November 4, 2009
NSA to store yottabytes of surveillance data in Utah megarepository 11-01-09
Whatever the rationale or the technology, this kind of thing is just plain scary. It only gets scarier when it's understood to be in the hands of the government which itself changes hands from good to bad and from bad to worse (like in 2008) every four years...
October 30, 2009
- COMMENTARY Is right to privacy just a nostalgic American memory? 10-30-09
Yes, but it doesn't have to be. In order to stop the erosion, though, and restore what we can will require us to refuse cooperation with government invasiveness. Is it a pain in the ass? Speaking as somebody who causes problems for anybody who asks intrusive questions, yeah, it is. Is it worth it? Again, I believe the answer is uniquivocally yes. (It's a bonus that sometimes the entertainment value is far greater than the trouble I have to deal with...) - Obama Administration Tells Federal Court Privacy Act Does Not Apply to White House 10-29-09
Actually, the Privacy Act does apply to the White House. Barack Obama just wants to think he's above the law. My guess is that, on this front as well as myriad others, he's got another thing coming... - Want A Job In Akron? Hand Over Your DNA 10-28-09
This story is positively surreal. It's implications, on the other hand, are just plain horrifying.
October 28, 2009
- Little Buddy GPS Device To Keep Tabs On Your Kid 10-27-09
Good idea? Really? At what age do you stop tracking your child? Will you even need to if the kid grows up with it and thinks it's okay? How long until children like him are so used to things like that they have no problem with the cops or the government doing the same thing to them? This is how it all starts, with an idea that sounds like a pretty good one. At first blush, anyway...
October 27, 2009
- Millions of homes to get smart meters 10-27-09
Speculation is rife that such meters will intrude on our personal privacy. Since the government is involved, I'm betting that's exactly right.
October 22, 2009
Q&A: Social networking privacy issues 10-22-09
Some of this is just common sense. None of it is a bad idea for you to know and understand if you're at all interested in preserving your personal privacy.
The Right to Privacy
The Right to Privacy is not specifically addressed within either the Constitution or Bill of Rights. Perhaps this is because, after carefully spelling out protections for the privacy of one's property (Third, Fourth, Fifth Amendments) and the right to one's opinions or friends (First Amendment), the Founders felt privacy was implicit. Numerous court rulings say privacy is, indeed, implicit within other enumerated rights. Others dismiss the notion of privacy as being apart from the Bill of Rights as nonsense thanks to the Ninth Amendment which clearly delineates the inclusion of all rights not specifically excluded. Or perhaps the Founders considered personal privacy such an inviolate and obvious right, it didn't require a special mention. I personally believe this latter explanation is the case. Be that as it may...
Privacy as a fundamental right
was fully established in law in the court decision Griswold v. Connecticut. Though the court agreed that privacy is, indeed, an independent right inferred from several provisions of the Bill of Rights (the court referenced previous privacy-related decisions based on protections under the First, Fourth, and Fifth Amendments), it indicated in the Griswold decision that the legal right to privacy had its source in the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. The court further decreed that privacy is a "fundamental right."
Don't have anything to hide? Okay, me neither. But that doesn't mean I'm inclined to install cameras in my house or volunteer to be searched any time soon, nor am I predisposed to waive my civil rights to prove my innocence. No true freedom lover would—or could.
Want to help preserve privacy? Educate yourself, and then take action!
