[SLA-SF] Intersect Alert, August 17, 2006

Thu Aug 17 20:54:30 PDT 2006

Freedom of Information

POGO letter to Reps Hoekstra and Harman urging public release of an unclassified report on former Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham's earmarking activities

"The Project On Government Oversight ( POGO ) is an independent nonprofit that investigates and exposes corruption and other misconduct in order to achieve a more accountable federal government.  POGO has been made aware that there is an unreleased 20-page unclassified report documenting the findings of an independent investigation led by Michael Stern into the activities of former Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham.  We are writing to urge you to make public this unclassified report."

http://www.pogo.org/p/defense/dl-060801-cunningham.html

The Political Ads Database

"The Washington Post has launched a new political ads database. The database includes political advertisements funded by campaigns, parties, committees, and independent advocacy groups. Most of the ads are tied to specific U.S. House, U.S. Senate, or gubernatorial races throughout the country. Some of the ads are more general "issue" or advocacy ads not tied to a particular race or candidate. You can search for ads based on the criteria listed below."

http://projects.washingtonpost.com/politicalads/

NARA's National Personnel Records Center Guide to FOIA Requests

"Researcher Jim Klotz recently discovered and obtained a useful and comprehensive information resource - a detailed explanation of how military records are retrieved and reviewed for release in response to FOIA requests."

http://www.bespacific.com/mt/archives/012137.html

http://www.cufon.org/CRG/TOP_LEVEL_MENU.htm

Intellectual Property Issues

Judge rules statistics not intellectual property of MLB

"Fantasy baseball leagues are allowed to use player names and statistics without licensing agreements because they are not the intellectual property of Major League Baseball, a federal judge ruled Tuesday."

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2006/baseball/mlb/08/08/fantasy.baseball.lawsuit.ap/index.html

To google or not to google? It's a legal question 

"Search engine giant Google, known for its mantra "don't be evil", has fired off a series of legal letters to media organisations, warning them against using its name as a verb."

http://news.independent.co.uk/business/news/article1218805.ece

Orwellian

Judge orders halt to NSA wiretap program

"A federal judge ordered the Bush administration on Thursday to halt the National Security Agency's program of domestic eavesdropping, saying it violated the U.S. Constitution."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060817/pl_nm/security_eavesdropping_dc_5

Public Policy

Report to Congress on Implementation of Section 1001 of the USA PATRIOT Act

"Section 1001 of the USA PATRIOT Act (Patriot Act), Public Law 107-56, directs the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ or Department) to undertake a series of actions related to claims of civil rights or civil liberties violations allegedly committed by DOJ employees. It also requires the OIG to provide semiannual reports to Congress on the implementation of the OIG's responsibilities under Section 1001. This report - the ninth since enactment of the legislation in October 2001 - summarizes the OIG's Section 1001-related activities from January 1, 2006, through June 30, 2006."

http://www.usdoj.gov/oig/special/s0608a/index.htm

Coalition Launches Interactive Earmark Database

"Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) today joined a coalition of groups and websites to launch an interactive online database of the more than the 1,800 earmarks in the House version of the fiscal 2007 Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act (H.R. 5647).  The effort aims to make government more open and accountable by getting the public directly involved in tracking and researching earmarks."

http://www.cagw.org/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=10018

International Outlook

"Race to the Bottom": Corporate Complicity in Chinese Internet Censorship

"In this report, we have documented the different ways in which companies such as Yahoo!, Microsoft, Google, and Skype are assisting and reinforcing the Chinese government's system of arbitrary, opaque and unaccountable political censorship.1 This report documents the way in which these companies actively, openly, and deliberately (by their own admission) collaborate with the Chinese government's system of Internet censorship."

http://www.hrw.org/reports/2006/china0806/

Malaysian leaders carry quarrel into cyberspace

"Cyberspace, one of the last true havens of free speech in Malaysia, may soon fall victim to a squabble between the country's two most powerful politicians, with the government vowing to punish defamatory remarks on Web sites. As in many Asian countries, Malaysia's mainstream media have long engaged in self-censorship. Now authorities are trying to get free-wheeling Web sites and blogs to adopt the practice in a country keenly alert to racial and religious sensitivities."

http://news.com.com/2100-1028_3-6104639.html

Iranian censors clamp down on bloggers

"Iranian authorities are stepping up arrests and pressure on popular bloggers as part of a wider Internet clampdown launched after hard-liner Mahmoud Ahmadinejad became president last year, ending years of freewheeling Web access that once made Iran among the most vibrant online locales in the Middle East."

