter term is a euphemism for mass murder.

The prevailing recipe for civilization is simple:

1) Use lies and brainwashing to create an army of controlled, systematic mass murderers;

2) Use that army to enslave large numbers of people (i.e. seize control of their labour power and its fruits);

3) Use that slave labour power to improve the brainwashing process (by using the economic surplus to employ scribes, priests, and PR men). Then go back to step one and repeat the process.

Psychopaths have played a disproportionate role in the development of civilization, because they are hard-wired to lie, kill, injure, and generally inflict great suffering on other humans without feeling any remorse. The inventor of civilization — the first tribal chieftain who successfully brainwashed an army of controlled mass murderers—was almost certainly a genetic psychopath. Since that momentous discovery, psychopaths have enjoyed a significant advantage over non-psychopaths in the struggle for power in civilizational hierarchies — especially military hierarchies.

Political Satire  
 

Military institutions are tailor-made for psychopathic killers. The 5% or so of human males who feel no remorse about killing their fellow human beings make the best soldiers. And the 95% who are extremely reluctant to kill make terrible soldiers — unless they are brainwashed with highly sophisticated modern techniques that turn them (temporarily it is hoped) into functional psychopaths.

In On Killing, Lt. Col. Dave Grossman has re-written military history, to highlight what other histories hide: The fact that military science is less about strategy and technology, than about overcoming the instinctive human reluctance to kill members of our own species. The true “Revolution in Military Affairs” was not Donald Rumsfeld’s move to high-tech in 2001, but Brigadier Gen. S.L.A. Marshall’s discovery in the 1940s that only 15-20% of World War II soldiers along the line of fire would use their weapons: “Those (80-85%) who did not fire did not run or hide (in many cases they were willing to risk great danger to rescue comrades, get ammunition, or run messages), but they simply would not fire their weapons at the enemy, even when faced with repeated waves of banzai charges” (Grossman, p. 4).

Marshall’s discovery and subsequent research, proved that in all previous wars, a tiny minority of soldiers — the 5% who are natural-born psychopaths, and perhaps a few temporarily-insane imitators—did almost all the killing. Normal men just went through the motions and, if at all possible, refused to take the life of an enemy soldier, even if that meant giving up their own. The implication: Wars are ritualized mass murders by psychopaths of non-psychopaths. (This cannot be good for humanity’s genetic endowment!)

Marshall’s work, brought a Copernican revolution to military science. In the past, everyone believed that the soldier willing to kill for his country was the (heroic) norm, while one who refused to fight was a (cowardly) aberration. The truth, as it turned out, was that the normative soldier hailed from the psychopathic five percent. The sane majority, would rather die than fight.

Political Satire

The implication, too frightening for even the likes of Marshall and Grossman to fully digest, was that the norms for soldiers’ behaviour in battle had been set by psychopaths. That meant that psychopaths were in control of the military as an institution. Worse, it meant that psychopaths were in control of society’s perception of military affairs. Evidently, psychopaths exercised an enormous amount of power in seemingly sane, normal society.

How could that be? In Political Ponerology, Andrzej Lobaczewski explains that clinical psychopaths enjoy advantages even in non-violent competitions to climb the ranks of social hierarchies. Because they can lie without remorse (and without the telltale physiological stress that is measured by lie detector tests) psychopaths can always say whatever is necessary to get what they want. In court, for example, psychopaths can tell extreme bald-faced lies in a plausible manner, while their sane opponents are handicapped by an emotional predisposition to remain within hailing distance of the truth. Too often, the judge or jury imagines that the truth must be somewhere in the middle, and then issues decisions that benefit the psychopath. As with judges and juries, so too with those charged with decisions concerning who to promote and who not to promote in corporate, military and governmental hierarchies. The result is that all hierarchies inevitably become top-heavy with psychopaths.

So-called conspiracy theorists, some of whom deserve the pejorative connotation of that much-abused term, often imagine that secret societies of Jews, Jesuits, bankers, communists, Bilderbergers, Muslim extremists, papists, and so on, are secretly controlling history, doing dastardly deeds, and/or threatening to take over the world. As a leading “conspiracy theorist” according to Wikipedia, I feel eminently qualified to offer an alternative conspiracy theory which, like the alternative conspiracy theory of 9/11, is both simpler and more accurate than the prevailing wisdom: The only conspiracy that matters is the conspiracy of the psychopaths against the rest of us.

Political Satire

Behind the apparent insanity of contemporary history, is the actual insanity of psychopaths fighting to preserve their disproportionate power. And as that power grows ever-more-threatened, the psychopaths grow ever-more-desperate. We are witnessing the apotheosis of the overworld—the criminal syndicate or overlapping set of syndicates that lurks above ordinary society and law just as the underworld lurks below it. In 9/11 and the 9/11 wars, we are seeing the final desperate power-grab or “endgame” (Alex Jones) of brutal, cunning gangs of CIA drug-runners and President-killers; money-laundering international bankers and their hit-men, economic and otherwise; corrupt military contractors and gung-ho generals; corporate predators and their political enablers; brainwashers and mind-rapists euphemistically known as psy-ops experts and PR specialists—in short, the whole sick crew of certifiable psychopaths running our so-called civilization. And they are running scared. It was their terror of losing control that they projected onto the rest of us by blowing up the Twin Towers and inciting temporary psychopathic terror-rage in the American public.

Why does the pathocracy fear it is losing control? Because it is threatened by the spread of knowledge. The greatest fear of any psychopath is of being found out. As George H. W. Bush said to journalist Sarah McClendon, December 1992, “If the people knew what we had done, they would chase us down the street and lynch us.” Given that Bush is reported to have participated in parties where child prostitutes were sodomized and otherwise abused, among his many other crimes, his statement to McClendon should be taken seriously.

Psychopaths go through life knowing that they are completely different from other people. They quickly learn to hide their lack of empathy, while carefully studying others’ emotions so as to mimic normalcy while cold-bloodedly manipulating the normals.

