MIT in Aaron Swartz Case: Not Neutral, Not Leading, Not Standing Up for TechnologistsIn January, our friend Aaron Swartz killed himself. Aaron was unable to carry on against an overzealous government prosecution enforcing a grossly unfair and outdated law. We, and millions of others around the world, were saddened beyond words.
Student receives more than $4 mln after being ‘forgotten’ in jail for five daysA University of California student spent five days forgotten in a windowless jail cell without food and water, and was forced to drink his own urine to survive. Now, the US government is voluntarily paying the young man $4.1 million to avoid a lawsuit.
XKeyscore: NSA tool collects ‘nearly everything a user does on the internet’A top secret National Security Agency program allows analysts to search with no prior authorization through vast databases containing emails, online chats and the browsing histories of millions of individuals, according to documents provided by whistleblower Edward Snowden. The NSA boasts in training materials that the program, called XKeyscore, is its “widest-reaching” system for developing intelligence from the internet.
Manning deserves Nobel Peace Prize: Opposing viewSupporters of Bradley Manning protest Friday, on the final day of closing arguments in his military trial. (Photo: Chip Somodevilla, Getty Images) Story Highlights Manning “helped end the Iraq War, and may have helped prevent further conflicts elsewhere.” Consent of the governed is meaningful only to the extent that it is informed consent.
The Bradley Manning Verdict and the Dangerous “Hacker Madness” Prosecution StrategyBradley Manning was convicted (PDF) on 19 counts today, including charges under the Espionage Act and the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act for leaking approximately 700,000 government documents to WikiLeaks. While it was a relief that he was not convicted of the worst charge “aiding the enemy,” the verdict remains deeply troubling and could potentially result in a sentence of life in prison.
Warrantless Cellphone Tracking Is UpheldIn a significant victory for law enforcement, a federal appeals court on Tuesday said that government authorities could extract historical location data directly from telecommunications carriers without a search warrant. The closely watched case, in the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, is the first ruling that squarely addresses the constitutionality of warrantless searches of historical location data stored by cellphone service providers.
MIT denies targeting Aaron SwartzThe Massachusetts Institute of Technology has released a report claiming that administrators never targeted information activist Aaron Swartz and committed no wrongdoings. The university claims it remained neutral throughout the case. In a 180-page document released on Tuesday, MIT revealed long-awaited information about its involvement in the prosecution of Swartz, a 26-year-old computer programmer who hanged himself last January.
FISA court judge: No company has ever challenged Patriot Act sharingNSA leaks View all… According to one of the 11 judges that sits on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC), no corporation ever served with a “business record” court order under the Patriot Act has ever challenged one, even though the law provides them a means to do so.
Local Anti-Drone Activism Begins: ‘If They Fly in Town, We Will Shoot Them Down’Charles Krauthammer once predicted that the first American to shoot down a domestic drone would be a folk hero. Phillip Steele, a resident of Deer Trail, Colorado, wants to enable that hero.
European Parliamentarians call on President Obama to free Bradley ManningJuly 29, 2013. Seventeen MEPs have written a letter calling on U.S. President Barack Obama and Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel to free WikiLeaks whistle-blower Army Pfc. Bradley Manning. The MEPs laud Manning for exposing “evidence of human rights abuses and apparent war crimes in Iraq and Afghanistan” in accordance with international law.
Major opinion shifts, in the US and Congress, on NSA surveillance and privacyNumerous polls taken since our reporting on previously secret NSA activities first began have strongly suggested major public opinion shifts in how NSA surveillance and privacy are viewed. But a new comprehensive poll released over the weekend weekend by Pew Research provides the most compelling evidence yet of how stark the shift is.
FBI sued for keeping secret their file on journalist Michael HastingsTwo investigative journalists are suing the FBI after the government failed to respond on time to a pair of Freedom of Information Act requests filed for details on the death of reporter Michael Hastings. Jason Leopold and Ryan Shapiro filed a joint suit on Friday after the Federal Bureau of Investigation neglected to respond to their FOIA requests within the 20-working day period required by law.
Former CIA agent blames Bush, Rice for kidnapping of Egyptian cleric in ItalyThe CIA inflated the case of a kidnapped Egyptian cleric in order to protect high-ranked government officials from prosecution in Italy, a former intelligence agent admits for the first time. Sabrina De Sousa, 55, has long denied involvement with the CIA, and even asked the United States for immunity after she was charged by Italian officials for the 2003 “extraordinary rendition” of Hassan Mustafa Osama Nasr.
Alarming number of US citizens face poverty, 80% will suffer joblessness – reportFour out of five US adults come to grips with joblessness, near-poverty or reliance on welfare for at least some parts of their lives. Over 41 percent of the nation’s poor are whites, according to a new report.
Exploring the Psychology of Wealth, ‘Pernicious’ Effects of Economic InequalityJEFFREY BROWN: Last night the question, was can more money make you a happier person? Tonight, does the amount of wealth you have affect the kind of person you are? NewsHour economics correspondent Paul Solman is at it again, part of his ongoing reporting on “Making Sen$e of Financial News.”
Dr. Joseph Bonneau Wins NSA Award, Criticizes NSA“Like many in the community of cryptographers and security engineers, I’m sad that we haven’t better informed the public about the inherent dangers and questionable utility of mass surveillance. And like many American citizens I’m ashamed we’ve let our politicians sneak the country down this path.” — Bonneau
Some Chiefs Chafing as Justice Department Keeps Closer Eye on PolicingWhen Justice Department officials announced the results of a two-year investigation into civil rights violations at the Miami Police Department this month, it was the 11th time in two years that the federal government had put a local law enforcement agency on notice that it must change its ways or face a federal lawsuit.