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Category Archives: Freedom and liberty
Federal District Court rules warrantless wiretaps illegal
U.S. District Court Judge Anna Diggs Taylor has issued a ruling in the case American Civil Liberties Union et al. v. National Security Agency/Central et al. (2006), regarding the NSA’s warrantless wiretap program (TSP). The Bush administration and Congress have … Continue reading
U.S. now issuing passports that endanger citizens
As of yesterday (14 August 2006), the U.S. Department of State is issuing passports containing an RFID chip. They are claimed to have anti-skimming provisions, but these are of dubious worth. The big threat isn’t so much that the bad … Continue reading
American Government term paper
I was pleasantly surprised to find that I received an A (97%) for my term paper for the American Government class. The subject of the paper was wiretapping, with a brief historical review, descriptions of recent developments and my own … Continue reading
Posted in American Government, Freedom and liberty, Privacy
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Bush: “America’s actions have never been guided by territorial ambition.”
In a speech he delivered at the State Department yesterday, President Bush said that “America’s actions have never been guided by territorial ambition.” Didn’t he take any history classes in school? Has he never heard of: Northwest Indian War (1787-1795) … Continue reading
TSA endangering travellers to promote appearance of safety
The TSA now prohibits passengers from taking liquids on planes, due to concerns that the liquids could be combined to form explosives or produce poisonous gases. I’m not going to argue as to whether that is sensible. But what they’re … Continue reading
Smoking ban
I’m opposed to complete bans on smoking in restaurants and bars, as we now have in California and Colorado, even though I’m a non-smoker and find cigarette smoke very irritating. It should be sufficient to have designated non-smoking areas, with … Continue reading
Posted in Freedom and liberty, Health
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How to fight terrorism
Several people have observed that I am opposed to nearly all of the supposed anti-terrorism measures taken by the Bush administration, and sometimes ask me if I have a better idea as to how to fight terrorism. A few people … Continue reading
Posted in Freedom and liberty, Rants, Travel
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Trading freedom for security
It would be nice if G.W. Bush (and the rest of the neocons) would take a lesson from President Ronald Reagan: There is no left or right. There’s only an up or down. Up to the ultimate in individual freedom, … Continue reading
Posted in Freedom and liberty
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FBI wants even more wiretapping
As if CALEA wasn’t bad enough when it only applied to telephones, the FBI now wants to extend it to force makers of Internet communications gear to include a built-in back door for wiretapping. And of course, the goverment isn’t … Continue reading
Posted in Freedom and liberty, Privacy
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Debunking anti-Islamic propaganda
I’m not Islamic, so I never expected to take a position defending Islam. But several people have forwarded me email purporting to explain how “good Muslims” cannot be “good Americans”. This is such a distortion of American law and liberty … Continue reading →