Politics

Politics

There are 1,050 posts filed in Politics (this is page 39 of 105).

US and UK spy agencies defeat privacy and security on the internet

Shocking, or long suspected?

The files show that the National Security Agency and its UK counterpart GCHQ have broadly compromised the guarantees that internet companies have given consumers to reassure them that their communications, online banking and medical records would be indecipherable to criminals or governments.

The agencies, the documents reveal, have adopted a battery of methods in their systematic and ongoing assault on what they see as one of the biggest threats to their ability to access huge swathes of internet traffic – “the use of ubiquitous encryption across the internet”.

via US and UK spy agencies defeat privacy and security on the internet | World news | The Guardian.

Guns and butter

Two things seemingly unrelated captured my attention last week. One was the threat of war with Syria, the other was a parent encountering a child who had shown up to school with an empty stomach.

President Eisenhower once called military arms a theft from those who hunger and are not fed. Sixty years later we have yet to heed his words. When will our country stop feeding the war machine and start feeding the needy among us?

I hope those advocating for war in the name of Syria’s children will consider the needs of our children first.

Ex-spooks debate Snowden’s actions

I’m a member of a Facebook group called United States Navy Cryptologic Technicians. Last week a member authored a post which questioned why NSA leaker Edward Snowden wasn’t being hunted down with all available resources. It spawned a very lively debate amongst ex-spooks about Snowden’s motives and those of the NSA, a debate which continues as I post this. There are many former spooks like myself who find the NSA’s new reach to be quite alarming, while others seem to be comfortable with Americans’ almost complete lack of online privacy. Several point out that Snowden took an oath to protect this information and broke his oath.

I took a similar oath when gained my security clearance. Like every other servicemember, however, the first oath I took was support and defend the Constitution of the United States “against all enemies, foreign and domestic.” To the extent that the latter conflicts with the former, the former (being the law of the land) always takes precedence. In addition, it was drilled into us as sailors that it was our duty to disobey an unlawful order. In hindsight this is far easier to say than do, as in practice disobeying a lawful order would most likely put you in a world of hurt. At least the government would come out looking good during your court-martial.
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U.S. allows states to legalize recreational marijuana within limits

This is great news. I’ve said it before but I hope North Carolina’s leaders will become enlightened and the guns will disappear from Raleigh’s streets. Yeah, that’s asking a lot but this is a huge step in the right direction.

The Justice Department said it would refocus marijuana enforcement nationwide by bringing criminal charges only in eight defined areas – such as distribution to minors – and giving breathing room to users, growers and related businesses that have feared prosecution.

The decisions end nearly a year of deliberation inside President Barack Obama’s administration about how to react to the growing movement for relaxed U.S. marijuana laws.

Advocates for legalization welcomed the announcement as a major step toward ending what they called “marijuana prohibition.”

via U.S. allows states to legalize recreational marijuana within limits | Reuters.

N&O unfairly portrays Russ Stephenson

Speaking of the N&O, I’m perplexed at the N&O’s portrayal of Russ Stephenson in recent stories, all written by municipal reporter Colin Campbell.

I like Colin. He and I both volunteer for Little Raleigh Radio, bringing an LPFM station to downtown Raleigh. He’s also interviewed me on occasion on Parks board matters and does a good job in his reporting. Still, his reporting on Russ has raised some questions.
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Criticism and praise for the N&O

The News and Observer has gotten me talking about it, which in my view of the media is usually a good thing.

The criticism

Earlier this week, N&O Executive Editor John Drescher defended T. Keung Hui’s reporting on the Wake school superintendent search, a story on which he extensively quoted former board member Ron Margiotta. Margiotta must have been in on confidential board discussions, and some allege boardmember John Tedesco was the source. Says John:

Margiotta’s comments angered some board members, including chairman Keith Sutton. The board members didn’t dispute the accuracy of Margiotta’s comments. But they were upset because they believed a board member must have told Margiotta, who left the board at the end of 2011, about the vote for Merrill.

