Rex Stout wrote, "You should know that your only safe secrets are those you have yourself forgotten."
So true. The agencies have gotten away with murder (literally, in some cases) for ever so long. Now, in this new age of computer surveillance, they are finding their secrets revealed, just as they reveal those of everyone else.
It is nothing but conceit that leads these agencies to think they can keep any of these secrets forever.
They're ramping up for a universal observation program I've privately being expecting for years.
According to my back-of-the-envelope estimates, it will be feasible sometime in 2015 for NSA to record feeds from all governmental security cameras, and they need to be able to do facial recognition on every face captured. (Maybe they have the capability to record all the cameras now and that's why the sudden ramp up in source data acquisition.)
What I expect they will capture, or try to capture, related to each person who passes through camera view: Subject's identity; time of detection; direction of motion; clothing; items carried by the subject; activities (talking on a cell phone); any companion subjects; any other subjects who pass, precede, or follow the subject; anything touched, picked up or discarded by the subject; and (possibly, this is still hard) where the subject looks.
If the camera is equipped with microphones, they will include audio recordings with transcripts, indexed by speaking subject.
"What? Not served properly? But we sent it to 12310 Nort East Greeley Parkway in Stanley, North Dakota. That's your place of business, isn't it?
"It's not? Oh. Sorry. Must have been a typo. I'll be sure to properly chastise my secretary. Apologies for the error.
"Well, I can see that, but why in the world should it affect the suit? I mean, accidents like this happen all the time and the courts work around it. Look what happened when you sent my client's service to 410023 Whale St in Point Barrow, Alaska. I seem to remember that the court accepted your argument of accidental failure without a lot of hassle. Why they even ruled in your favor when you had no idea who it was you planned to sue..."
I'm not an expert but I think that might be right. I believe the digital picture would be a derivative work, giving the museum an interest in the digital image, even though the original work is public domain.
Can someone verify that?
Now, on the other hand, if you were to go to the museum and take your own digital picture of the work, I believe it would have your copyright that could not infringe theirs. Though they would probably try to restrict you from taking pictures for that reason.
Basically, they're trying to grab new control of the paintings in the digital world, which kind of stinks.
"I'm gonna put out this stupid fire with this gasoline-filled super-soaker. There. Wait. There. Wait. There. There. There. There there theretherethere....haaalp!"
Overlooking the NIST independence clauses in the new bill was an oversight. (Details, details.) Likely, the Senate will correct that little glitch in its version of the bill.
Whoa! Guess the state is going to have to pass a public records exemption to prevent these university president hunts from being disclosed in the future.
Expect a call for a special session next week.
It is truly amazing how everything a government can do these days is too dangerous or private to be exposed to the public eye.
Apparently, Germany is as much into useless laws as we are.
The intelligence agencies will have no problem at all ordering companies to lie in the contracts and, once leakage is discovered, leaving them to take the contract penalties without support.
The U.S. intelligence agencies will now begin destroying companies in their zeal to pursue surveillance.
No, actually it is easy. The FOIA request needs to ask for any emails sent by Napolitano or by any person acting as her agent in the sending of emails.
If the secretary sends email on Napolitano's behalf, then the secretary is her agent. So a request of that nature would require any secretary's messages to be produced as well.
"We can remove anything we want from the public domain. In fact, we are removing the letters CIA from the public domain. Hereafter, any word containing the letters CIA must be either redacted or the letters replaced by SIA.
"We realize this will result in some artifisial-looking words. It will also require some superfisial correction or redaction of existing documents.
"Be warned: This is now offisial policy, and our technisians will be search carefully for any violations to be turned over to the judisiary."
Unfortunately stay down is not impossible. Just ban the individual from uploading anything for the stay-down period--easy.
"The question is: what will be the next bad idea governments adopt?"
It will be equally bad, or worse, whatever it is; there is no bottom to this hole. MCAA and RIAA won't be happy until you pay for every second of music you sing in the shower for your own enjoyment, and every scrap of dialog you repeat.
I think conscious memories require conscious attempt to organize the memory.
My earliest memory is placed by my mother, as best we can, at about 12-14 months. It is a memory of the sound of crickets at night, and I remember it (I think) because I also remember quite clearly imagining that the sound was caused by the turning of wheels; such as the wheels on my pull toy. (The toy made a chirping sound, you see.)
This is one of those mixed-feelings things. On the one hand, it is yet another NRA "we haz rights to be trigger happy" laws. But I am conflicted because anything that reigns in Zero Tolerance senselessness has got to be a plus.
I suggest an automatic penalty for non-compliance:
If the department improperly declines to fill (including improper redaction) an FOIA request, as determined by the court, then the request must be completed at zero cost to the requestor.
On the post: Company Hired By Ecuador Uses Bogus Copyright Claims To Censor Website Of Ecuadorian Newspaper
Moneymaker
Maybe I should start it: As many embarrassing details as our governments (fed/state/local) have to hide, it should be a real moneymaker.
On the post: UK Gov't Tries And Fails To Hide Details Of GHCQ/Telecoms Tapping Fiber Lines
Keeping secrets
So true. The agencies have gotten away with murder (literally, in some cases) for ever so long. Now, in this new age of computer surveillance, they are finding their secrets revealed, just as they reveal those of everyone else.