Today, thanks to new information technologies, we are on the brink of unmasking the psychopaths and building a civilization of, by and for the normal human being — a civilization without war, a civilization based on truth, a civilization in which the saintly few rather than the diabolical few would gravitate to positions of power. We already have the knowledge necessary to diagnose psychopathic personalities and keep them out of power. We have the knowledge necessary to dismantle the institutions in which psychopaths especially flourish — militaries, intelligence agencies, large corporations, and secret societies. We simply need to disseminate this knowledge, and the will to use it, as widely as possible.

Above all, we need to inform the public about how psychopaths co-opt and corrupt normal human beings. One way they do this, is by manipulating shame and denial — emotions foreign to psychopaths but common and easily-induced among normals.

Consider how gangs and secret societies (psychopaths’ guilds in disguise) recruit new members. Some criminal gangs and satanist covens demand that candidates for admission commit a murder to “earn their stripes.” Skull and Bones, the Yale-based secret society that supplies the CIA with drug-runners, mind-rapists, child abusers and professional killers, requires neophytes to lie naked in a coffin and masturbate in front of older members while reciting the candidate’s entire sexual history. By forcing the neophyte to engage in ritualized behaviour that would be horrendously shameful in normal society, the psychopaths’ guild destroys the candidate’s normal personality, assuming he had one in the first place, and turns the individual into a co-opted, corrupt, degraded shadow of his former self — a manufactured psychopath or psychopath’s apprentice.

This manipulation of shame has the added benefit of making psychopathic organizations effectively invisible to normal society. Despite easily available media reports, American voters in 2004 simply refused to see that the two major-party presidential candidates had lain naked in a coffin masturbating in front of older Bonesmen in order to gain admission to Skull and Bones and thus become members of the criminal overworld. Likewise, many Americans have long refused to see that hawkish elements of the overworld, operating through the CIA, had obviously been the murderers of JFK, MLK, RFK, JFK Jr., Malcolm X, Ché, Allendé, Wellstone, Lumumba, Aguilera, Diem, and countless other relatively non-psychopathic leaders. They refuse to see the continuing murders of millions of people around the world in what amounts to an American holocaust. They refuse to see the evidence that the psychopaths’ guilds running America’s most powerful institutions use the most horrific forms of sexualized abuse imaginable to induce multiple-personality-disorder in child victims, then use the resulting mind-control slaves as disposable drug-runners, prostitutes, Manchurian candidates, and even diplomatic envoys. And of course they refuse to see that 9/11 was a transparently obvious inside job, and that their own psychopath-dominated military-intelligence apparatus is behind almost every major terrorist outrage of recent decades.

All of this psychopathic behaviour at the top of the social hierarchy is simply too shameful for ordinary people to see, so they avert their gaze, just as wives of husbands who are sexually abusing their children sometimes refuse to see what is happening in plain view. If deep, deep denial were a river in Egypt, American citizens’ wilful blindness would be more like the Marianas Trench.

But thanks to the power of the internet, people everywhere are waking up. The only obvious non-psychopath among Republican presidential candidates, Ron Paul, also happens to be the only candidate in either party with significant grassroots support.

If “love” is embedded in the Revolution Ron Paul heralds, that is because Dr. Paul — a kindly, soft-spoken physician who has delivered more than 4,000 babies — implicitly recognizes that government is the invention and tool of psychopaths, and therefore must be strictly limited in scope and subjected to a rigorous system of checks and balances, lest the psychopath’s tools, fear and hatred, replace love as the glue that binds society together.

The decline in militarism since World War II in advanced countries, the spread of literacy and communications technology, and the people’s growing demands for a better life, together represent a gathering force that terrifies the pathocracy, (those alternately competing-then-cooperating gangs of psychopaths who have ruled through lies, fear and intimidation since the dawn of so-called civilization).

Since nuclear weapons have made war obsolete, the pathocracy is terrified that its favourite social control mechanism — ritualized mass slaughter — is increasingly unavailable. And if war was the great human tragedy, the pathocrats’ pathetic attempt at a war-substitute — the transparently phoney “war on terror” — is repeating it as sheerest farce.

Truly, we are witnessing the twilight of the psychopaths. Whether in their death throes they succeed in pulling down the curtain of eternal night on all of us, or whether we resist them and survive to see the dawn of a civilization worthy of the name, is the great decision in which all of us others, however humbly, are now participating.

About the writer:

Dr. Kevin Barrett, co-founder of the Muslim-Christian-Jewish Alliance for 9/11 Truth, LINK, has taught English, French, Arabic, American Civilization, Humanities, African Literature, Folklore, and Islam at colleges and universities in the San Francisco Bay area, Paris, and Madison, Wisconsin. Barrett became a 9/11 truth activist in 2004 after reading David Griffin’s The New Pearl Harbor and conducting follow-up research that convinced him Griffin had accurately summarized evidence indicating 9/11 was an inside job.

In the summer of 2006, Republican state legislators and Fox newscasters demanded that Barrett be fired from his job teaching an introductory Islam class at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, but the University refused to buckle, and Barrett got high marks from his students. He has appeared in several documentary films, lectures widely on 9/11 and hosts three radio programs on three different patriot networks.

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General William Odom Tells Senate Rapid Withdrawal Is Only Solution

Posted by kandylini on April 3, 2008

http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/node/32419

Two related audio files:

Media conference call with StandUpCongress.org on April 1st.

Radio show with ThePeopleSpeakRadio.net on March 17th.

Testimony before Senate Commitee on Foreign Relations:

Here’s the PDF.

TESTIMONY BEFORE THE SENATE FOREIGN RELATIONS COMMITTEE ON IRAQ

By William E. Odom, LT General, USA, Ret.

2 April 2008

Good morning Mr. Chairman and members of the committee. It is an honor to appear before you again. The last occasion was in January 2007, when the topic was the troop surge. Today you are asking if it has worked. Last year I rejected the claim that it was a new strategy. Rather, I said, it is a new tactic used to achieve the same old strategic aim, political stability. And I foresaw no serious prospects for success.

