Interz0ne talk censored due to DMCA notice (blogging from the sequestered talk (which is instead a discussion about what occured)).

Interz0ne: Cease and Desist Letter - 20030411

] Working with the Bush administration, Congressional
] Republicans are maneuvering to make permanent the
] sweeping antiterrorism powers granted to federal law
] enforcement agents after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001,
] officials said today.

Republicans Want Terror Law Made Permanent

] Asif Iqbal, a Rochester, New York, management consultant,
] must get FBI clearance every Monday and Thursday when he
] flies to and from Syracuse for business. Iqbal can't get
] off a government watch list because he shares the same
] name as a suspected terrorist.
]
] What's more, the suspected terrorist Iqbal has been in
] U.S. custody at the U.S. naval base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba,
] since January 2002 when he was captured in Afghanistan.

Transportation Security Administration = Totally Stupid Assholes?

If you haven't read about it yet, you should follow the link through to CAPS II... Think all this added anti-terror security is temporary? Think again. Of course, they are promising that the institutionalized revision will actually include a way to remove yourself from the list ( :-O, these people are absolutely BRILLIANT). How one gets on the list will, of course, remain secret. So, basically, if everyone flies, and they need to get rid of someone they don't like, its really easy, and its impossible for anyone to ever find out what occured. You can bet your ass a hell of a lot more then "due process" will be "vanishing" under this system (Mike Hawash anyone?). Look for it to eventually get applied to every single mode of transportation in the country. Look for the Supreme Court to "interpret" that this is "legal." I'm sure that one or two of the justices will agree to "take one for the team" and write a dissent, if that makes you feel any better.

Wired News: Due Process Vanishes in Thin Air

] The Bush administration's attitude, assisted by a
] Congress that long since abandoned any commitment to
] liberty, is that government has the right to know
] absolutely everything about you and that government can
] violate your fundamental rights with impunity as long as
] the cause is deemed worthy.
]
] You, on the other hand, have absolutely no right to know
] what the government is doing in your name and with your
] money, unless the information is deemed harmless by
] people who have every motive to cover up misdeeds.

Dan Gillmore on the glum outlook at CFP.

Mercury News | 04/06/2003 | Why we may never regain the liberties that we've lost

] Please join us in support of Mike Hawash on Monday April
] 7 at 8:30 on the steps of the U.S. Courthouse. We believe
] that Mike has a hearing scheduled for that time and
] expect that a show of support will help his cause. We
] expect a lot of press coverage so the more people, the
] better.

If you live in Portland you could do worse then to attend this. Guilty or Innocent we should not have people taken away and held secretly without charges in this country.

Apparently the District Attourney has denied Sen. Wyden's request for more information in this case. The DA has stated that more information *might* be available in May. Wyden's office has stated that they may attempt to use Wyden's position on the Intelligence Subcommittee to get more information. Apparently Hawash has been allowed to see his children. I imagine this is the result of pressure as it was specifically mentioned by the DA and the Hawash website has been updated to reflect this.

Free Mike Hawash - Rally

] Because of the campaign, the office of Oregon Democratic
] Sen. Ron Wyden has promised to contact the FBI about the
] case, McGeady said.

Bloggers gen coverage in Wired (and SF Chron). Politicos agree to inquire...

Wired News: Ex-Intel VP Fights for Detainee

So are you more likely a terrorist if you have a small bank account with lots of NFS's or if you have millions of dollars and large transactions? More dangerously "Unlike the current system, in which data stays with the airlines' reservation systems, the new setup will be managed by TSA. Only government officials with proper security clearance will be able to use it.". This means if you keep getting flagged as a problem, you cannot review the information and make corrections. Disturbing.

U.S. plan: Threat level for every flyer - Feb. 28, 2003

] The documents were among intelligence files that the city
] released as a result of an unrelated lawsuit in which the
] police are accused of violating the constitutional rights
] of protesters.
]
] The American Civil Liberties Union sued the city last
] March after learning that the Denver Police Department
] had compiled surveillance files on at least 3,200 people
] and 208 groups. The organization said the police didn't
] just target known or suspected criminals, but also
] singled out peaceful activists.
]
] The documents released Wednesday indicate that officers
] watched people ranging from anti-war protesters to
] members of militia groups and motorcycle gangs.

CNN.com - Police kept files on 'Trench Coat Mafia' group after Columbine - Feb. 20, 2003

From Boing Boing (http://www.boingboing.net/):

Zed sez: "An Indian-born Canadian citizen was flying home from India to Toronto, and transferring at O'Hare. INS decided her passport was funny-looking, destroyed it, denied her access to the Canadian consul, and deported her to India via Kuwait with her papers in such disorder she might not have been able to get into India if Kuwaiti and Indian authorities hadn't been so co-operative."

Permanent link to Boing Boing post: (http://boingboing.net/2003_02_01_archive.html#90351481)

US INS destroys Canadian woman's passport, sends her to India

] First, air travelers had to submit to an electronic wand
] waved over the body. Then they were asked to remove their
] shoes. After that, their checked luggage was opened and
] searched. Now, with the nation under a Code Orange alert,
] local police are pulling over drivers as they approach
] airport terminals for random searches of their vehicles.

washingtonpost.com: Police Searching Cars at Random Outside Airports