Thomas Paine From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Thomas Paine From ushistory.org
But the only true way to understand who Thomas Paine was is to read his own writings.
The writings of Thomas Paine.
Google Ads
Categories
Archives
-
RSS Links
Who is Thomas Paine?
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Our Democracy is founded on a basic principle…
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Our Democracy is founded on a basic principle of the idea that we can arrive at the best solutions for our country with an robust discussion and debate. We each have our own knowledge, beliefs, desires, opinions, and interests, but in our democracy, all of our votes are of equal value. Some of us might be more knowledgeable or educated on an issue, some might have more pure motivations for there beliefs, while others might have an economic focus as the basis of their opinions, and still others might want to defend their own place in society. From the start, America has been a place of vastly diverging opinions and backgrounds, and it has made us the strong nation and a leading force for good in our world. Appreciating this diversity is so vital to our nation, yet in recent history, and even more so in this past year, we have seen an increasing polarization, and demonization of those with opposing views, so much so that a fruitful dialog and discussion is no longer occurring.
Changing and reversing this trend is my goal.
The trend can be blamed on the political parties, a partisan media driven by the search for profits, and a myriad of other factors, but in the end, it comes down to each of us as individuals. We have the power to critically analyze what is being told to us, then learn to seek out accurate information. We then improve our understanding and discourse for the good of the nation. We each have the power is the change our own thinking, anything past that is beyond our own control, and though we can try to influence others, our effect will be unknown. At a time in our history when propaganda is the norm for political debate, we can choose to pick sides in the propaganda debate, or to rise above it.
Propaganda is disseminated at a high cost of dollars. From research, to creation, to dissemination, it costs a great deal to craft a message that will resonate and influence the public. As a wise man once sang “propaganda all is phony.” But a message that will resonate with the public can occur organically, when it is the right message for the time, truthful, and for the benefit of the society.
At times our debate on a specific issue has been exploited by an individual or group for some purpose, and if too successful, our nation suffers greatly. We saw this very clearly several years ago during the lead-up to the Iraq War when dissension and criticism was deemed anti-American. Many decades prior, during the communist scare of the 1950s, many lives were needlessly hurt and our nation’s freedom was exploited to its own detriment. Joseph McCarthy was able to exploit the nations fear, and as a result, muted opposing viewpoints. Not until the balance of power was restored by courageous journalists was America brought out of a very weak position. The best of America could not shine due to the exploitation of individuals fears by a talented politician.
We have seen these same tactics attempted in recent years from the right wing of the American political society. Fears of different races, to demonized ideologies, to fears of wealth, celebrity, and intelligence have been used to create unfounded fear in those confused about the changing world around them. Yet, this fear mongering is more to exploit the individual who finds comfort in these points of views than to create a formable political force. We see these illogical political commentary sponsored by get rich quick schemes, “eliminate” debt, buy overpriced gold, miracle pills not approved by the FDA, to fraudulent loan modification schemes. Yet, these commentators, and then their disciples, have a great influence over the public debate on issues of great importance, funded by the fact that exploiting ignorance can be very profitable.
The way to move above this serious flaw in our free society is to increase the public discourse. Though we might disagree with the fundamental ideology, we all have a points of view that should not be discounted. A robust discussion of ideas, not to score political points, or to prove someone wrong, but to improve our own ideas and better understand others is needed to advance our society. If we all listened to everyone with a little more understanding many of our societies ills would be rectified. Solutions appear when we are open to finding them.
Thomas Paine
http://www.NotCIA.com
How to Prevent Mutated Animal Flu for the Future
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Content from Avaaz.org, but same information available from the Humane Society.
Dear friends,
H1N1, more commonly known as swine flu, continues to dominate global dialogue — Mexico has been nearly paralysed and across the world leaders discouraged air travel, banned pork imports and initiated drastic controls to mitigate the spreading virus. As the threat shows signs of subsiding, the question becomes where it came from and how we stop another outbreak.