I see no reason to change my judgment now. The surge is prolonging instability, not creating the conditions for unity as the president claims.

Last year, General Petraeus wisely declined to promise a military solution to this political problem, saying that he could lower the level of violence, allowing a limited time for the Iraqi leaders to strike a political deal. Violence has been temporarily reduced but today there is credible evidence that the political situation is far more fragmented. And currently we see violence surge in Baghdad and Basra. In fact, it has also remained sporadic and significant in several other parts of Iraq over the past year, notwithstanding the notable drop in Baghdad and Anbar Province.

More disturbing, Prime Minister Maliki has initiated military action and then dragged in US forces to help his own troops destroy his Shiite competitors. This is a political setback, not a political solution. Such is the result of the surge tactic.

No less disturbing has been the steady violence in the Mosul area, and the tensions in Kirkuk between Kurds, Arabs, and Turkomen. A showdown over control of the oil fields there surely awaits us. And the idea that some kind of a federal solution can cut this Gordian knot strikes me as a wild fantasy, wholly out of touch with Kurdish realities.

Also disturbing is Turkey’s military incursion to destroy Kurdish PKK groups in the border region. That confronted the US government with a choice: either to support its NATO ally, or to make good on its commitment to Kurdish leaders to insure their security. It chose the former, and that makes it clear to the Kurds that the United States will sacrifice their security to its larger interests in Turkey.

Turning to the apparent success in Anbar province and a few other Sunni areas, this is not the positive situation it is purported to be. Certainly violence has declined as local Sunni shieks have begun to cooperate with US forces. But the surge tactic cannot be given full credit. The decline started earlier on Sunni initiative. What are their motives? First, anger at al Qaeda operatives and second, their financial plight.

Their break with al Qaeda should give us little comfort. The Sunnis welcomed anyone who would help them kill Americans, including al Qaeda. The concern we hear the president and his aides express about a residual base left for al Qaeda if we withdraw is utter nonsense. The Sunnis will soon destroy al Qaeda if we leave Iraq.

The Kurds do not allow them in their region, and the Shiites, like the Iranians, detest al Qaeda. To understand why, one need only take note of the al Qaeda public diplomacy campaign over the past year or so on internet blogs. They implore the United States to bomb and invade Iran and destroy this apostate Shiite regime.As an aside, it gives me pause to learn that our vice president and some members of the Senate are aligned with al Qaeda on spreading the war to Iran.

Let me emphasize that our new Sunni friends insist on being paid for their loyalty. I have heard, for example, a rough estimate that the cost in one area of about 100 square kilometers is $250,000 per day. And periodically they threaten to defect unless their fees are increased. You might want to find out the total costs for these deals forecasted for the next several years, because they are not small and they do not promise to end. Remember, we do not own these people. We merely rent them. And they can break the lease at any moment. At the same time, this deal protects them to some degree from the government’s troops and police, hardly a sign of political reconciliation.

Now let us consider the implications of the proliferating deals with the Sunni strongmen. They are far from unified among themselves. Some remain with al Qaeda. Many who break and join our forces are beholden to no one. Thus the decline in violence reflects a dispersion of power to dozens of local strong men whodistrust the government and occasionally fight among themselves. Thus the basic military situation is far worse because of the proliferation of armed groups under local military chiefs who follow a proliferating number of political bosses.

This can hardly be called greater military stability, much less progress toward political consolidation, and to call it fragility that needs more time to become success is to ignore its implications. At the same time, Prime Minister Maliki’s military actions in Basra and Baghdad, indicate even wider political and military fragmentation. We are witnessing is more accurately described as the road to theBalkanization of Iraq, that is, political fragmentation. We are being asked by the president to believe that this shift of so much power and finance to so many local chieftains is the road to political centralization. He describes the process as building the state from the bottom up.

I challenge you to press the administration’s witnesses this week to explain this absurdity. Ask them to name a single historical case where power has been aggregated successfully from local strong men to a central government except through bloody violence leading to a single winner, most often a dictator. That is the history of feudal Europe’s transformation to the age of absolute monarchy. It is the story of the American colonization of the west and our Civil War. It took England 800 years to subdue clan rule on what is now the English-Scottish border. And it is the source of violence in Bosnia and Kosovo.

How can our leaders celebrate this diffusion of power as effective state building? More accurately described, it has placed the United States astride several civil wars. And it allows all sides toconsolidate, rearm, and refill their financial coffers at the US expense.

To sum up, we face a deteriorating political situation with an over extended army. When the administration’s witnesses appear before you, you should make them clarify how long the army andmarines can sustain this band-aid strategy.

The only sensible strategy is to withdraw rapidly but in good order. Only that step can break the paralysis now gripping US strategy in the region. The next step is to choose a new aim, regional stability, not a meaningless victory in Iraq. And progress toward that goal requires revising our policy toward Iran. If the president merely renounced his threat of regime change by force, that could prompt Iran to lessen its support to Taliban groups in Afghanistan. Iran detests the Taliban and supports them only because they will kill more Americans in Afghanistan as retaliation in event of a US attackon Iran. Iran’s policy toward Iraq would also have to change radically as we withdraw. It cannot want instability there. Iraqi Shiites are Arabs, and they know that Persians look down on them. Cooperation between them has its limits.

No quick reconciliation between the US and Iran is likely, but US steps to make Iran feel more secure make it far more conceivable than a policy calculated to increase its insecurity. The president’s policy has reinforced Iran’s determination to acquire nuclearweapons, the very thing he purports to be trying to prevent.

Withdrawal from Iraq does not mean withdrawal from the region. It must include a realignment and reassertion of US forces and diplomacy that give us a better chance to achieve our aim.

A number of reasons are given for not withdrawing soon and completely. I have refuted them repeatedly before but they have more lives than a cat. Let try again me explain why they don’t make sense.

