Technocracy

Homeland Security built domestic surveillance tech into Predator drones

"The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has customized its Predator drones, originally built for overseas military operations, to carry out at-home surveillance tasks that have civil libertarians worried: identifying civilians carrying guns and tracking their cell phones, government documents show. The documents provide more details about the surveillance capabilities of the department's unmanned Predator B drones, which are primarily used to patrol the United States' northern and southern borders but have been pressed into service on behalf of a growing number of law enforcement agencies including the FBI, the Secret Service, the Texas Rangers, and local police." Continue reading →

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British terror suspects quietly stripped of citizenship… then killed by drones

"At least five of those deprived of their UK nationality by the Coalition were born in Britain, and one man had lived in the country for almost 50 years. Those affected have their passports cancelled, and lose their right to enter the UK – making it very difficult to appeal against the Home Secretary’s decision. Last night the Liberal Democrats’ deputy leader Simon Hughes said he was writing to Ms May to call for an urgent review into how the law was being implemented. The leading human rights lawyer Gareth Peirce said the present situation 'smacked of mediaeval exile, just as cruel and just as arbitrary'." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBritish terror suspects quietly stripped of citizenship… then killed by drones

Two-Tier ‘Privileged Flyer’ Program Advances in EU

"We have in various articles catalogued US programs that allow one to be "pre-approved" and thus avoid the long lines of those who are yet, apparently, to be considered potential terrorists. Eventually, such system will turn into something more difficult, of course – as the emphasis shifts from the approved to the non-approved. In other words, eventually those who are not approved to travel may have trouble taking advantage of modern travel conveniences such as planes, trains, buses and eventually automobiles. Now in a press release, we are informed the EU is taking steps to harmonize its travel program with the US's and other powers." Continue reading →

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‘Ragtime’: NSA’s Secret Domestic Intelligence Program Revealed

"More than a decade after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, a set of extraordinary and secretive surveillance programs conducted by the National Security Agency has been institutionalized, and they have grown, reports Shane Harris at the Washingtonian. These special programs are conducted under the codename 'Ragtime,' and they are divided into several subcomponents, according to the new book Deep State: Inside the Government Secrecy Industry, by Marc Ambinder and D.B. Grady." Continue reading →

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Australian Gov Now to Seize People’s Live Bank Accts – If ‘Inactive’

"The government will from May 31 be able to transfer all money from accounts that have not been used for three years into their own revenues. Households face losing up to $109 million from their family savings as the Federal government moves to seize cash from inactive bank accounts. After legislation was rushed through parliament, the government will from May 31 be able to transfer all money from accounts that have not been used for three years into their own revenues ... The law is forecast to raise $109 million this year as inactive accounts for three years or more are raided by Treasury. The money can be reclaimed from ASIC but the process can take months." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAustralian Gov Now to Seize People’s Live Bank Accts – If ‘Inactive’

Lobbyist: Use Drones to ‘Zap’ Americans on U.S. Soil

"Testifying against a bill that would put limits on the use of unmanned drones in Washington state, industry lobbyist Paul Applewhite shocked a House Committee hearing when he said that drones had been used for 'indiscriminate killings,' while arguing that the technology should be approved for 'lethal force' within the United States." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingLobbyist: Use Drones to ‘Zap’ Americans on U.S. Soil

Senators in Immigration Talks Mull Federal IDs for All Workers

"Key senators are exploring an immigration bill that would force every U.S. worker—citizen or not—to carry a high-tech identity card that could use fingerprints or other personal markers to prove a person's legal eligibility to work. The idea, signaled only in vaguely worded language from senators crafting a bipartisan immigration bill, has privacy advocates and others concerned that the law would create a national identity card that, in time, could track Americans at airports, hospitals and through other facets of their lives." Continue reading →

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Drones patrolling U.S. borders spark controversy over privacy

"Intended to protect the borders from illegal crossings and the import of illegal drugs, ten drones flown by U.S. Customs and Border Protection have also sparked a controversy over privacy. The plane are piloted remotely and their images are reviewed in real time by agents at Fort Huachuca in Sierra Vista, Arizona. The data is used to help direct agents on the ground or in a helicopter to make a bust. 'The fact we can turn the lights off, we are almost stealth,' said director of Air Operations Dave Gasho. And that, critics say, that is the problem." Continue reading →

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Upstate New York bids to become federal drone testing site

"A coalition of upstate New York universities and defense contractors has submitted a bid to become a federally designated testing and research site for the integration of unmanned aircraft systems, or UAS, into domestic airspace. Drones are expected to be used for everything from search and rescue, to crop dusting, to newsgathering. One of the key issues the FAA will have to assess is the ability of drones to communicate with air traffic controllers, manned aircraft and other drones. The massive growth of drone use is expected to create an economic boom in the U.S." Continue reading →

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Activists launch campaign against ‘autonomous weapons’: Killer robots must be stopped

"A new global campaign to persuade nations to ban “killer robots” before they reach the production stage is to be launched in the UK by a group of academics, pressure groups and Nobel peace prize laureates. The Stop the Killer Robots campaign will be launched in April at the House of Commons and includes many of the groups that successfully campaigned to have international action taken against cluster bombs and landmines. They hope to get a similar global treaty against autonomous weapons." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingActivists launch campaign against ‘autonomous weapons’: Killer robots must be stopped