Smithfield Corporation, the largest pig producer in the world whose farm is being blamed as the source of the H1N1 outbreak, denies any connection between their pigs and the flu. Big agribusiness worldwide pays huge sums of money for research to argue that biosafety is ensured in industrial hog production. But the World Health Organization has been saying for years that ‘a new pandemic is inevitable’ and experts from the European Commission and the Fod and Agriculture Organization have cautioned that the rapid move from small holdings to industrial pig production is in fact increasing the risk of development and transmission of epidemics. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warn that scientists still do not know the extent that infectious compounds produced in factory farms affect human health.
Studies abound of the horrific conditions endured by pigs in concentrated large-scale operations, and the devastating economic impact on small farmer communities of bloated large-scale operations. Smithfield itself has already been fined $12.6 million and is currently under another federal investigation in the US for toxic environmental damage from pig excrement lakes.
But even with all of this damaging evidence, a combination of increased global meat consumption and a powerful industry motivated by profit at the cost of human health, means that instead of being shut down – these sickening factory farm operations are propagating around the world and we are subsidizing them. In the wake of this swine flu threat, let’s hold industrial pig producers to account. Sign the petition for investigation and regulation:
http://www.avaaz.org/en/swine_flu_pandemic/50.php
If we resolve this global health crisis boldly by reassessing our food consumption and production, and urgently calling for an inquiry into the impact of factory farms on human health, we could put in place tough farm practice rules that will save the global population from future animal-borne lethal pandemics.
http://www.avaaz.org/en/swine_flu_pandemic/50.php
With hope,
the Avaaz team
“Medical Cannabis in the State’s Hands” – DOJ
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Recently, Attorney General Eric Holder has said he will not continue the Bush Administration’s policy of raiding marijuana dispensaries, which are legal under state law. This is a drastic change from the Bush Administration’s policy.
Medical Marijuana has been proven to be a very effective treatment for conditions associated with HIV/AIDS, Chronic Pain, Multiple Sclerosis, Cancer treatment, Arthritis, Glaucoma, Depression, and Anxiety. And unlike most other pharmaceuticals on the market today, the side effects of Marijuana are positive, such as: may cause music to sound more interesting, things might be funnier then actually are, or food might taste better.
Now that the Obama Administration has signaled they will let states make their own decisions on Marijuana, it is time for more states to get on the ball and start more dispensaries. States have little opportunity to make money. The power to create money is at the federal governments hands, which has made it very difficult for states to rectify their budget deficits. Medical Marijuana could give states the ability to literally grow their own “money”.
To properly implement a medical marijuana policy, states will have to look at their local demographics and differences, and decide on how best to go ahead with the plan. Though marijuana is relatively harmless, not physically addicting, it is mentally addicting, and certain people might smoke it all day, making them nonfunctioning members of society. Others might smoke it and have other negative social disorders, so proper treatment and problem-identifying strategies should be in place.
Recent research polls have shown that a growing percent of the public are in favor of legalization, and an even higher percent are in favor of Medical Marijuana. In this new age of American History, it is time to end prohibition on the planet Cannabis.
Daily Kos Opinion Poll on Medical Marijuana
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2009/3/22/711589/-Medical-MarijuanaSolution-to-States-Budget-Deficit
President Bush Addresses the Nation – March 19, 2003
Friday, March 20, 2009
THE PRESIDENT: My fellow citizens, at this hour, American and coalition forces are in the early stages of military operations to disarm Iraq, to free its people and to defend the world from grave danger.
On my orders, coalition forces have begun striking selected targets of military importance to undermine Saddam Hussein’s ability to wage war. These are opening stages of what will be a broad and concerted campaign. More than 35 countries are giving crucial support — from the use of naval and air bases, to help with intelligence and logistics, to the deployment of combat units. Every nation in this coalition has chosen to bear the duty and share the honor of serving in our common defense.
To all the men and women of the United States Armed Forces now in the Middle East, the peace of a troubled world and the hopes of an oppressed people now depend on you. That trust is well placed.