First, it is insisted that we must leave behind military training element with no combat forces to secure them. This makes no sense at all. The idea that US military trainers left alone in Iraq can be safe and effective is flatly rejected by several NCOs and junior officers I have heard describe their personal experiences. Moreover, training foreign forces before they have a consolidated political authority to command their loyalty is a windmill tilt. Finally, Iraq is not short on military skills.

Second, it is insisted that chaos will follow our withdrawal. We heard that argument as the “domino theory” in Vietnam. Even so, the path to political stability will be bloody regardless of whether we withdraw or not. The idea that the United States has a moral responsibility to prevent this ignores that reality. We are certainly toblame for it, but we do not have the physical means to prevent it. American leaders who insist that it is in our power to do so are misleading both the public and themselves if they believe it. The real moral question is whether to risk the lives of more Americans. Unlike preventing chaos, we have the physical means to stop sending more troops where many will be killed or wounded. That is the moral responsibility to our country which no American leaders seems willing to assume.

Third, nay sayers insist that our withdrawal will create regional instability. This confuses cause with effect. Our forces in Iraq and our threat to change Iran’s regime are making the region unstable. Those who link instability with a US withdrawal have it exactly backwards. Our ostrich strategy of keeping our heads buried in the sands of Iraq has done nothing but advance our enemies’ interest.

I implore you to reject these fallacious excuses for prolonging the commitment of US forces to war in Iraq.

Thanks for this opportunity to testify today.

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Students turn out to protest war in Iraq, enact changes

Posted by kandylini on April 3, 2008

http://media.www.dailyfreepress.com/media/storage/paper87/news/2008/04/03/News/Students.Turn.Out.To.Protest.War.In.Iraq.Enact.Changes-3301227.shtml

Vivian Ho

Issue date: 4/3/08

David Mynott II and Donnell Graves protested against the AIPAC on High Street.
Media Credit: Andrew McFarland
David Mynott II and Donnell Graves protested against the AIPAC on High Street.

Nichole Szembrot said she is trying to give the 21st century a very 1960s twist.Szembrot, a College of Arts and Sciences junior, organized an anti-Iran war protest outside the American Israel Public Affairs Committee office in Boston yesterday in hopes of developing a “series of escalating actions,” she said. Four other protesters held signs reading “Love the World Without Shame,” “Love Iran” and “Stop the (Next) War” while distributing fliers describing their actions.AIPAC is a pro-Israel lobby group that has been supporting sanctions against Iran, Szembrot said.“They were encouraging the U.S. to impose sanctions on Iran despite the fact that there haven’t been any illicit activities documented since 2003,” Szembrot said. “They’re still trying to spread this idea that Iran is a danger and it’s not true. They’re trying to stir up fear.”“We’re generally just trying to raise awareness of what the administration is telling people,” she said. “They’re using very war-mongering-type language and trying to create conflict.”Szembrot said Iran is not an enemy, and while its government may be hostile to the United States, “the people are not.”

She said her fervor for activism came after her Spring Break activism trip to Washington, D.C., where she and about 40 other participants from other schools sanctioned a “stop loss” against Congress.

“We went around to every Congressman delivering them stop loss orders, basically telling them that they couldn’t go on their breaks until all the troops came home,” she said.

The students went on to stop Congress from leaving by blocking entrances to parking garages and major intersections, she said.

Szembrot said about 30 students were arrested at this demonstration and said activism is not just important, but fun.

“Our government doesn’t know what we want unless we tell them,” she said. “People aren’t making demands, so our government can’t respond to them because they don’t know what we want.”

Protester Donnell Graves, a local artist, said because Congress is not “doing anything” about the Iraq war, activism is important.

“We can’t get discouraged,” he said. “People are afraid of doing things out of the ordinary. America is so selfish.”

“A lot of people are making serious money off the war,” he said. “That’s why they don’t want to leave. Israel is in bed with the United States.”

David Mynott Jr., a protester from Cambridge, said the protest was necessary to “set the record straight.”

“AIPAC is a very effective propaganda machine for both the Israeli and U.S. governments,” he said. “They’ve been lying to the American people for years.”

AIPAC representatives were not available for comment despite repeated phone calls and messages left yesterday.

Mynott said activism is “energizing,” but is effective only in “combining our energy” and “gathering in groups.”

“Sometimes it’s like throwing paper airplanes at a bulldozer,” Ashley Green, a Simmons College senior, said. “It’s really difficult to penetrate this system we call a democracy.”

After glancing at the small gathering around her, she said, “I guess this is what a democracy looks like.”

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Memo Linked to Warrantless Surveillance

Posted by kandylini on April 3, 2008

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/us/AP-Terrorist-Surveillance.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

Published: April 3, 2008

WASHINGTON (AP) — For at least 16 months after the Sept. 11 terror attacks in 2001, the Bush administration believed that the Constitution’s protection against unreasonable searches and seizures on U.S. soil didn’t apply to its efforts to protect against terrorism.

That view was expressed in a Justice Department legal memo dated Oct. 23, 2001. The administration on Wednesday stressed that it now disavows that view.

The October 2001 memo was written at the request of the White House by John Yoo, then the deputy assistant attorney general, and addressed to Alberto Gonzales, the White House counsel at the time. The administration had asked the department for an opinion on the legality of potential responses to terrorist activity.

The 37-page memo has not been released. Its existence was disclosed Tuesday in a footnote of a separate secret memo, dated March 14, 2003, released by the Pentagon in response to a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit by the American Civil Liberties Union.

”Our office recently concluded that the Fourth Amendment had no application to domestic military operations,” the footnote states, referring to a document titled ”Authority for Use of Military Force to Combat Terrorist Activities Within the United States.”

Exactly what domestic military action was covered by the October memo is unclear. But federal documents indicate that the memo relates to the National Security Agency’s Terrorist Surveillance Program, or TSP.

