Congress May Require Closer Scrutiny to Get a Driver’s License
Congress is moving toward requiring states to verify whether
applicants are in the U.S. legally before issuing driver’s licenses.
Source: New York Times (online), May 3, 2005
Truckers bristle at anti-terror rules
Con-Way Transportation Services’ truck drivers mostly haul common
household products such as house paint and nail polish — potentially
hazardous to the environment if a truck tipped over, but hardly weapons
of mass destruction.
Yet the company’s 12,000-plus drivers soon will
have to submit to fingerprinting and FBI background checks to drive
their goods around the country. The checks are part of a new
anti-terrorism program ordered by Congress in the aftermath of the Sept.
11 attacks. The program is aimed at making sure no one out to do harm
can get hold of potentially
lethal loads of hazardous substances.
Source: USAToday (online), April 19, 2005
AP Review: Gov’t Reducing Access to Info
Since 1998, many federal departments have been reducing the amount of
information they release to the public – even as the government fields
and answers more requests for information than ever, an Associated Press
review has found.
Source: MyWay (online), March 13, 2005
The media plays ‘trick or treat
The media are too busy repackaging old Iraq news in an October
offensive against President George W. Bush’s reelection to investigate
truly startling evidence unearthed this week that the Communist Party
may have been directing John Kerry’s anti-war activities in the early
1970s. The evidence, contained in captured communist records on file at
the Vietnam Center at Texas Tech University, shows a well-coordinated
effort by the Communist Party to recruit American servicemen and
officers to become part of the American anti-war movement. The objective
was to organize high-profile activities to undermine support for the
Vietnam War, including holding hearings on alleged war crimes, lobbying
Congress to oppose the war, exploiting the families of American POWs and
urging servicemen to return their service medals.
Source: townhall.com, October 27, 2004
Blimp networks guard troops
Army officials turned to towers and unmanned blimps equipped with
networked sensors to help protect troops in Iraq and Afghanistan,
service officials said this week.
Source: FCW.com, November October 8, 2004
Coast Guard gets satellite help
Coast Guard officials plan to use satellite signals to help track ships far from the United States.
Source: FCW.com, October 8, 2004
Lockyer pushes for law requiring handgun ammo to carry traceable 0codes
Attorney General Bill Lockyer will push for a state law requiring
handgun ammunition sold in California to carry a microscopic code that
would allow law enforcement to trace bullets back to the buyer.
Source: SFGate (online), October 8, 2003
Army Floats a Trial Balloon
That is why the Army has leased a blimp from the nation’s only
airship manufacturer and outfitted it with sensors and cameras. Over the
next week, the 178-foot-long lighter-than-air
craft will conduct test runs over the Washington area. In the fabric
gondola hanging below the envelope, a technician will aim a camera,
mounted to the front of the cabin, at government
buildings and military bases.
Source: The Washington Post (online), September 25, 2004
FBI’s Anti-Terror ‘October Plan’
Convinced that al Qaeda is still determined to disrupt the U.S. fall
elections by an attack on the homeland, FBI officials here are preparing
a massive counter-offensive of interrogations, surveillance and
possible detentions they hope will disrupt the terrorist plans, reports
CBS News Correspondent Jim Stewart.
Source: CBS News (online), September 17, 2004
Attempt to dump mental screening fails
An amendment offered by Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, in the House of
Representatives yesterday that would have remove from an appropriations
bill a new mandatory mental-health screening program for America’s
children failed by a vote of 95-315.
Source: WorldNetDaily, September 10, 2004
Forced mental screening hits roadblock in House
Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, plans to offer an amendment in the House of
Representatives today that would remove from an appropriations bill a
new mandatory mental-health screening program for America’s children.
Source: WorldNetDaily, September 9, 2004
Drivers trade privacy for insurance discounts
For two months, Jacob Sevlie’s insurance company tagged along whenever he slid behind the wheel of his Honda Accord.
An electronic monitor the size of a matchbook closely tracked
Sevlie’s driving time and behavior. If he had a heavy foot or was a
sudden braker, the auto data recorder would betray him.