The enemies you confront will come to know your skill and bravery. The people you liberate will witness the honorable and decent spirit of the American military. In this conflict, America faces an enemy who has no regard for conventions of war or rules of morality. Saddam Hussein has placed Iraqi troops and equipment in civilian areas, attempting to use innocent men, women and children as shields for his own military — a final atrocity against his people.
I want Americans and all the world to know that coalition forces will make every effort to spare innocent civilians from harm. A campaign on the harsh terrain of a nation as large as California could be longer and more difficult than some predict. And helping Iraqis achieve a united, stable and free country will require our sustained commitment.
We come to Iraq with respect for its citizens, for their great civilization and for the religious faiths they practice. We have no ambition in Iraq, except to remove a threat and restore control of that country to its own people.
I know that the families of our military are praying that all those who serve will return safely and soon. Millions of Americans are praying with you for the safety of your loved ones and for the protection of the innocent. For your sacrifice, you have the gratitude and respect of the American people. And you can know that our forces will be coming home as soon as their work is done.
Our nation enters this conflict reluctantly — yet, our purpose is sure. The people of the United States and our friends and allies will not live at the mercy of an outlaw regime that threatens the peace with weapons of mass murder. We will meet that threat now, with our Army, Air Force, Navy, Coast Guard and Marines, so that we do not have to meet it later with armies of fire fighters and police and doctors on the streets of our cities.
Wise Up… Time for Bold Action on Cannabis and Drug Reform
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
For far to long has America been a nation of Ostriches, mainly due to our corporate media. Denial of obvious problems is the American Way. We see this in our Financial Collapse. It was painfully obvious for the past 5 years our economy was going to collapse, but CNBC kept pretending the markets were doing great. It was painfully obvious the Iraq War was fraudulent from day one, yet CNN and the rest of the media sold it to the American people without any critical analysis of the facts. It was painfully obvious George Bush wasn’t qualified to be President in 1999, yet the media hardly attacked him until his poll numbers were below 40% in 2006/7. When will America wise up?
What will it take? 9/11 woke America up… for a couple days. Katrina woke America up… for a couple days. Lehman Brother’s collapse woke America up, but with outright lies and deception in our media, Americans are confused and don’t know what to believe… what are facts, what is propaganda, what is truth, and what are lies.
If I laid out the facts on a “controversial” issue, more people would deny them, or try and find flaws in my grammar, or judge the facts based on my political ideology, then listen and accept the reality.
How many times can the facts be laid out that Marijuana should be legalized? The facts are painfully clear. The potential negative health effects of Marijuana are less then Sugar, and immensely less then Splenda, and leaps and bounds safer then nearly any prescription drug available at your local CVS. If you don’t believe me, do your own research with a skeptical eye on what you read. You must understand the motivations behind most medical research that has been published on Marijuana. Many alignments that have extremely profitable pills marketed to the public could be treated with cannabis. From sleeping pill, depression and anxiety medication, to pain pills, all would loose a dramatic amount of sales if cannabis was legalized and used as a medicine. This results in the pharmaceutical industry funding studies designed to show the negative impacts of Marijuana. You must look to European studies, or certain California based organizations to get any real research on the health effects of Marijuana. In the end, Marijuana’s health benefits far outweigh any potential negative side effect.
Medical reasons are far from the only reason to legalize. As a recreational drug, marijuana is less harmful then the other legal recreational drug, Alcohol. No one dies from smoking too much pot on a Saturday night. Can Anheuser-Busch say that about their product? Compared to cigarettes, smoking marijuana cigarettes will still do damage to someone’s lungs, but so does burning incents. Cannabis is not addictive like nicotine, so the potential for long-term problems are minimized. Also, people who smoke marijuana cigarettes smoke much less of them then a tobacco cigarette smoker. But there are many other, healthier ways to consume cannabis without smoking. From vaporizers, to baked goods, to water pipes, the problems from inhaling smoke can be neutralized fairly easily.
