MassPrivateI

“Smart PGH” (Smart City) and their ‘smart spine system‘ is one of the most intrusive, government funded, TOTAL surveillance networks ever dreamed up. Columbus, Ohio, actually won $50 million in DOT grant money to turn their city into a “Smart City” calling it “SmartColumbus.” The city of Columbus will receive an additional $90 million in pledges from public and private sector partners.

“Smart PGH’s” tag line at the end of the above video is chilling, “If It’s Not For All, It’s Not For Us”. As “Smart PGH’s” documents reveal, ‘smart city’ surveillance will spy on ALL OF US.    Continue reading ““Smart City” is really government spying on an unimaginable scale!”

MIT Technology Review – by Stacey Higginbotham

Insurers such USAA and American Family have lately begun offering to strike a high-tech bargain: wire your home with Internet-connected devices such as a new thermostat, and get a discount on your home insurance policy in return.

Offers like that could speed up the adoption of smart gadgets, revamp the insurance business, and transform how we manage our homes. In the future, your insurer might call a plumber before a pipe bursts, for example. But the data needed to help prevent leaks or burglaries will also introduce new risks, such as vulnerabilities to data loss or ransomware.
Continue reading “Why Insurance Companies Want to Subsidize Your Smart Home”

Department of Justice

Today, Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch announced several steps by the Department of Justice to enable the nationwide collection of data on law enforcement interactions with civilians, including data related to the use of force by law enforcement officers.

“Accurate and comprehensive data on the use of force by law enforcement is essential to an informed and productive discussion about community-police relations,” said Attorney General Lynch.  “The initiatives we are announcing today are vital efforts toward increasing transparency and building trust between law enforcement and the communities we serve.  In the days ahead, the Department of Justice will continue to work alongside our local, state, tribal and federal partners to ensure that we put in place a system to collect data that is comprehensive, useful and responsive to the needs of the communities we serve.”      Continue reading “Justice Department Outlines Plan to Enable Nationwide Collection of Use of Force Data”

Washington’s Blog – by David Swanson

Before people had an easy way to see video footage of police murders, headlines crediting the police with just and noble actions couldn’t be effectively questioned.

We’re still back there in the dark ages when it comes to war murders, but we can overcome the lack of quickly shared videos if we choose to. When the headlines celebrate some sort of “victory” in Mosul or anywhere else, we can point out that the videos of people being blown up in their houses would be truly horrific if we had them. This is not, after all, a point on which there can actually be any question.   Continue reading “What Police Videos Teach Us About Wars”

MassPrivateI

Police State America wants to track everyone’s alcohol purchases.

A few months ago, the Alabama Alcoholic Beverage Control Board considered implementing a new rule that would require breweries and brewpub owners to collect the names, addresses, ages and phone numbers of everyone.   Continue reading “Big Brother wants to track alcohol purchases by collecting everyone’s name, address and phone number”

NBC 10 News

A Delaware pastor could end up facing daily fines for helping the homeless.

Pastor Aaron Appling of Victory Church West in Dover recently allowed Alexis Simms, a 21-year-old homeless mom who is battling lupus, to live in a RV in back of the church property.

“We want to stand up for her,” Appling said. “Because there is nobody else to stand up for her.”   Continue reading “Delaware Pastor Faces Possible Fines for Helping Homeless”

The Newspaper

If a police officer sees a vehicle that looks like it might be traveling fast, he can pull it over and issue a ticket for speeding. That was the finding of the Eleventh Circuit US Court of Appeals in a September 30 ruling that upheld the July 19, 2013 traffic stop that landed Isaac Dillard Wilson, 35, in hot water.

It was 10:30pm in Tallahassee when Officer Patrick Coney spotted a Toyota Camry headed westbound on Orange Avenue before turning left onto South Adams Street. Officer Coney at the time was headed southbound, but he turned to initiate a traffic stop.   Continue reading “Federal Appeals Court Makes Looking Fast A Crime”

ProPublica – by Julia Angwin, Terry Parris Jr. and Surya Mattu

This is the second installment in a series that aims to explain and peer inside the black-box algorithms that increasingly dominate our lives.