I am a staunch supporter of our “Sunshine laws” and the First Amendment. Anyone doing public business need to answer to the public for their actions. That said, the most important decision a public board can make is the hire of the administrator who will actually carry out its decisions. The law provides an exception to the Open Meetings law for these personnel decisions and rightfully so. Job candidates take a huge risk in interviewing for these positions because the likelihood is high that word will get back to their current employer.
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Wrapping up as Parks Board chair

CASL synthetic field dedication

CASL synthetic field dedication


Sunday afternoon I gave a speech at my last park dedication before I hand the Raleigh Parks Board gavel to another boardmember. For over three years (two as chair, one as vice chair) I’ve been representing the board at ribbon cuttings, dedications, groundbreakings, and other events. It’s been wonderful practice in public speaking, including how to research, write and deliver a speech. As Parks chair, I’ve attended more of these events than any single city councilor and even the mayor herself so I’ve had quite a bit of practice.

Sunday’s event was the dedication of new synthetic fields at CASL’s WRAL Soccer Complex. There were more staff, friends, and family there (including Kelly, the kids, and my parents) than there were members of the public but that was fine. I was glad that my parents could get a chance to see me speak while I was still chair.

Someone who’s heard my speeches before told me he liked my speeches because I usually have some numbers in them. My kids said they like how I include some humor. I think including some facts and jokes can help make a speech memorable.

The Board chair election is next month, so September will be the last official meeting I’ll lead. I’ve got one more year left to serve on the board but I’ll do so as a regular member. After that, who knows that the future will bring? It’s sure been fun being chair, though, and I appreciate the tremendous opportunity it’s provided to lead.

NSA, DEA, IRS Lie About Fact That Americans Are Routinely Spied On By Our Government

This is an astonishing development in the U.S., a nation that, until recently, carefully restricted the power of its domestic spying agencies by forcing them to submit narrow requests for spying authority to a court, which would issue a warrant if the government showed probable cause to believe that the surveillance target was engaged in some sort of wrongdoing. At this point, it’s clear those limits are gone. The United States is now a mass surveillance state.

via NSA, DEA, IRS Lie About Fact That Americans Are Routinely Spied On By Our Government: Time For A Special Prosecutor – Forbes.

Email service used by Snowden shuts itself down, warns against using US-based companies | Glenn Greenwald

I didn’t know about Lavabit until they pulled their own plug yesterday, but I deeply respect its owners’ refusal to play along to the NSA’s excessive and unconstitutional spying.

A Texas-based encrypted email service recently revealed to be used by Edward Snowden – Lavabit – announced yesterday it was shutting itself down in order to avoid complying with what it perceives as unjust secret US court orders to provide government access to its users’ content. “After significant soul searching, I have decided to suspend operations,” the company’s founder, Ladar Levinson, wrote in a statement to users posted on the front page of its website. He said the US directive forced on his company “a difficult decision: to become complicit in crimes against the American people or walk away from nearly ten years of hard work by shutting down Lavabit.” He chose the latter.

via Email service used by Snowden shuts itself down, warns against using US-based companies | Glenn Greenwald | Comment is free | theguardian.com.

The NSA Leaks Put Our ‘Methods’ At Risk, But Bragging About Monitoring Al Qaeda Emails Doesn’t? | Techdirt

Techdirt points out the obvious: how can the entire legislative branch be crowing about detecting an imminent terrorist threat through intercepted emails and not be divulging sources and methods? Snowden pointed out that the NSA is spying on millions of innocent Americans but government leaders can tell Al Qaeda and the world that we’re reading their emails and it’s somehow okay?

Anyone else get the idea that the American public is being played for fools here?

The intercepted conversations last week between Ayman al-Zawahri, who succeeded Osama bin Laden as the head of the global terrorist group, and Nasser al-Wuhayshi, the head of the Yemen-based Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, revealed one of the most serious plots against American and other Western interests since the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, American intelligence officials and lawmakers have said.

So… revealing that we collect data on everyone somehow turns Snowden into a traitor, while having officials in the government tell the NY Times that we directly intercepted emails between Al Qaeda’s top leaders is somehow perfectly fine? How does that work?

via The NSA Leaks Put Our 'Methods' At Risk, But Bragging About Monitoring Al Qaeda Emails Doesn't? | Techdirt.