That program intercepted phone calls and e-mails on U.S. soil, bypassing the normal legal requirement that such eavesdropping be authorized by a secret federal court. The program began after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and continued until Jan. 17, 2007, when the White House resumed seeking surveillance warrants from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court.

White House spokesman Tony Fratto said Wednesday that the Fourth Amendment finding in the October memo was not the legal underpinning for the Terrorist Surveillance Program.

”TSP relied on a separate set of legal memoranda,” Fratto told The Associated Press. The Justice Department outlined that legal framework in a January 2006 white paper issued by the Justice Department a month after the TSP was revealed by The New York Times.

The October memo was written just days before Bush administration officials, including Vice President Dick Cheney, briefed four House and Senate leaders on the NSA’s secret wiretapping program for the first time.

The government itself related the October memo to the TSP program when it included it on a list of documents that were responsive to the ACLU’s request for records from the program. It refused to hand them over.

Late Wednesday, Justice Department spokesman Brian Roehrkasse said department officials believe the October 2001 memo was not about the eavesdropping program, but he did not explain why it was included on requests for documents linked to the TSP.

Earlier, Roehrkasse said the statement in the footnote does not reflect the current view of the department’s Office of Legal Counsel.

”We disagree with the proposition that the Fourth Amendment has no application to domestic military operations,” he said. ”Whether a particular search or seizure is reasonable under the Fourth Amendment requires consideration of the particular context and circumstances of the search.”

Roehrkasse would not say exactly when that legal opinion was overturned internally. But he pointed to the January 2006 white paper.

”The white paper does not suggest in any way that the Fourth Amendment does not apply to domestic military activities, and that is not the position of the Office of Legal Counsel,” he said.

Suzanne Spaulding, a national security law expert and former assistant general counsel at the CIA, said she found the Fourth Amendment reference in the footnote troubling, but added: ”To know (the Justice Department) no longer thinks this is a legitimate statement is reassuring.”

”The recent disclosures underscore the Bush administration’s extraordinarily sweeping conception of executive power,” said Jameel Jaffer, director of the ACLU’s National Security Project. ”The administration’s lawyers believe the president should be permitted to violate statutory law, to violate international treaties and even to violate the Fourth Amendment inside the U.S. They believe that the president should be above the law.”

”Each time one of these memos comes out you have to come up with a more extreme way to characterize it,” Jaffer said.

The ACLU is challenging in court the government’s withholding of the October 2001 memo.

Posted in 9/11, Politics, news | Tagged: , , , | Leave a Comment »

Inside the Black Budget

Posted by kandylini on April 3, 2008

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/01/science/01patc.html?_r=1&em&ex=1207195200&en=c0866049d4ab6fb5&ei=5087

By WILLIAM J. BROAD
April 1, 2008

Skulls. Black cats. A naked woman riding a killer whale. Grim reapers. Snakes. Swords. Occult symbols. A wizard with a staff that shoots lightning bolts. Moons. Stars. A dragon holding the Earth in its claws.

No, this is not the fantasy world of a 12-year-old boy.

It is, according to a new book, part of the hidden reality behind the Pentagon’s classified, or “black,” budget that delivers billions of dollars to stealthy armies of high-tech warriors. The book offers a glimpse of this dark world through a revealing lens — patches — the kind worn on military uniforms.

“It’s a fresh approach to secret government,” Steven Aftergood, a security expert at the Federation of American Scientists in Washington, said in an interview. “It shows that these secret programs have their own culture, vocabulary and even sense of humor.”

One patch shows a space alien with huge eyes holding a stealth bomber near its mouth. “To Serve Man” reads the text above, a reference to a classic “Twilight Zone” episode in which man is the entree, not the customer. “Gustatus Similis Pullus” reads the caption below, dog Latin for “Tastes Like Chicken.”

Military officials and experts said the patches are real if often unofficial efforts at building team spirit.

The classified budget of the Defense Department, concealed from the public in all but outline, has nearly doubled in the Bush years, to $32 billion. That is more than the combined budgets of the Food and Drug Administration, the National Science Foundation and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

Those billions have expanded a secret world of advanced science and technology in which military units and federal contractors push back the frontiers of warfare. In the past, such handiwork has produced some of the most advanced jets, weapons and spy satellites, as well as notorious boondoggles.

Budget documents tell little. This year, for instance, the Pentagon says Program Element 0603891c is receiving $196 million but will disclose nothing about what the project does. Private analysts say it apparently aims at developing space weapons.

Trevor Paglen, an artist and photographer finishing his Ph.D. in geography at the University of California, Berkeley, has managed to document some of this hidden world. The 75 patches he has assembled reveal a bizarre mix of high and low culture where Latin and Greek mottos frame images of spooky demons and sexy warriors, of dragons dropping bombs and skunks firing laser beams.

“Oderint Dum Metuant,” reads a patch for an Air Force program that mines spy satellite images for battlefield intelligence, according to Mr. Paglen, who identifies the saying as from Caligula, the first-century Roman emperor famed for his depravity. It translates “Let them hate so long as they fear.”

Wizards appear on several patches. The one hurling lightning bolts comes from a secret Air Force base at Groom Lake, northwest of Las Vegas in a secluded valley. Mr. Paglen identifies its five clustered stars and one separate star as a veiled reference to Area 51, where the government tests advanced aircraft and, U.F.O. buffs say, captured alien spaceships.

The book offers not only clues into the nature of the secret programs, but also a glimpse of zealous male bonding among the presumed elite of the military-industrial complex. The patches often feel like fraternity pranks gone ballistic.

The book’s title? “I Could Tell You but Then You Would Have to Be Destroyed by Me,” published by Melville House. Mr. Paglen says the title is the Latin translation of a patch designed for the Navy Air Test and Evaluation Squadron 4, at Point Mugu, Calif. Its mission, he says, is to test strike aircraft, conventional weapons and electronic warfare equipment and to develop tactics to use the high-tech armaments in war.

“The military has patches for almost everything it does,” Mr. Paglen writes in the introduction. “Including, curiously, for programs, units and activities that are officially secret.”

