Archive
Lincolnshire UK – Say Hello To Your Corporate Police
Wednesday, 25 April 2012 09:33
‘Police staff throughout the county of Lincolnshire are now proudly wearing the logo of their corporate bosses, as Government cutbacks force the privatization of the nation’s peacekeepers.
G4S, a controversial multi-national security corporation has now virtually taken over all civilian positions in the region, including front counter staff at police stations, control room operators, custodians at local holding cells, and even inquiry officers.
In total 550 employees who previously worked for Lincolnshire Police Authority are now considered private sector workers, essentially accountable only to company policy, with 200 or so already sporting the G4S stamp.’
Read more: Lincolnshire UK – Say Hello To Your Corporate Police
SOPA Mutates Into Much Worse CISPA, the Latest Threat to Internet Free Speech
‘Just because SOPA and PIPA, the infamous internet “kill switch” bills, are largely dead does not mean the threat to internet free speech has become any less serious. The Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA), also known as H.R. 3523, is the latest mutation of these internet censorship and spying bills to hit the U.S. Congress — and unless the American people speak up now to stop it, CISPA could lead to far worse repercussions for online free speech than SOPA or PIPA ever would have.’
Read more: SOPA Mutates Into Much Worse CISPA, the Latest Threat to Internet Free Speech
The European Stabilization Mechanism, Or How the Goldman Vampire Squid Just Captured Europe
Thursday, 19 April 2012
‘In September 2008, Henry Paulson, former CEO of Goldman Sachs, managed to extort a $700 billion bank bailout from Congress. But to pull it off, he had to fall on his knees and threaten the collapse of the entire global financial system and the imposition of martial law; and the bailout was a one-time affair. Paulson’s plea for a permanent bailout fund—the Troubled Asset Relief Program or TARP—was opposed by Congress and ultimately rejected.
By December 2011, European Central Bank president Mario Draghi, former vice president of Goldman Sachs Europe, was able to approve a 500 billion Euro bailout for European banks without asking anyone’s permission. And in January 2012, a permanent rescue funding program called the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) was passed in the dead of night with barely even a mention in the press. The ESM imposes an open-ended debt on EU member governments, putting taxpayers on the hook for whatever the ESM’s Eurocrat overseers demand.’
Canada Launches Its Own Virtual Cash, Called MintChip
By Rebecca Boyle Posted 04.12.2012 at 11:02 am
Next time you visit Canada, you might use digital currency to purchase your poutine, using something called MintChip backed by the Canadian government. The Royal Canadian Mint announced it’s getting rid of the penny and starting a new e-currency instead, and it wants the software community to help develop it.
The government just launched the MintChip Challenge— which was apparently so popular it’s already fully registered — to seek new digital payment apps for this new virtual currency. The idea is sort of a hybrid, combining the convenience of electronic transactions and the anonymity of cash. It will work via SD cards, but it will have no personal information or bank account data associated with it. It’s sort of like BitCoin but with actual, government-backed value.
The four-month contest includes 500 developers who will build apps that can demonstrate MintChip’s value. They’ll have to work on a variety of smartphone and desktop browsers. The prize: Solid gold wafers and coins worth about $50,000.
Its anonymity is a pretty unique idea. Other electronic payment systems — PayPal, Square, NFC-enabled phones, etc. — all connect to a person’s credit card or bank account. But cash is a great equalizer; you don’t need to have good credit to use it. MintChip would enable the same type of low-cost transactions for which you’d normally use cash. A Canadian banking group called Interac estimates that small-value transactions under $20 are worth $90 billion to the Canadian economy, the Toronto Star reported.
MintChip still has some kinks to be ironed out, including privacy, security of the currency and other questions. But it’s certainly an interesting concept.
[via Slashdot]
Iran To Shut Down Internet Permanently; ‘Clean’ National Intranet In Pipeline
Millions of Internet users in Iran will be permanently denied access to the World Wide Web and cut off from popular social networking sites and email services, as the government has announced its plans to establish a national Intranet within five months.
In a statement released Thursday, Reza Taghipour, the Iranian minister for Information and Communications Technology, announced the setting up of a national Intranet and the effective blockage of services like Google, Gmail, Google Plus, Yahoo and Hotmail, in line with Iran’s plan for a “clean Internet.”
The government is set to roll out the first phase of the project in May, following which Google, Hotmail and Yahoo services will be blocked and replaced with government Intranet services like Iran Mail and Iran Search Engine. At this stage, however, the World Wide Web, apart from the aforementioned sites, will still be accessible.
The government has already started the registration procedure to apply for procuring Iran Mail ID, which mandates authentic information pertaining to a person’s identity, including national ID, address and full name. Registration will be approved only after verifying it against the government data on the particular applicant.
The second and final stage of the national Intranet will be launched in August, which will permanently deny Iranians access to the Internet.
“All Internet Service Providers (ISP) should only present National Internet by August,” Taghipour said in the statement.
For a country like Iran that exercises high levels of government control across sectors, establishing an insulated Internet shouldn’t be too much of a technical hassle. The new system would be more or less similar to the corporate intranet, where one can only access pages approved by the system administrators.
Iranian ISPs already face heavy penalties if they fail to comply with the government filter list. By establishing the Intranet, the government control is set to become stricter.
