Even More Surveillance
The government can track your movements through the signal emanating from the convenient cell phone you're carrying. Although many federal judges are insisting probable cause must be established this judicial firewall is quickly eroding as the definition of a "terrorist" is expanded under the Patriot Act.
When terrorism can be defined as "coercing the civilian population" or seeking to "influece government policy" by "coercion", then I may be in violation of the Patriot Act -- I may be committing a terrorist act. This is likely the reason for the FBI holding the names and licenseplate numbers of 30 US citizens in their domestic-terrorism files. Their crime? Peaceful protesting at a Colorado Springs anti-war rally.
When the definition of domestic terrorism is expanded this broadly we are all potential candidates for surveillance. Obtaining the court's permission to track you via your cell phone will not be difficult. The AFP reported on Thursday (12/8/05) that the US government has released a terrorist watchlist consisting of 80,000 names. According to the Department of Homeland Security airlines must check each passenger flying to a US destination against the list and report if there are any matches. Yikes!
For years I have prayed, "Thy kingdom come." I will now place a bit more emphasis upon "deliver us from evil."
SEC. 802. DEFINITION OF DOMESTIC TERRORISM.
(a) DOMESTIC TERRORISM DEFINED. -- Section 2331 of title 18,
(5) the term "domestic terrorism" means activities that --
(A) involve acts dangerous to human life that are
a violation of the criminal laws of the United States or
of any State;http://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gif
(B) appear to be intended --
(i) to intimidate or coerce a civilian population;
(ii) to influence the policy of a government by
intimidation or coercion; or
(iii) to affect the conduct of a government by
mass destruction, assassination, or kidnapping; and
(C) occur primarily within the territorial jurisdiction
of the United States.
When terrorism can be defined as "coercing the civilian population" or seeking to "influece government policy" by "coercion", then I may be in violation of the Patriot Act -- I may be committing a terrorist act. This is likely the reason for the FBI holding the names and licenseplate numbers of 30 US citizens in their domestic-terrorism files. Their crime? Peaceful protesting at a Colorado Springs anti-war rally.
When the definition of domestic terrorism is expanded this broadly we are all potential candidates for surveillance. Obtaining the court's permission to track you via your cell phone will not be difficult. The AFP reported on Thursday (12/8/05) that the US government has released a terrorist watchlist consisting of 80,000 names. According to the Department of Homeland Security airlines must check each passenger flying to a US destination against the list and report if there are any matches. Yikes!
For years I have prayed, "Thy kingdom come." I will now place a bit more emphasis upon "deliver us from evil."