Today, in California you can get a Marijuana Card that allows you to buy medical marijuana at a cannabis club. While illegal by federal law, California enacted medical marijuana in the mid-1990s. During the Bush Error, he directed his Department of Justice to go after these places. One of the biggest examples of wasted time and money was the prosecution and incarceration of Tommy Chong, for admitting to a undercover FBI officer that the water pipes his son was selling with his picture on them were meant to be used for Marijuana. Tommy Chong had no financial interest in the product, but ended up serving time in jail for it. Examples of this misguided and damaging use of the Justice Department under Bush are numerous, and a google search can shine much light on this topic.
The new attorney general has already said he will not use his office to go after marijuana dispensaries that are legal under state law. While this is good news, it has a horrible unintended consequence. MEXICO.
Mexico is currently near collapse due to drug cartels importing Marijuana into California and other Southwestern States. While most news reports on this escalating crisis fail to mention Marijuana, and instead talk about Cocaine, Meth, and Ecstasy, Marijuana is by far the number one drug being exported from Mexico into America. In a new article published by General Electric, http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29516551/, it went into detail about the drug cartel problem facing Mexico, but had just one mention of Marijuana. No wonder Americans don’t understand what is going on. Several years ago, Mexico wanted to out-right legalize Marijuana. The Bush Administration threatened Mexico with massive sanctions, so they were not able to do what they wanted, leaving Mexico in a near state of collapse.
If California, Denver, Massachusetts, New Mexico, Oregon, and a growing number of other locations are going to allow Marijuana, this only is encouraging more violence in Mexico, since our Federal Government is so far behind the ball on this issue.
The truth is, extremely powerful interests have been ensuring America would keep Marijuana illegal. Drug Free America Foundation, formally known as Straight Inc, is run and founded by Melvin Sembler. He has connections to the Republican National Committee, the Scooter Libby Defense Fund, 2008 Mitt Romney Presidential Campaign, Feedom’s Watch, George Bush Presidential Library Foundation, and numerous others. His organization was behind the “Just Say No” policy of the 80s. If you want to understand what this man’s motivations are, look no further then the Iran-Contra Crack Cocaine episode of the 1980s. http://notcia.com/blog/down-the-rabbit-hole/the-cia-drug-trade/.
Keeping Marijuana illegal keeps the prices high. There are no reasons marijuana should cost more then tobacco, other then the fact it is illegal. What is practically a worthless weed has become America’s number one crop, http://abcnews.go.com/Business/story?id=2735017&page=1. What used to grow on the sides of roads, throughout open fields, and spread like a weed, has been demonized to such an extent the reality of the situation has been lost on so many.
If this “drug money” was utilized by the states, not by criminal organizations, state budget problems would be a thing of the past. If New York, for example, sold Marijuana for half the price as street dealers, the billion-dollar budget gap will disappear. States that didn’t want legal marijuana would be free to keep it illegal, while other states could legalize it. It would clear up our prison population, it would help our nations healthcare system, it would bring into the light a peaceful activity that has been hidden in the sand for so long. Users of harder drugs would likely cut back, if not stop, in favor of Marijuana. Abuse of hard drugs and prescriptions have been increasing in recent years, and this trend can be reversed if bold, logical, sensible action is taken. Life is tough, and will only get tougher as our nation and planet go through this time of financial uncertainty, Why not do what is right, and let people smoke some marijuana if they so choose, without making them criminals?
What to do About The NY Post, Rush Limbaugh & Other “Conservative” Media
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Laugh!
For the most part, that is what they are, a joke. Rarely do they have the facts behind their outrageous statements, which are said to divide us, to feed into fear and paranoia, to make us feel small, to feed ill instincts. A segmented, subservient society helps people like Murdoch profit, or attempt to (NWS). One way to address these types of media is to go after the advertisers. Create boycotts of the companies that give money through advertising to the NY Post… but the effect and success of these boycotts are minimal. Rarely will enough become aware of the boycott to have a significant enough impact to permanently change the corporation’s direction, and surely it wont change the decision makers mindset. It results in a more divided society, those for the boycott and those who don’t care about it.
