Censorship, Surveillance & Apathy

padraig (u.s.)

a monkey that will go ape
Don't M15 and the FBI have to get warrants for surveillance based on data analysis?

point is they don't need warrants to get the data in the first place

I agree that the arrival of mass data has probably made analysis more confusing and difficult, not less, which makes the need for skilled analysts greater, which will only further technocratization of the field and process, which is a probably a bad thing. I'm no expert but I can't imagine the last decade hasn't massively ramped up the already considerable intelligence/private security firm/etc complex. as you say, people with jobs to keep have to sell their successes. then they multiply like cancer cells as more people flock to where the $$$ is. also, like the military they always have the upper hand in dealing w/civilians - they're the ones arguing for security, they're the experts, they know the technology. it takes a strong, concerted effort by the civilian govt to keep this stuff in line and I think we've seen that post-911 Western governments mostly aren't interested in even making the attempt. it was inevitable fighting a war based on surveillance would bleed into how surveillance is carried out at home. technologies, methods, ways of thinking.
 

padraig (u.s.)

a monkey that will go ape
security and law enforcement needn't to be sinister conspirators to do great harm. and as everyone said your "only the guilty have something to hide" argument is fucking terrible, reprehensible nonsense.

(and I'm skeptical of that great hidden Internet of terrorists and child abusers. or, it exists but: 1) I have a hard time believing law enforcement types aren't already fully aware of much of it (i.e., the recent Silk Road bust) and 2) it gets used to justify every repressive measure against anything)
 

Patrick Swayze

I'm trying to shut up
not sure how I feel about it, so I'm apathetic I suppose. the 'deep web' or 'dark web' or whatever they call it isn't hard to access at all though. basic encryption of communication/browsing activity is definitely within the capabilities of most people, if they can be bothered to learn.

David Simon and Adam Curtis both have some interesting things to say about it all, as a counterpoint to the generally held belief (in liberal circles at least) that this is all very bad.

http://davidsimon.com/we-are-shocked-shocked/

http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/adamcurtis/posts/BUGGER
 

Mr. Tea

Let's Talk About Ceps
There seems to be a significant shift towards greater restrictions on personal freedoms in general these days. The surveillance, the filtering, Spain's move to tighten their abortion laws, Croatia voting to ban gay marriage, the large protests in France against gay marriage and so on.

Has anyone else noticed this or am I just on overexcited "leftie"?

Well there are social and political tides operating in all directions at all times, in various parts of the world, aren't there - all the things you've mentioned have to be contrasted against gay marriage in this country, legalization/decriminalization of cannabis in many parts of the US, the widespread pro-female-driving movement in Saudi Arabia, FEMEN and Pussy Riot - I don't know if these things 'cancel out' the things you've mentioned but it's not all doom and gloom.

Anyway, Happy Christmas, droneslaves!
 

padraig (u.s.)

a monkey that will go ape
so, here's the transcript of Obama's big NSA reform speech for anyone who missed it. it's also on YT I believe.

my take: not very good. he basically just repeated the NSA's recent PR talking points* (no mistakes were made but if mistakes were made they certainly weren't malicious, everyone at the NSA loves liberty, Snowden's a jerk, etc) and some vague oversight/reform proposals, including a weird one to have someone - tho he has no idea who - besides the govt store the metadata the govt collects, and another very vague one about extending "certain protections" American citizens have to non-American citizens. he also expressed some, imo, valid frustration w/the way many foreign leaders used le affair Snowden to score political points by pretending to be just shocked (shocked!) by the idea the U.S. was spying on them.

*if you wanna hear these in greater depth 60 Minutes aired basically an NSA infomercial a few weeks ago. here's Spencer Ackerman breaking down some of the more blatant spin.
 

padraig (u.s.)

a monkey that will go ape
sidenote: it's embarrassing how far 60 Minutes has fallen. between the Lara Logan/Benghazi debacle, this NSA whitewashing and the less important but equally terrible one-sided infomercial it recently aired for Bud Selig and Major League Baseball in re: steroids and Alex Rodriguez...I mean it was always a house organ of the centrist status quo but still, 60 Minutes was at least a serious, hard news project in an era when that is evermore lacking and yeah, it's fallen right the fuck off a cliff.
 

IdleRich

IdleRich
"he also expressed some, imo, valid frustration w/the way many foreign leaders used le affair Snowden to score political points by pretending to be just shocked (shocked!) by the idea the U.S. was spying on them"
But don't get caught doing it so blatantly innit? If Germany find out that a so-called ally is bugging their leader's phone they pretty much have to say something - in fact quite a lot - otherwise it looks as though they're just bending over and taking it.
 

Mr. Tea

Let's Talk About Ceps

sufi

lala
A few legal cases breaking thru the apathy
https://www.privacyinternational.org/what-to-know-gchq-on-trial

BshpvKFIMAAHsxq.jpg
 

sufi

lala
is idealism dead then? http://zenarchery.com/2014/08/everyone-i-know-is-brokenhearted/

The joke, of course, is that every generation kills the thing they love. The hippies became yuppies; Gen X talked a lot about the revolution, and then went and got themselves some venture capital and started laying into place the oversaturated, paranoid world we live in now. A lot of them tried to tell themselves they were still punk as fuck, but it’s hard to morally reconcile the thing where you listen to Fugazi on the way to your job where you help find new ways to trick people into giving up their data to advertisers. Most people don’t even bother. They just compartmentalize. - See more at: http://zenarchery.com/2014/08/everyone-i-know-is-brokenhearted/#sthash.aSW0J3TY.dpuf
 

Ness Rowlah

Norwegian Wood
Prepare yourself to be recognised at the next gig you go to
http://noisey.vice.com/blog/beantowns-big-brother

"Using software provided by IBM that utilized existing security cameras throughout the area, the city tracked the thousands of attendees at the concert and in the vicinity, and filtered their appearance into data points which could then be cross-checked against certain identifying characteristics"
 
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