It is nothing but conceit that leads these agencies to think they can keep any of these secrets forever.
On the post: NSA Intercepting 'Millions Of Images' Per Day In Order To Fill Facial Recognition Database
Ramping up for universal recognition
According to my back-of-the-envelope estimates, it will be feasible sometime in 2015 for NSA to record feeds from all governmental security cameras, and they need to be able to do facial recognition on every face captured. (Maybe they have the capability to record all the cameras now and that's why the sudden ramp up in source data acquisition.)
What I expect they will capture, or try to capture, related to each person who passes through camera view: Subject's identity; time of detection; direction of motion; clothing; items carried by the subject; activities (talking on a cell phone); any companion subjects; any other subjects who pass, precede, or follow the subject; anything touched, picked up or discarded by the subject; and (possibly, this is still hard) where the subject looks.
If the camera is equipped with microphones, they will include audio recordings with transcripts, indexed by speaking subject.
On the post: White House Accidentally Reveals CIA's Top Spy In Afghanistan
Brace for it
On the post: French KlearGear Rep Fires Off Email Defending Company's Actions, Claims Suit Against It Wasn't Served Properly
Not served
"It's not? Oh. Sorry. Must have been a typo. I'll be sure to properly chastise my secretary. Apologies for the error.
"Well, I can see that, but why in the world should it affect the suit? I mean, accidents like this happen all the time and the courts work around it. Look what happened when you sent my client's service to 410023 Whale St in Point Barrow, Alaska. I seem to remember that the court accepted your argument of accidental failure without a lot of hassle. Why they even ruled in your favor when you had no idea who it was you planned to sue..."
On the post: Google Fiber: You Know How Comcast Is Making Netflix Pay Extra? We Don't Do That Kind Of Crap
Re: Nice PR move...
Willingly or not, every company is an NSA collaborator. We just haven't seen the right leak yet.
On the post: Newegg Given The Go Ahead To Pursue 'Douche Bag' Patent Troll For Fees
Emergency correction required
On the post: Metropolitan Museum Of Art Claims Copyright Over Massive Trove Of Public Domain Works
Re:
Can someone verify that?
Now, on the other hand, if you were to go to the museum and take your own digital picture of the work, I believe it would have your copyright that could not infringe theirs. Though they would probably try to restrict you from taking pictures for that reason.
Basically, they're trying to grab new control of the paintings in the digital world, which kind of stinks.
On the post: State AG Tries To Order Removal Of Public Records From Journalist's Blog, Resulting In Records Being Posted Everywhere
Put that fire out
On the post: Harry Reid Bows Down To Trial Lawyers And Big Pharma In Killing Patent Reform
Shocked, I say
On the post: Small Victory Against NSA: Amendment Says NIST No Longer Has To Consult NSA On Standards
An oversight
On the post: State AG Tries To Order Removal Of Public Records From Journalist's Blog, Resulting In Records Being Posted Everywhere
Public records exemption coming up
Expect a call for a special session next week.
It is truly amazing how everything a government can do these days is too dangerous or private to be exposed to the public eye.
On the post: Germany Plans To Ban Computer Companies That Work With NSA From Sensitive Public Contracts
Now eating our own
The intelligence agencies will have no problem at all ordering companies to lie in the contracts and, once leakage is discovered, leaving them to take the contract penalties without support.
The U.S. intelligence agencies will now begin destroying companies in their zeal to pursue surveillance.
On the post: If DHS Boss Has A Staffer Write Her Emails... Does It Count As Her Email Under A FOIA Request?
Agency
If the secretary sends email on Napolitano's behalf, then the secretary is her agent. So a request of that nature would require any secretary's messages to be produced as well.
On the post: Yet Again, A Freedom Of Information Act Request Results In LESS Information Being Freed
New offisial policy
"We realize this will result in some artifisial-looking words. It will also require some superfisial correction or redaction of existing documents.
"Be warned: This is now offisial policy, and our technisians will be search carefully for any violations to be turned over to the judisiary."
On the post: 'Notice And Staydown' The Latest Fad In Copyright Enforcement
Next
"The question is: what will be the next bad idea governments adopt?"
It will be equally bad, or worse, whatever it is; there is no bottom to this hole. MCAA and RIAA won't be happy until you pay for every second of music you sing in the shower for your own enjoyment, and every scrap of dialog you repeat.
On the post: DailyDirt: Growing Brains
Conscious memories
My earliest memory is placed by my mother, as best we can, at about 12-14 months. It is a memory of the sound of crickets at night, and I remember it (I think) because I also remember quite clearly imagining that the sound was caused by the turning of wheels; such as the wheels on my pull toy. (The toy made a chirping sound, you see.)
On the post: Florida Lawmakers Aim To Restore Childrens' Rights To Openly Carry Pop Tart 'Guns' On Campus
Conflicted
On the post: The Government's Antipathy Towards Transparency Has Made FOIA Lawsuits The Default Process
Penalty for non-complliance
Congress would have to do this, I concede.
On the post: Data Shows Homeland Security Is Lying When It Claims Intellectual Property Seizures Are About Health & Safety
How to tell
Are they still breathing? Because if they are, then they're lying.
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