Yea.. this isn't newsworthy...
This is a forwarded message
From: Declan McCullagh <declan@well.com>
To: politech@politechbot.com
Date: Sunday, July 14, 2002, 8:06:38 PM
Subject: FC: Bush administration readies nationwide informant program
===8<==============Original message text===============
The link:
http://www.citizencorps.gov/tips.html
---
Date: Sun, 14 Jul 2002 20:59:54 +0000
From: "J.D. Abolins" <jda-ir@njcc.com>
Subject: Aussie paper: US planning to recruit one in 24 Americans as citizen
spies
Anybody ever heard of Pavlik Morozov? (If not see
http://www.cyberussr.com/rus/morozov.html for a quick blurb about the
fellow.) When I see proposals to mobilize American people into being eyes
and ears fo the government, I am reminded of Pavilik and his family.
Now I am not against people reporting certain things to the police. It is
the habit of being constantly suspicious of neighbors, co-workers, and
otehrs that can become destructive. Down the line it can lead to suspicions
based not on significant clues but upon things such as "fails to display
sufficient respect for authority", "laughs whenever the phrase 'homeland
security' is used", and "hangs out with anti-social misfits." It is an all
too easy slide from neighbors watching out for each and helping the
community to becoming agents of the state.
J.D. Abolins
PS: Why is it that the most revealing news reports about the USA are coming
nowadays form the UK, Aussie, and other non-USA media? <rhetorical>
--------------
From the Sydney Morning Herald Web site 15 July 2002
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2002/07/14/1026185141232.html
US planning to recruit one in 24 Americans as citizen spies
By Ritt Goldstein
July 15 2002
The Bush Administration aims to recruit millions of United States citizens
as domestic informants in a program likely to alarm civil liberties groups.
The Terrorism Information and Prevention System, or TIPS, means the US will
have a higher percentage of citizen informants than the former East Germany
through the infamous Stasi secret police. The program would use a minimum
of 4 per cent of Americans to report "suspicious activity".
Civil liberties groups have already warned that, with the passage earlier
this year of the Patriot Act, there is potential for abusive, large-scale
investigations of US citizens.
As with the Patriot Act, TIPS is being pursued as part of the so-called war
against terrorism. It is a Department of Justice project.
Highlighting the scope of the surveillance network, TIPS volunteers are
being recruited primarily from among those whose work provides access to
homes, businesses or transport systems. Letter carriers, utility employees,
truck drivers and train conductors are among those named as targeted recruits.
A pilot program, described on the government Web site www.citizencorps.gov,
is scheduled to start next month in 10 cities, with 1 million informants
participating in the first stage. Assuming the program is initiated in the
10 largest US cities, that will be 1 million informants for a total
population of almost 24 million, or one in 24 people.
[...]
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
POLITECH -- Declan McCullagh's politics and technology mailing list
You may redistribute this message freely if you include this notice.
To subscribe to Politech: http://www.politechbot.com/info/subscribe.html
This message is archived at http://www.politechbot.com/
Declan McCullagh's photographs are at http://www.mccullagh.org/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Like Politech? Make a donation here: http://www.politechbot.com/donate/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
===8<===========End of original message text===========
--
Best regards,
karee                            mailto:karee@tstonramp.com
http://xent.com/mailman/listinfo/fork