It's like, these days, everyone applies for a security clearance.

"Is there something about their lifestyle that we might find questionable or that we might find goes against the core values of our corporation?"

For Some, Online Persona Undermines a Resume

"If this were a graduating class of C.I.A. case officers, my advice would be short and to the point: Admit nothing, deny everything and make counteraccusations."

Graduates Get an Earful, From Left, Right and Center

For the 1,000 or so bloggers at the YearlyKos Convention here, the mission is nothing short of trying to transform the way politics are done.

Mr. Warner left little doubt of the potential he sees with bloggers, saying, "You're watching what potentially could be a major part of the future of American politics taking place right here."

A Mixed Bag of First Impressions by Democrats at Blog Rendezvous

"You are just increasing the size of the haystack," Mr. Shora said. "Are you going to monitor everyone? Do we want to become a police state?

A government report on the London bombings issued last month said, "The attacks showed very clearly that terrorism is a 'homegrown' problem."

Lessons From Canada: Snooping Works

George Soros: "I am really concerned about America. In a way, we have the wrong leadership. But we also have the wrong followership. People don't care about the truth."

Indebted to Liberal Causes

When Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation acquired the community site MySpace nearly a year ago, the site was at the height of its popularity. But now there are indications that the teenagers who made MySpace cool may be moving on to MemeStreams.

MySpace No Longer Their Space?

Where The Economist seeks to help readers do their jobs better by giving them the information to make more informed decisions on behalf of their clients, investors or constituents, Intelligent Life's role is to help readers form their own conclusions about how new trends and innovations will affect them in their personal lives. In short, Intelligent Life is for those with a curious turn of mind who want to know not just the whats and whens of social innovation, but also the whys and wherefores -- so they may nudge the forces of change somewhat more in their own personal favour.

Intelligent Life | Trends for smarter living

THE demands of security frequently square up against the desire for personal liberty. Most recently, on May 30th, the weighty matter seemed to rest on the scales of the European Court of Justice, Europe’s highest court. At issue was an existing European Union agreement to provide American officials with many personal details of airline passengers who cross the Atlantic.…

The war on privacy | Economist.com

During the presidency of George W. Bush, the White House has made an unprecedented reach for power. It has systematically attempted to defy, control, or threaten the institutions that could challenge it: Congress, the courts, and the press. It has attempted to upset the balance of power among the three branches of government provided for in the Constitution; but its most aggressive and consistent assaults have been against the legislative branch: Bush has time and again said that he feels free to carry out a law as he sees fit, not as Congress wrote it. Through secrecy and contemptuous treatment of Congress, the Bush White House has made the executive branch less accountable than at any time in modern American history. And because of the complaisance of Congress, it has largely succeeded in its efforts.

This power grab has received little attention because it has been carried out largely in obscurity. The press took little notice until Bush, on January 5 of this year, after signing a bill containing the McCain amendment, which placed prohibitions on torture, quietly filed a separate pronouncement, a "signing statement," that he would interpret the bill as he wished. In fact Bush had been issuing such signing statements since the outset of his administration. The Constitution distinguishes between the power of the Congress and that of the president by stating that Congress shall "make all laws" and the president shall "take care that the laws be faithfully executed." Bush claims the power to execute the laws as he interprets them, ignoring congressional intent.

Power Grab

Porter Goss is not the only person responsible for the agency's lamentable state, though he certainly contributed to it. The media, with a few exceptions, continues to miss the story behind his disastrous tenure at the spy agency.

Gosslings, Bacon, and a Kobe Beef Cow (Harpers.org)