The solution is to change the public’s attitude towards these types of Media. If you listen to Rush Limbaugh, already knowing the facts behind the “issues” he discusses, his show is hilarious. He is a great entertainer, with very little understanding of most issues, past the several quick and easy talking points. Sean Hannity pretends to be informed and dedicated to the issues he discusses, but he is in it purely for the cash. I heard him interviewed on a radio show several years back, where he admitted he disagrees with much of what he says, but sticks to the talking points because it keeps his message insync with the rest of the conservative talkers. He has to keep his bosses happy, or else he wont be making the boatloads of cash he makes. No reason to be a rebel if it will affect your pocketbook, or so Mr. Hannity thinks.
We have seen over the past 8 – 10 years how an unquestioned media can destroy our democracy. Fox News helped sell the Iraq War, not only by following Bush/Rove in lockstep, but by savagely attacking anyone who spoke out against the Iraq War. There was very little opposition on the airwaves before March 2003 because of Fox News influence. Today people have woken up to the distortions, and editorialization that is intrinsic throughout Television News, especially on Fox News [MSNBC still keeps its editorial content to specific shows, not throughout all hours of broadcast; Same with CNN].
This new outrage over the NY Post Cartoon depicting NYPD officers killing a Ape, with the caption, “guess they will have to find a new ape to write the next stimulus bill” is clearly racist, no matter what anyone at the Post says, but in the end, so what?
I find the cartoon hilarious. Hilarious in that the NY Post has defended it, claimed it wasn’t racist, claimed critics of it “don’t get it”…. They think the public is dumb and racist, I say just laugh at them. Don’t buy the paper, but that goes without saying. Anything owned by News Corp doesn’t have any credibility, and isn’t worth your 50 cents to start with. Page 6 is fiction, and the “news” reported is the lowest form of “news” available. It makes USA Today look like War and Peace in comparison.
Same goes for the Wall Street Journal. After News Corp purchased Dow Jones, it is tough to even take the Dow Jones Industrial Average at face value, but it appears they haven’t influenced it, as of yet. The WSJ was always a more conservative paper, but with News Corp and Murdoch running it, it no longer is an independent conservative business voice, but another arm of the News Corp propaganda machine. Anyone who actively read the paper before and after can clearly see the difference. It is no longer a respectable newspaper. I suggest the Financial Times instead.
So in the end, know your sources of news. If it comes from a corporation dedicated to controlling the news, don’t trust it. If it is an uninformed individual spewing talking points, laugh at it, and enjoy it for what it is, entertainment. If it is a racist cartoon, take it as a reminder of who is publishing the newspaper…
If each of us are not critical of the information we take in, we are doomed to repeat the past.
Why Was Blagojevich Impeached?
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Blagojevich might be a little crazy, but I have yet to see any evidence against him that shows he is any more of a crook then the average politician. Seems to me he was taken down because he spoke out against Bank of America. Many of the reasons he was impeached are not legitimate reasons. It seems that numerous interests came together and decided Blagojevich was no longer wanted… I could be wrong, but we wont know until his trial occurs.
“Illinois Governor Suspends Business With Bank Of America”
December 8, 2008
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/12/08/illinois-governer-suspend_n_149272.html
Criminal Complaint Against Blagojevich
Blagojevich Complaint
Michael Phelps & The Y2k/911 Generation
Monday, February 2, 2009
Michael Phelps Smokes Cannabis
If you haven’t heard,
“Phelps got his picture snapped as he inhaled from a cannabis pipe. The photo wound up in a British tabloid, forcing Phelps to publicly apologize and his handlers to deal with sponsors who are surely none too pleased about the swimmer’s choices away from the pool.”
“News of the World said the picture was taken during a November house party while Phelps was visiting the University of South Carolina. During that trip, he attended one of the school’s football games and received a big ovation when introduced to the crowd.”
Speaking as someone in Michael Phelps’s generation, his behavior is normal, accepted, and looked upon proudly, being successful and being a “smoker.”