YOU MAY NOT REALIZE IT, but every website you visit is created, literally, the moment you arrive. Each element of the page — the pictures, the ads, the text, the comments — live on computers in different places and are sent to your device when you request them.   Continue reading “When Algorithms Decide What You Pay”

Ars Technica – by David Kravets

A federal appeals court on Monday dismissed a lawsuit brought by a fired Oklahoma police officer who sued his former department for damages after the agency released a video of the officer roughing up a suspect. The officer, Mike Denton, was fired and then reinstated with full back pay before being fired again years later after another video surfaced of him allegedly using excessive force on someone. Denton previously claimed the first video’s release was a violation of his First Amendment right to free speech and association.   Continue reading “Cop (unsuccessfully) sued department for releasing video of him abusing suspect”

MassPrivateI

Malls and retailers across America, are working with DHS to install facial recognition cameras and license plate readers everywhere. DHS is working with malls and retailers to identify people with criminal records and scan their license plates to see if a shopper is on DHS’s terrorist watch list.

Updated 10/7:

New York City is installing facial recognition cameras at bridge crossings and tunnel entrances
Continue reading “DHS is turning malls and stores into giant facial recognition spy centers”

New York Post – by Jamie Schram

He’s a real “porn dog.”

A 17-month-old Labrador retriever named Ruger is the latest cop to join the fight against hoarders of kiddie porn after being purchased for $11,000 by the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office in Ohio.

Since Sept. 7, the cute black pooch has been assigned to a K-9 unit of the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, using his snout to sniff out hard drives containing a chemical agent that leads them to child porn.   Continue reading “This Labrador retriever sniffs out kiddie porn for cops”

The Daily Sheeple – by Ryan Banister

Ryan Scott was arrested at his home Monday evening by Dekalb County Sheriff’s officers.

Scott is being charged with obstructing a peace officer during a traffic stop on Saturday night, which was initiated by Officer A. Becker because Scott had expired registration on his vehicle.   Continue reading “Copblocker Arrested At Home — Warrant Issued After Filming Traffic Stop”

Courthouse News Service – by Rose Bouboushian

CHICAGO (CN) — A woman claims in federal court that prison guards beat her glaucomic ex-husband while his limbs were cuffed and stuffed paper down his throat until he suffocated and died.

Terrance Jenkins, 56, an avid card and dominoes player, had gone from his cell at Pontiac Correctional Center, about 100 miles southwest of Chicago, toward the outdoor recreation area on Oct. 4, 2015, when three correctional officers approached him, according to the complaint.   Continue reading “Prison Guards Accused of Brutal Suffocation”

Times Free Press

The Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office will begin using drones to gather evidence for court cases, detect bombs and find missing persons. However, Hamilton County Sheriff Jim Hammond assures the public the equipment will not invade people’s right to privacy.

“We want to make sure the public understands this is not about spying on people or looking in their bedroom windows,” he said. “This is all about following the law making sure that this is supportive of good policing.”   Continue reading “Hamilton County, Tennessee Sheriff’s Office to begin using drones for law enforcement”

MassPrivateI

From coast to coast, schools are teaching kids how to deal with police.

According to a Chicago Tribune article, students enrolled in driver’s education courses will be required to learn how to respond if they’re pulled over by police.

Ask yourself why is it mandatory only for students? How long before the government FORCES everyone to take them?   Continue reading “9 states and counting, are teaching (indoctrinating) kids to deal with police”

News Channel 10

HANCOCK COUNTY, MS (WLOX) – We now know the names of the two Long Beach police officers placed on paid leave while the Hancock County Sheriff’s Office investigates the death of a child.

Glenn Grannon, with the sheriff’s department, said Clark Ladner and Cassie Barker were placed on administrative leave after 3-year-old Cheyenne Hyer died Friday. Sheriff Ricky Adam confirmed Barker is Cheyenne’s mother.   Continue reading “Officers on paid leave after 3-year-old dies in patrol car”

Infosecurity – by Phil Muncaster

Microsoft has launched a major new policy document designed to lobby governments into legislating and regulating towards “a trusted, responsible, and inclusive cloud.”

A Cloud for Global Good was unveiled at an event in Dublin where CEO Satya Nadella revealed the Redmond giant has spent $3 billion on building up its cloud datacenter capacity in Europe, including $1 billion in the past year.   Continue reading “Microsoft Unveils Security Policy Doc for Lawmakers”

The College Fix – by Kate Hardiman

Student leaders of this year’s freshman orientation at James Madison University were given a list of 35 things they should avoid saying, including phrases such as “you have such a pretty face,” “love the sinner, hate the sin,” “we’re all part of the human race,” “I treat all people the same,” “it was only a joke,” “I never owned slaves,” and “people just need to pick themselves up by their bootstraps,” among other expressions.

Those phrases and others on the list “widen the diversity gap” and do not “create a safe and inclusive environment,” according to the seven-page handout, a copy of which was provided to The College Fix by a campus spokesman.   Continue reading “University distributes seven-page speech guide”