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(New yorkTimes)-WASHINGTON, Oct. 3 — A consortium of major universities, using Homeland Security Department money, is developing software that would let the government monitor negative opinions of the United States or its leaders in newspapers and other publications overseas.
“It is just creepy and Orwellian,” said Lucy Dalglish, a lawyer and former editor who is executive director of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press.
Andrei Sitov, Washington bureau chief of the Itar-Tass news agency of Russia, said he hoped that the objective did not go beyond simply identifying threats to efforts to stifle criticism about an American president or administration.
(Infowars)-COMMENT-DHS claims that this software will crawl through the web and scan media sites and blogs from across the globe to find "potential threats" to national security. Don't think for one moment that this technology won't be used to sniff out dissent domestically should the Bush regime deem it neccessary to protect the "homeland."
Originally posted by GradyPhilpott
So far, the current administration has been respectful of the rights of Americans to dissent and has even encouraged it to some degree.
In the meantime, get active with organizations that support the First Amendment. Be careful so as to make sure that the organization you choose is legitimate and not just a front for porn, unless that's your cup of tea.
Originally posted by jsobecky
People like Zogby, Rasmussen, and others have become multi-millionaires from developing and using similar software. Corporations spend billions annually to monitor the pulse of consumers.
What's the big deal?