Yearly Archives: 2013

Police now accompanying Smart Meter installations: Two homeowners arrested for saying NO

"Malia 'Kim' Bendis, one of the two, was charged with a pair of misdemeanors, the Tribune said - attempted eavesdropping and resisting a peace officer. The other woman, Jennifer Stahl, also received two citations - interfering with police and preventing access to customer premises. Again, your home is not your home in Naperville, apparently. Upon her release, Stahl said when she refused a smart meter for her home utility installers accompanied by cops cut a bicycle lock she had put on her fence before entering her backyard." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingPolice now accompanying Smart Meter installations: Two homeowners arrested for saying NO

Silent Circle’s latest app democratizes encryption. Governments won’t be happy.

"Back in October, the startup tech firm Silent Circle ruffled governments’ feathers with a 'surveillance-proof' smartphone app to allow people to make secure phone calls and send texts easily. Now, the company is pushing things even further—with a groundbreaking encrypted data transfer app that will enable people to send files securely from a smartphone or tablet at the touch of a button. (For now, it’s just being released for iPhones and iPads, though Android versions should come soon.) That means photographs, videos, spreadsheets, you name it—sent scrambled from one person to another in a matter of seconds." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSilent Circle’s latest app democratizes encryption. Governments won’t be happy.

It’s Pretty Stunning How Many Billion-Dollar Startups There Are Now

"Venture capitalists and investors are continuing to pour money into startups. In fact, there is a vast number of startups that are worth billions, The New York Times' Quentin Hardy reports. 'An unprecedented number of high technology start-ups, easily 25 and possibly exceeding 40, are valued at $1 billion or more,' Hardy writes. 'Many employees are quietly getting rich, or at least building a big cushion against a crash, as they sell shares to outside investors.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingIt’s Pretty Stunning How Many Billion-Dollar Startups There Are Now

Majority Says the Federal Government Threatens Their Personal Rights

"As Barack Obama begins his second term in office, trust in the federal government remains mired near a historic low, while frustration with government remains high. And for the first time, a majority of the public says that the federal government threatens their personal rights and freedoms. The latest national survey by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press, conducted Jan. 9-13 among 1,502 adults, finds that 53% think that the federal government threatens their own personal rights and freedoms while 43% disagree." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMajority Says the Federal Government Threatens Their Personal Rights

Britons with data on Amazon, Apple and Google cloud servers in America can be snooped on in secret by U.S. government

"Britons who store their data on cloud-based servers in America could have all their files rooted through in secret by the U.S. government, it emerged today. Campaigners say a renewed piece of American legislation will allow federal agencies to spy on foreign nationals without warning. The U.S. government granted itself the right to snoop after its secret rubber-stamping of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). This means anyone abroad using the internet storage facilities provided by American companies like Amazon, Google, and Apple, open themselves up to investigation by the federal authorities - while Americans are protected because of their constitution." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBritons with data on Amazon, Apple and Google cloud servers in America can be snooped on in secret by U.S. government

U.S. Stepped In To Halt Mexican General’s Rise

"That back-channel communication provides a rare glimpse into the United States government’s deep involvement in Mexican security affairs. The American role in a Mexican cabinet pick also highlights the tensions and mistrust between the governments despite proclamations of cooperation and friendship. In the end, General García Ochoa did not get the job. Instead, it went to Gen. Salvador Cienfuegos Zepeda, who Mexican officials said had become close with Mr. Peña Nieto when he served as governor of the state of Mexico and General Cienfuegos commanded the area’s military base." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingU.S. Stepped In To Halt Mexican General’s Rise

Mexican Militias Fight Back Against Drug Lords, Accomplish What Authorities Could Not

"Outraged at relentless extortion, kidnapping and theft as a wave of drug-related violence washes over Mexico, farmers, shopkeepers and other residents in the mountainous southern state of Guerrero are taking the law into their own hands as 'community police.' 'We have to fight for everyone’s good so we decided to try to clear away all the bad people. We have to get rid of these animals because they are committing extortion in the community, the whole town and the people are fed up.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMexican Militias Fight Back Against Drug Lords, Accomplish What Authorities Could Not

Ron Paul: Immigration ‘Reform’ Will Turn the US into a Police State

"The devil is in the details, and the details of the McCain plan are deeply disturbing. To secure the borders he is calling for a massive increase in drones flying over US territory, spying on US citizens along the border – and presumably within the 100 mile 'border zone' over which Department of Homeland Security claims jurisdiction. Additionally, the McCain/Schumer plan calls for a nationwide, mandatory E-Verify program, which forces employers to act as federal immigration agents, and forces American citizens to prove to the government that they are allowed to work. E-Verify is an East Germany-like program that creates a massive federal database of every American citizen." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingRon Paul: Immigration ‘Reform’ Will Turn the US into a Police State

Mandatory TSA Pat Downs At Super Bowl

"The Super Bowl’s designation as a level one National Special Security Event (NSSE) means that the spectacle is now an annual showcase for America’s post-9/11 descent into a security-obsessed police state, despite the fact that statistically, Americans are more likely to be killed by peanut allergies, bee stings and bath tubs than they are by terrorists. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano also indicated that TSA 'screeners' would conduct at least some of the pat downs. Mobile gamma ray scanners will also be used to check truck deliveries just as they were last year at the Lucas Oil Stadium." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMandatory TSA Pat Downs At Super Bowl

Democrats may sell political opinions to credit card companies

"For years, state Democratic parties have been gathering information about individual voters’ political leanings. They have noted down the opinions voters shared with canvassers - which candidates they said they supported or their positions on policy issues. Now, the record of what people told Democratic volunteers may go up for sale - and not just to political groups. Democrats are looking into whether credit card companies, retailers like Target or other commercial interests may want to buy the information." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDemocrats may sell political opinions to credit card companies