He said contractors in some cases made the patches to build esprit de corps. Other times, he added, military units produced them informally, in contrast to official patches.

Mr. Paglen said he found them by touring bases, noting what personnel wore, joining alumni associations, interviewing active and former team members, talking to base historians and filing requests under the Freedom of Information Act.

A spokesman for the Pentagon, Cmdr. Bob Mehal, said it would be imprudent to comment on “which patches do or do not represent classified units.” In an e-mail message, Commander Mehal added, “It would be supposition to suggest ‘anyone’ is uncomfortable with this book.”

Each year, the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, a private group in Washington, publishes an update on the Pentagon’s classified budget. It says the money began to soar after the two events of Mr. Bush’s coming into office and terrorists’ 9/11 attacks.

What sparked his interest, Mr. Paglen recalled, were Vice President Dick Cheney’s remarks as the Pentagon and World Trade Center smoldered. On “Meet the Press,” he said the nation would engage its “dark side” to find the attackers and justice. “We’ve got to spend time in the shadows,” Mr. Cheney said. “It’s going to be vital for us to use any means at our disposal, basically, to achieve our objective.”

In an interview, Mr. Paglen said that remark revived memories of his childhood when his military family traveled the globe to bases often involved in secret missions. “I’d go out drinking with Special Forces guys,” he recalled. “I was 15, and they were 20, and they could never say where they where coming from or what they were doing. You were just around the stuff.”

Intrigued by Mr. Cheney’s remarks as well as his own recollections, Mr. Paglen set off to map the secret world and document its expansion. He traveled widely across the Southwest, where the military keeps many secret bases. His labors, he said, resulted in his Ph.D. thesis as well as a book, “Blank Spots on a Map,” that Dutton plans to publish next year.

The research also led to another book, “Torture Taxi,” that Melville House published in 2006. It described how spies kidnapped and detained suspected terrorists around the globe.

Black World,” a 2006 display of his photographs at Bellwether, a gallery in Chelsea, showed “anonymous-looking buildings in parched landscapes shot through a shimmering heat haze,” Holland Cotter wrote in The New York Times, adding that the images “seem to emit a buzz of mystery as they turn military surveillance inside out: here the surveillant is surveilled.”

In this research, Mr. Paglen became fascinated by the patches and started collecting them and displaying them at talks and shows. He said a breakthrough occurred around 2004, when he visited Peter Merlin, an “aerospace archaeologist” who works in the Mojave Desert not far from a sprawling military base. Mr. Merlin argued that the lightning bolts, stars and other symbols could be substantive clues about unit numbers and operating locations, as well as the purpose of hidden programs.

“These symbols,” Mr. Paglen wrote, “were a language. If you could begin to learn its grammar, you could get a glimpse into the secret world itself.”

His book explores this idea and seeks to decode the symbols. Many patches show the Greek letter sigma, which Mr. Paglen identifies as a technical term for how well an object reflects radar waves, a crucial parameter in developing stealthy jets.

A patch from a Groom Lake unit shows the letter sigma with the “buster” slash running through it, as in the movie “Ghost Busters.” “Huge Deposit — No Return” reads its caption. Huge Deposit, Mr. Paglen writes, “indicates the bomb load deposited by the bomber on its target, while ‘No Return’ refers to the absence of a radar return, meaning the aircraft was undetectable to radar.”

In an interview, Mr. Paglen said his favorite patch was the dragon holding the Earth in its claws, its wings made of American flags and its mouth wide open, baring its fangs. He said it came from the National Reconnaissance Office, which oversees developing spy satellites. “There’s something both belligerent and weirdly self-critical about it,” he remarked. “It’s representing the U.S. as a dragon with the whole world in its clutches.”

The field is expanding. Dwayne A. Day and Roger Guillemette, military historians, wrote an article published this year in The Space Review (www.thespacereview.com/article/1033/1) on patches from secret space programs. “It’s neat stuff,” Dr. Day said in an interview. “They’re not really giving away secrets. But the patches do go farther than the organizations want to go officially.”

Mr. Paglen plans to keep mining the patches and the field of clandestine military activity. “It’s kind of remarkable,” he said. “This stuff is a huge industry, I mean a huge industry. And it’s remarkable that you can develop these projects on an industrial scale, and we don’t know what they are. It’s an astounding feat of social engineering.”

This article has been revised to reflect the following correction:Correction: April 3, 2008
A picture caption on Tuesday with an article about military-uniform-style patches for secret Pentagon programs, using information from a new book about the patches, misspelled the name of a historic patch from the Civil War. It is Kearny (for Gen. Philip Kearny), not Kearney.

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The great inflation cover-up

Posted by kandylini on April 3, 2008

http://money.cnn.com/2008/03/31/magazines/fortune/spiers_cpi.fortune/index.htm?postversion=2008040305

If the price of dinner is pinching us, why don’t the CPI numbers acknowledge it?

(Fortune Magazine) — My friend Dana, a former real estate investment banker who got out of investment banking comfortably before subprime mortgages hit the fan, has a personal inflation index. It’s pegged entirely to the price of filet mignon at the Palm Too, his favorite steak house on the East Side of Manhattan. If the filet mignon is reasonable, all is right with the world. If it seems unduly expensive, Dana gets worried that inflation is spinning out of control. So a couple of months ago he returned from a month in Paris to find that the price of pricey steak had jumped to $38, up from $36. To hear him tell it, not since the Last Supper has an evening meal emanated so pervasive a sense of impending doom.

To be fair, Dana’s professional background lends itself to price scrutiny of nearly everything, and being able to afford high-end steak at all puts you in that segment of the population that isn’t relying on inflation-sensitive Social Security checks. But it’s a little frightening when a guy who just spent several weeks spending euros (now 1.58 to the dollar and climbing) comes back to New York, switches to dollars, and finds himself “aghast” that everything’s so expensive.