Source: CNN Technology, September 8, 2004
Mining Your Past
The job interview, that timeless, nerve-wracking rite of passage for
employment seekers, has gotten considerably tougher in recent years. As a
rising number of employers utilize background checks to vet the
criminal and credit histories of their applicants, it’s no longer enough
to spit-shine the résumé, pick out the perfect suit and rehearse a
detailed five-year plan.
Source: ABCNews, September 7, 2004
U.S. to Handle ‘No-Fly’ Airline Passenger List
The U.S. government plans to take over screening airline passengers
against a "no-fly" list of potential terrorists, a security official
said on Monday, a controversial
function now performed by the airlines that has resulted in at least one lawsuit.
Source: MyWay (online), August 16, 2004
Biometric technology getting more action in consumer applications
Stuffing something in a public locker usually isn’t a memorable experience. You drop a coin, take the key and move on.
But at the Statue of Liberty, recently reopened after a two-year
closure, stashing a package offers a glimpse into the future. To rent,
close and reopen lockers, visitors touch an electronic reader that scans
fingerprints.
Source: Sign on San Diego (online), August 11, 2003
Biometric Passport Program Hits Snag
The U.S. Senate voted to delay by one year the looming Oct. 26
deadline for Visa Waiver Program (VWP) countries to begin issuing
machine-readable passports. The House of Representatives has already approved a one-year extension.
Source: internetnews.com, July 27, 2004
AOL blocks Christian email
I have saved numerous letters to my internet service provider about
e-mail delivery problems. I keep getting returned e-mails sent to valid
addresses. I keep copies of my e-mails and my server’s responses. It
happened so often, I began to watch for trends.
E-mails on religious topics are always delivered to all recipients
listed except people with @aol.com addresses. I usually send to about 25
people, eight of whom have @aol.com addresses.
Source: Business Reform (online), July 26, 2004
Esteemed journalist lectures on ethics
The media industry has been infested by the
rise of pseudo-journalists who go against journalism’s long tradition to
serve the public with accurate information, Los Angeles Times Editor
John S. Carroll told a packed room in the Gerlinger Lounge on Thursday.
Source: Oregon Daily Emerald (online), May 7, 2004
U.S. expands fingerprinting program to closest allies
A program requiring foreigners to be fingerprinted and photographed
before entering the country is being expanded to include millions of
travelers from some of America’s closest allies, U.S. officials said
Friday.
Source: CNN, April 2, 2004
If police ask who you are, do you have to say?
But what happens when a police officer believes you might be involved
in a crime and asks your name as part of the investigation? Do you have to answer?
That is the question before the US Supreme Court Monday, as the
0justices consider whether a Nevada law requiring suspects to identify
themselves whenever requested by police violates constitutional
protections of privacy and freedom from self-incrimination. The case is
significant because it gives the court a chance to more closely define
how deeply law-enforcement officials may intrude into private lives.
Source: Christian Science Monitor (online), March 22, 2004
Model planes a terror threat?
Cheap, robotic, miniaturized drone aircraft Homeland Security
officials would like to ban in the United States are being sold by U.S.
military forces, according to a report in the latest edition of Joseph Farah’s G2 Bulletin.
WorldNetDaily, May 13, 2004
The Pentagon’s Secret Scream: Sonic devices that can inflict pain–or even permanent deafness–are being deployed
Marines arriving in Iraq this month as part of a massive troop
rotation will bring with them a high-tech weapon never before used in
combat – or in peacekeeping. The device is a powerful megaphone the size
of a satellite dish that can deliver recorded warnings in Arabic and,
on command, emit a piercing tone so excruciating to humans, its boosters
say, that it causes crowds to disperse, clears buildings and repels
intruders.
Source: Los Angeles Times, March 7, 2004, as reproduced by defense-aerospace.com
Senators Take On Spyware
Three U.S. Senators — including the duo that
pushed through the CAN SPAM Act — have introduced legislation designed
to put an end to spyware, adware, and other invasive software from being
secretly installed on computers.
Source: TechWeb, March 4, 2004
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