http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/news/editorial/15267735.htm

>From the UK - Access denied to the laws that govern us

"On August 2, the government rolled out the second stage of a long-delayed project to make the consolidated law of parliament accessible to the people. So how does it look? The public - who paid for the whole project - can't get a look in. No free public access sites have been granted permission to view the current system and testers of the database - predominantly from commercial legal publishing firms - have been told not to share their login and password. Even so, some testers are not entirely happy with what they've found after logging on to the top secret database of our country's laws. Firstly, an astounding Crown copyright notice greets the reader: "The Statute Law Database and the material on the SLD website are subject to Crown copyright protection. The Crown copyright waiver that applies to published legislation generally does not apply to SLD because it is a value-added product. Any reuse of material from SLD will be the subject of separate and specific licensing arrangements. No such arrangements have yet been entered into. Users should not therefore reproduce or reuse any material from SLD until further guidance is issued.""

http://technology.guardian.co.uk/print/0,,329554330-117422,00.html

Internet Access

Google launches free WiFi in Mountain View

"Google's benevolence becomes reality today. Well, in Mountain View, at least. After months of beta testing and anticipation, the Internet giant plans to open up its free, wireless Internet network to Mountain View's 72,000 residents.

The network covers about 90 percent of the city's 12 square miles and offers maximum data-transfer speeds of up to 1 megabit per second -- slightly slower than DSL."

http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/business/technology/15284792.htm

Take Action

Protect Open Government and the First Amendment - Urge Senators to Oppose "The Official Secrets Act"

BACKGROUND 

S. 3774, a bill To amend title 18, United States Code, to prohibit the unauthorized disclosure of classified information, was introduced by Sen. Christopher Bond (R-MO) on August 2, 2006. Endorsed by eleven other senators, it would criminalize the unauthorized disclosure of classified information. Bond's bill would give the executive branch broad discretion to prosecute individuals engaged in disclosure of government secrets because it allows for the prosecution of individuals without proving that a disclosure poses a threat to national security. We believe that government transparency and accountability are vital to a democratic society and that Bond's legislation is an ill-advised, draconian measure. 

S. 3774 uses the same language as the highly controversial legislation vetoed by President Clinton late in 2000. To date, Congress has refused to pass legislation that would make it a crime for any person to willfully disclose, for any purpose whatsoever, information classified as secret or top secret. 

The primary concern with S. 3774 is that it would be an attack on the First Amendment rights of the press, whistleblowers, and others whose intention it is to monitor government actions and ensure that the government does not abuse or overstep its authority. The legislation would severely inhibit the ability of individuals to serve as a legitimate check on the executive branch. 

ACTION NEEDED 

The Senate is currently on its August recess, which runs through Labor Day. S. 3774 could be quickly pushed through as an attachment to other legislation when the Senate reconvenes in September. The bill has been referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee and every member of the committee needs to hear from his or her constituents. If your Senator is listed below as a member of the committee, please call or send an email urging them to oppose this legislation and protect the First Amendment. You can reach your Senator through the U.S. Capitol Switchboard at: 202-224-3121, or via email at http://www.senate.gov/general/ contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm. Below are talking points to use in your correspondences. 

·         It is our strong belief that the public has a right to know important information pertaining to government actions, particularly when that information is used as a check on the executive branch. 

·         S. 3774 challenges the First Amendment rights of all Americans. Open government and access to government information are important to our democracy, and the press serves as a vital mechanism for reporting certain types of government information that the public otherwise would not have access to. 

·         S. 3774 creates a new federal felony crime which is subject to fines and up to three years imprisonment for making an unauthorized disclosure of any information if there is "reason to believe" the information has been properly classified. This suppresses the media and their ability to keep the public informed. 

Members of the Senate Judiciary Committee

MAJORITY

Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA), Chairman

Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL)

Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AR)

Sen. Charles E. Grassley (R-IA)

Sen. Sam Brownback (R-KS)

Sen .Mike DeWine (R-OH)

Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK)

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC)

Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX)

Sen. Orrin G. Hatch (R-UT)

MINORITY

Sen. Patrick J. Leahy (D-VT), Ranking Member

Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA)

Sen .Joseph R. Biden, Jr. (D-DE)

Sen. Richard J. Durbin (D-IL)

Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-MA)

Sen. Charles E. Schumer (D-NY)

Sen .Russ Feingold (D-WI)

Sen. Herbert Kohl (D-WI)

http://www.ll.georgetown.edu/aallwash/aa08162006.html

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