Phelps’s official statement disappointed me.
“I engaged in behavior which was regrettable and demonstrated bad judgment,” Phelps said in the statement released by one of his agents. “I’m 23 years old and despite the successes I’ve had in the pool, I acted in a youthful and inappropriate way, not in a manner people have come to expect from me. For this, I am sorry. I promise my fans and the public it will not happen again.”
It was clearly not written by Michael Phelps, but by Michael Phelps Inc. Michael Phelps can gather much attention, and I hope he will work towards ending the hypocrisy surrounding cannabis in America.
Much of the world has modernized their view on cannabis. In much of Europe, it is accepted, though not legal. Mexico wanted to legalize it, but the Bush Administration threatened them, and they changed their mind. In Canada, cannabis is nearly legal. In parts of America, cannabis is nearly legal. Even in the Olympics, the rules on cannabis are murky.
During the 1998 Nagano Olympics, Canadian snowboarder Ross Rebagliati was stripped of his gold medal in the giant slalom after testing positive for cannabis. The victory was reinstated because the sport’s governing body did not have a rule banning the substance.
Later that year, Olympic swimmer Gary Hall Jr. drew a three-month suspension after testing positive for pot.
“It’s one of those substances that every year there’s debate over it,” said Howman, the WADA official.
The corporate world has had an awkward relationship with cannabis. It will be interesting to see how Phelps’s sponsors act as a result of this picture.
Phelps’s sponsors are Speedo, Omega, AT&T, Powerbar, and Visa. Phelps’s smoking cannabis should have no effect on these companies. Speedo cares about swimming, and that’s it. Omega sells watches, and “smokers” need to remember what time it is, so there is synergy in that sponsorship. AT&T makes a great deal of their text messaging profits off drug deals, so they have no reason to complain, or be surprised. Powerbar’s are a good choice of food to eat after “smoking”, so they should be speaking out in defense of Michael Phelps. Visa, and credit cards in general, are of a great use to “smokers” who need some extra cash or who don’t want to deal with change at a convenience store at 1 in the morning.
Out of this whole ordeal, Phelps should pick up ROOR as a sponsor. They are a international company based in Germany. They make the highest quality water pipes in the world. They are sold in your local head shop, and sold online. Their website is http://www.roor.de. You can even buy their pipes from their website, using your Visa Card. Life really does take Visa.
It is due time America looks at our drug policy, and especially at cannabis. In 2006, cannabis officially became America’s number one crop. http://abcnews.go.com/business/story?id=2735017. “The study estimates that cannabis production, at a value of $35.8 billion, exceeds the combined value of corn ($23.3 billion) and wheat ($7.5 billion).”
An article on February 2, 2009 in the New York Times details the challenges occurring at the southern boarder, because of cannabis. “Despite huge enforcement actions on both sides of the Southwest border, the Mexican cannabis trade is more robust — and brazen — than ever.” http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/02/us/02pot.html.
Michael Phelps is just another name added to the list of successful “smokers”. http://www.veryimportantpotheads.com/main2.html. Our new president, the Super Bowl MVP, and John Updike are a short list of admitted “smokers.” If you watch the current Anti-Drug commercials running, you would think they are talking about two different realities. It is due time to end the hypocrisy and have a real debate in the public on the legalities of cannabis.
Daily Kos Poll Results
slightly edited on August 3, 2010
Facebook – The Hidden Aspect to DARPA’s Total Information Awareness Project?
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Now that the Bush Administration is gone, whistleblowers are speaking out. I just watched the second night of the NSA whistleblower on Countdown with KO, and heard him mention DARPA’s Total Information Awareness Project. This reminded me of a pet research project of mine.
DARPA was rumored to be developing a system that would allow everyone in America, and ideally, throughout the world, to be in a database that could connect everything from their contacts, financial activity, friends, and history, in one database. This would allow Intelligence Agencies to easily find out information about anyone in the world.