And Dana’s not alone. A March CNN poll indicates that 91% of the population is concerned about inflation. I’d ask a member of the remaining 9% what they’re thinking – and what levels of relative fiscal comfort allow one not to be concerned about inflation – but I’m entirely surrounded by 91-percenters. So how do we account for the discrepancy between the Federal Reserve’s recent assurances that inflation is under control and the 91% of the population that’s worried it isn’t?

There are several possibilities: The first is that we’re all paranoid. We simply need reassurance from the authorities: Inflation rates are fine, nothing to see here, move along quietly. The second is that the Fed’s insistence on focusing on “core” inflation – a measure that strips energy and food from the consumer price index (CPI) because they’re theoretically subject to short-term volatility – makes inflation seem smaller than it is, or than we feel it to be when our gallon of milk that was 12% cheaper last year gets swiped across the grocery store scanner, beeping ominously like a tiny alarm bell. (While core inflation was just 2.3% in February, the CPI was 4%.) The third and most disconcerting possibility is that the CPI systemically understates inflation, in which case we’re paying for it taxwise, and the government is underpaying Social Security recipients. In the words of many a UFO spotter, it isn’t paranoia if they’re really out to get you.

The first possibility is not to be completely discounted. Thanks to financial paranoia, Bear Stearns (BSC, Fortune 500) found itself hemorrhaging cash a few weeks ago, prompting a rare but always terrifying run on the bank and the eventual sale of the firm at a price that led one anonymous observer to tape a $2 bill to the front door of Bear headquarters, a tongue-in-cheek bid for the remaining assets at a competitive rate. And while merely thinking that inflation is going up is unlikely to cause it to do so, there are certainly real-world consequences from misplaced anxieties. Consumer confidence is the first casualty. When they think their money’s not going as far in the future, nervous consumers pull back spending.

But are nine out of ten of us really just paranoid? Or are we just irritated at the Fed’s insistence that if we hold still, interest-rate cuts won’t hurt a bit, when historical experience tells us the resulting inflation will hurt like hell? If we focus on core inflation, we’re told, the underlying trends aren’t so disturbing. Take energy and food out of the basket of goods used to calculate the CPI, which is what the Fed does when it reports the numbers to Congress, and things don’t look so bad. Just look at the spot on the wall, says the Fed, and ignore the giant needle.

It’s true that by focusing on core inflation we can detect certain underlying trends that may be masked by the price volatility of some of the goods in the CPI basket. Post-Katrina natural-gas spikes, for instance, would have distorted long-term CPI trends, even though they were event-related outliers. It makes sense to remove such rarities when looking for underlying patterns in the natural-gas market. But does that mean the entire energy category should be removed? Food and energy are more subject to short-term price fluctuations, but not taking them into consideration at all when thinking about underlying trends precludes the possibility of significant long-term changes that aren’t consistent with long-term trend lines for core goods and services. The fact is, food and energy have been going up for quite a while. At what point does a consistent trend upward stop being “price volatility” and start being a material “trend upward”? And what if some of those trends – particularly in the energy sector – are irreversible?

As the usually grim-and-bearish Merrill Lynch (MER, Fortune 500) economist David Rosenberg noted recently to the firm’s clients, we’ve seen similar sustained increases in food and energy before. In the mid-’70s. Just before the Big Recession. But they’re not materially important, says the Fed. Pay no attention.

One of my favorite 91-percenters, Fusion IQ’s Barry Ritholtz, puts it amusingly: “If you take everything out of the CPI basket that’s going up in price, sure, you have no inflation!” Which is sort of like suggesting that if you take away insurgent fighting and the large U.S. military presence, there’s no war in Iraq. Not that I want to give anyone in the Oval Office ideas for creative rhetorical devices.

But Ritholtz is more concerned about the third scenario, in which the CPI isn’t accurate in the first place. And the difference between the second and third scenario is the difference between miserable and horrible. People like Ritholtz are thinking of the 1996 Boskin Commission, which was established to determine the accuracy of the CPI. The commission concluded that the CPI overstated inflation by 1.1%, and methodologies were adjusted to reflect that. Critics of the Boskin Commission suggest that the basis upon which the CPI was revised doesn’t account for the way people actually purchase and consume products. The commission pointed to four biases inherent in the way the CPI was determined that supposedly contribute to overstatement – among them, a bias that doesn’t take into account substitution of one good for another and a bias that fails to take into account increases in quality that are reflected in price increases.

But the Boskin critics note several reasonable exceptions to those biases. The Boskin Commission suggests that when customers substitute one good for another, the CPI should treat those goods equally. If Dana orders a hanger steak instead of his beloved filet mignon because the hanger steak is cheaper, Boskin argues that the hanger steak prices should be compared with previous filet mignon prices. It’s all beef, right? But critics of the Boskin report point to areas where substitution is so price-driven that consumers are pushed out of the category altogether. What happens when the consumer gives up steak entirely and switches to chicken? (Or to use a scarier example, goes from some health insurance to no health insurance?)

Boskin also says that whatever you’re paying in price increases is offset by the additional pleasure you get from better goods. To put it another way, you adjust for improvement in quality over time – a practice called hedonic pricing. So, for example, energy price increases due to federally mandated environmental measures are offset by how much we all sit around enjoying the cleaner environment. (And there’s a lot of sitting, because it’s not like we can afford to go anywhere anymore.) But, as critics note, quality increases over time are also a reflection of the fact that increased production typically means lower prices, thanks to economies of scale. This may be a matter of splitting methodological hairs, but if it isn’t, aggressive estimates put the non-Boskinized actual inflation rate north of 7%. (The We’re All Gonna Die estimate is more like 10%, but let’s not push it.)

Lest you worry about your future purchasing power, rest assured that your $600 Bush-administered tax rebate will be in the mail shortly, at which point you may be able to afford filet mignon at the Palm. On the downside, it may cost $600 by the time you get that check.

Elizabeth Spiers is the founder of financial Web site dealbreaker.com. 

