Be Optimistic, Libertarians!
The coverage of the Syrian Civil War is hugely important (more on that to come), but we must not forget the NSA’s overreach and what it has meant in the past few months. A few other developments have come to light in recent days…
- Groklaw (an open source advocacy organization) is shutting down.
- The NSA spied on the SCOTUS on several occasions.
- Windows 8 may have a backdoor to which the NSA has a key.
- Terrorism laws are now being used to silence journalists by attacking the rights of their loves ones.
- NSA employees have been known to pass around the phone when dropping eaves on couples having phone sex or other important business. (Super creepy)
- The spy budget has been released.
In related government use of technology news…
- A list of what we know thanks to Chelsea Manning.
- Facial scanning is improving by leaps and bounds.
- Apple has given police software that allows them to switch off iPhone cameras and wi-fi remotely. Surely this won’t be abused.
- Cryptography is an area I have no faith in. There will be no such thing as a 100% secure form of protecting your files or email until quantum computing allows quantum entanglement in individual computers. Until then, the government will always have more resources – men, equipment, and money – than you, and they can crack anything you can throw their way. With the recent “unlocking” of GPUs as brute force assailants, there is nothing you can do to protect yourself, no matter how strong your passwords are. And don’t even get me started on BitCoin…
- Obama has given Bush II absolute immunity for war crimes. Take from it what you will, but for me, this shows once again that the guys are on the same side. Was it done just before the declaration of war on Syria by our POTUS for a reason?
Another day, another scandal. Glenn Greenwald tells us more is coming. I won’t say it; I won’t say it…
But a Redditor adds some thoughts that are worth serious reflection, about the slippery slope of government power. Our country is becoming something many thought it would never be, and all it will take is a serious terrorist attack or economic crisis for it all to come to a head. Fingers crossed Lockean principles hold under the cry for security…