This project was rejected by congress. A few months later, Facebook was launched at Harvard…
Facebook’s growth has been immense. Based on predecessors social networking systems (Friendster & MySpace), Facebook started with no attempt at income. Many early adapters thought the system was a non-profit organization paid for by colleges or some other organization. Facebooks initial technology was more advanced then other services were able to offer, yet presented it in a very very simple way…
Now to the dark side…
We are all in agreement that the CIA doesn’t follow American laws, from drug dealing to torture and secret prisons, the CIA is “above the influence” of our nation. They have extensive funding from known Venture Capital firms. The CIA has been behind many companies and entertainment commonplace in American life.
Would it be far fetched to think that Facebook was started as a CIA operation to implement a user generated database on unsuspecting college students… which has expanded today to a larger portion of society.
There are detailed research papers on the internets that goes into detail about the initial funding of Facebook, so if you are interested in it, just google it.
The most interesting piece of information I came across while researching DARPA was several of their own presentations from the early 2000s. I posted all of them to my website, http://NotCIA.com/darpa/ All of these presentations were downloaded from the official DARPA website in December 2007.
Facebook has always been in a class of its own. For the first few years of its existence, they had no ads, a higher technological interface then the rest of the internet, as well as other unique qualities. I have been told that if a traceroute is done for Facebook, weird things show up. Small parts of Facebook’s code have been leaked over the past several years, and in each situation, more results of the detailed information Facebook collects on users is discovered, such as how many times you view each friends profile.
A few months ago I emailed Facebook asking if my messages sent over their service were private. They responded that the message is only viewable to the recipient and the sender, but didn’t answer my real question, does Facebook guarantee the privacy of the message from prying eyes at Facebook. They never responded to my request for clarification…
Large portions of the NSA’s surveillance is still unknown. I predict that this unknown section of the secret surveillance has to do with Facebook, which will be known to the masses in the coming months…
America has little, if any, privacy laws. We all must remain vigilant on all threats to our privacy.
Some Comments From Daily Kos
Murdoch (owner of Fox News) has MySpace. Facebook does have CIA links, and both can essentially do whatever they want with their data.
This isn’t about getting terrorists and never was.
This is about social control, and it has a fully developed ideology behind it. In a nutshell, the concept is that people are sheep (mimetic desire). Facebook is a kind of electronic sheepdog.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/jan/14/facebook
by M Aurelius
Telephone systems engineer here, 25 years in the industry, was involved with crypto back in the early eighties, and knows more about SIGINT and surveillance in general than just about anyone on this blog except a guy who has a bunch of current SCI tabs on his badge.
And I knew what traffic analysis and network analysis were, 20 years before most people in the general public even heard the words.
When Facebook and the rest of those started popping up, my immediate reaction was, “that’s a SIGINT collector,” meaning, a surveillance system. I didn’t join any of those, and basically ignored them.
By analogy, if there’s a place serving crappy food on the corner, I don’t eat there, I tell my friends to not eat there, and I don’t waste my time counting the number of health & sanitary violations they get each month.
The point about Facebook coming online with advanced tech and no ads, and the Harvard connection, scream intel agency funding & origins.
But I’ll tell you what’s actually going on here, based on my experience & knowledge.
Facebook isn’t the “real thing.” Facebook is a test case. That is, the goal of Facebook isn’t to build dossiers on every teenager and undergrad in America. Facebook is a live guinea-pig test for how to develop and deploy this kind of software to collect intel on people on a network, and how to do analyses to extract actionable intel from the noise.
The people watching the output from Facebook aren’t really concerned with whether Dick is going to ask Jane to the prom. What they’re concerned with is how accurately they can PREDICT who is going to ask who to the prom. So they attempt to develop algorithms to make automated predictions with Dick and Jane, and all their classmates, and see what happens.
And they also study how information propagates through social networks, and what are the characteristics of meme-originators and meme-spreaders, and a bunch of other stuff I could go into detail about if I had more time.
Mark my words. This will eventually come out in the news.by G2geek