Foreign sites can still be accessed over the Intranet provided they are mentioned in a “white list” set up by the government. The government is also believed to be planning for better control on proxy servers which allow users to access banned sites.
Unveiling a six-point plan to implement the Iranian Intranet, Taghipour said last March that the Internet “promotes crime, disunity, unhealthy moral content, and atheism,” and that government’s goal is to eliminate the online “scourges.” In October last year, an Iranian official – who called Facebook users a threat to Islamic values – expressed concern that expansion of social media networks was harming the nation and society.
Describing the blogosphere as one of the “most effective elements of soft war” against Iran, Mehdi Jafari, head of the technology and intelligence section of the Pupil’s Basij militia, said arrogant and imperial powers (like the US) were using social-media sites to push their agenda.
Internet censorship has been in place for quite a long time in Iran as the authorities fear an anti-government revolution like the Arab Spring that rocked countries like Egypt, Libya, Syria, Tunisia, Yemen, Iraq, Bahrain and Jordan. The Islamic regime of Iran has a bad track record with regard to Internet freedom as it has made several attempts in the past to temporarily deny access to the Internet.
Taghipour was added to the European Union sanctions list on Mar. 23, due to his involvement in the human rights violations during the 2009-2010 Iranian election protests. According to the EU, the Iranian Communications minister was one of the top officials in charge of censorship of the Internet and Internet-based activism.
By creating a complete blockade on free Internet, Tehran could be setting a dangerous precedent for authoritative nations that may harbor similar plans in the future. In fact, the Iranian government has already announced its plans to “export” the winning formula for an isolated Intranet to the rest of the world.
Fear of Tyranny Is Now Treated As A Psychiatric Disorder In The West
Monday, 09 April 2012 09:24
‘The modern totalitarian state is the psychotherapist for the whole of society. It acts on the elitist principle that it knows everything and the people deserve to be mind controlled and brainwashed for their own good.
Defenders of the totalitarian system demonize their democratic critics as insane, and suppress political speech with the mind control techniques that have grown out of modern psychological and mental health research. If you point out their contradictions, lies, and inconsistencies in their narratives, they call you a conspiracy theorist and chew you out with psycho-babble. And if you acknowledge that you fear their despotic vision for Western society and the world, they call you paranoid and say you have a psychiatric disorder.’
Read more: Fear of Tyranny Is Now Treated As A Psychiatric Disorder In The West
Patent Awarded for ‘Behavioral Recognition’ Surveillance Software System
Wednesday, 28 March 2012 07:27
‘The American surveillance state is becoming increasingly advanced, expansive and capable of processing huge amounts of data at blinding speeds.
Now Behavioral Recognition Systems, Inc., also known as BRS Labs, has developed an artificial intelligence-based system which supposedly can automatically recognize human behavior.
Technology which seems similar on the surface already exists and is being used on surveillance platforms like the “Intellistreets” street lights. These street lights, which are outfitted with a great deal of surveillance equipment, are reportedly capable of monitoring activity and telling the difference between certain behaviors while also being able to tell the difference between humans and animals. This technology could be used to enforce curfews, track the movement of individuals, and supposedly spot fights and other crimes.’
Read more: Patent Awarded for ‘Behavioral Recognition’ Surveillance Software System
Is Nothing Off Limits? Now Google Plans to Spy on Background Noise in Your Phone Calls to Bombard You With Tailored Adverts
Saturday, 24 March 2012 07:46
‘Adverts could soon be tailored according to the background noise around you when using your smartphone, if a patent application by Google becomes reality.
The search engine giant has filed for a patent called ‘Advertising based on environmental conditions’.
As that title implies, it’s not just background sounds that could be used to determine what adverts you seen on your mobile phone. The patent also describes using ‘temperature, humidity, light and air composition’ to produced targeted adverts.’
Rothschild’s Plan for America
Thursday, 22 March 2012 08:20
‘America is dying, inflicted with a fatal, terminal disease. Few understand this. Most citizens are in denial. The glories of yesteryear—the halcyon days of Washington, Jefferson, Audie Murphy, and John Wayne—will return, the die-hard optimists say—”Just you wait and see.”
But these bright-eyed people are wrong. No dreaded disease can be conquered by the misguided patient who fails to realize he is sick and dying. Knowledge leads to victory, and in America today, the people perish for lack of knowledge.’
Feeding The Homeless BANNED In Major Cities All Over America
Thursday, 22 March 2012 08:26
‘What would you do if you came across someone on the street that had not had anything to eat for several days? Would you give that person some food? Well, the next time you get that impulse you might want to check if it is still legal to feed the homeless where you live.
Sadly, feeding the homeless has been banned in major cities all over America. Other cities that have not banned it outright have put so many requirements on those that want to feed the homeless (acquiring expensive permits, taking food preparation courses, etc.) that feeding the homeless has become “out of reach” for most average people. Some cities are doing these things because they are concerned about the “health risks” of the food being distributed by ordinary “do-gooders”.
Other cities are passing these laws because they do not want homeless people congregating in city centers where they know that they will be fed. But at a time when poverty and government dependence are soaring to unprecedented levels, is it really a good idea to ban people from helping those that are hurting?’
Read more: Feeding The Homeless BANNED In Major Cities All Over America
Believe nothing 