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Dumb Money

Posted by kandylini on April 3, 2008

By MICHAEL KINSLEY

Illustration by Edel Rodriguez for TIME

We don’t need a conversation about race. At least not now. What we need is a conversation about money. It becomes clearer by the day that this is not your grandmother’s–or even Barack Obama’s grandmother’s–economic downturn. This time we start with a huge government deficit and record private debt, all run up when times were good and we should have been storing up acorns. This is one that begins with people losing their homes, which is usually the last act of the drama. This is one that is bringing back stagflation–that poisonous combination of economic slowdown and eroding currency we cured at a terrible cost back in 1981. When that red phone rings in the middle of the night, it probably won’t be the National Security Adviser saying Osama bin Laden has struck again. It will be the Treasury Secretary reporting that markets have opened in the Far East and the dollar has become worthless.

The three remaining candidates have finally given speeches that addressed the economic crisis. But the presidential campaign is bouncing into its second year inside a hermetic bubble where the discussion is mainly about itself. Who cares about the economy when there is the allocation of superdelegates to worry about?

John McCain has manfully admitted that he doesn’t know much about economics. Typically, this comment has been analyzed in terms of its effect on the campaign, not in terms of what it might mean to have a President who doesn’t know much about economics. It has become an occasion for the popular Washington game Who Will His/Her Advisers Be? In a speech on March 25, McCain declared that he “will not play election-year politics with the housing crisis” but “will evaluate everything in terms of whether it might be harmful or helpful.” He promised to “not allow dogma to override common sense.”

In other words, he hasn’t got a clue. Another word for dogma is values, and another word for politics is democracy. So McCain, by his own admission, knows little about economics, has no underlying values or principles to apply in considering what action to take and isn’t interested in your opinion either.

Hillary Clinton’s speech on March 24 blamed everybody for the excessive borrowing at the root of this crisis–except the people who did the borrowing. Her proposal to help is a parody of old-Democrat thinking. Thirty billion dollars to states and cities to spend on “everything from police and fire support to graffiti removal and better lighting.” She offers a complex plan to renegotiate the terms of troubled mortgages–ultimately with a federal guarantee, which she insists “would cost the taxpayers nothing in the long run.” Republicans believe you can cut taxes and bring in more money. Democrats believe you can turn mortgages that people can’t afford to pay into ones that they can and it won’t cost anyone a cent. Most pathetically, Clinton calls for an “Emergency Working Group” composed of Paul Volcker, Robert Rubin and Alan Greenspan. Let those guys figure it out if they’re so smart.

As with most issues, there isn’t much daylight between Clinton’s position and Obama’s. Obama also blames lenders and excuses buyers, while piling on new subsidies that will nicely compensate everyone involved for the new regulations he also wants them to endure. Obama’s unique angle is blaming the war in Iraq. In the business, that is called “message discipline.”

Where is the “conversation” about the economy that’s even half as sophisticated as Obama’s speech about race? One that explains to people that you can’t just make everything better by sending out $1,200 checks? That there is a real cost to protecting overextended homeowners from the consequences of their own folly? That, yes, there are villains here, but blaming the whole mess on villainy is missing the point? That immigration and international trade are part of the solution, not the problem?

Journalists don’t help. This is a golden age of economic journalism, with wonderful business writers churning out great stuff every day. But they’re not the ones covering the candidates. The endless political campaign has produced a permanent class of political journalists (or perhaps it’s the other way around). Many are just as wise as the business journalists, but they devote their wisdom to the minutiae of campaign strategy and are mystified to the point of terror about economics.

C’mon, boys and girls–economics may be complicated, but it’s no more complicated than the laws about campaign-spending limits or the mathematics of Democratic Party superdelegates, all of which you handle with ease. We all know about the economist who predicted nine of the past five recessions. But you don’t want to miss this one. It’s going to be a whopper.

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DHS: U.S. Cops Access To Sat-Surveillance Is Go

Posted by kandylini on April 3, 2008

Source: UK Register

US Homeland Security overlord Michael Chertoff has told reporters that he believes plans for increased use of satellite surveillance by American law-enforcement agencies are ready to move forward. However, Democratic politicians remain unconvinced that adequate privacy and civil liberties safeguards are in place.

“I think the way is now clear to stand NAO up and go warm,” said Chertoff, briefing journalists about the proposed National Applications Office.

NAO would allow US police, immigration, drug-enforcement and other officials to have access to data from various US satellites passing above America. It is understood that the information would be supplied mostly by spacecraft which at the moment are used for meteorological and geological surveying, or other scientific tasks. Satellites of this type can often deliver high-resolution images which would also be useful to law enforcement.

Purpose-built US surveillance satellites operated on behalf of military and intelligence agencies also pass above the US frequently. However, even the location of such spacecraft is often deemed to be a secret – for all that it may be well-known to amateur skywatchers. The capabilities of the true spybirds are even more jealously guarded, but realistically this information would soon become common knowledge if ordinary coppers were able to get such imagery.

Therefore, the new NAO probably won’t offer very wide access – if any – to America’s proper sky-spies. But it could provide a wealth of information all the same, and some US legislators are concerned about the implications.

Chertoff pooh-poohed such worries, saying that detailed assessments had been done and that Congresspersons had been briefed. The DHS chief believed that there’s a “good process in place to make sure there aren’t any… transgressions”. The DHS has also pointed out that various feds including the Secret Service* and FBI have used satellite imagery of the US in various previous investigations on a case-by-case basis.

Even so, plans for warm erection of the NAO could face a bumpy ride from Democrat-dominated committees on Capitol Hill.

Coverage of the press briefing is available from CNET here.

*Note for non-US readers: While “Secret Service” sounds like it might be to do with spies, this is not the case in the States. The Secret Service is part of the Treasury, and does things like tracking down counterfeiters. It also provides the bodyguards for prominent US politicians, like the specialist protection branch of the Met Police in the UK. It seems that the Treasury agents were the main federal law-enforcement agency in existence when US presidents started to need close protection, and got the job by default.

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