Republican House passes bill giving Government vast new powers

[Londoner]

"Hi, I'm from the government, and I'm here to help keep you safe"

The GOP House passed a Cybersecurity Bill today.

It allows the government to collect vastly more information on private individuals. It brings big business into the service of collecting, storing, and transferring data on private individuals to Big Government

Republicans are growing government under the cloak of national security. By giving government more access to the internet tracks and buying habits of private citizens, Republicans believe that it will be easier for bureaucrats to protect us.

Here is the problem. Government is incompetent, and it is run by flawed human beings, some of whom are corrupt. This is why Libertarians oppose giving government more power, even when it is for a good cause like national security. Libertarians oppose giving government large powerful levers because they don't believe concentrated power can be safely or effectively used. They don't believe Big Government has the competence to save or improve the world. They think that giving government more power only leads to waste and abuse.

Today Republicans further eroded privacy barriers between the State and the Individual. They made it easier for Big Government to watch free citizens.

Here is my question. Why do Republicans keep growing government? And why do their voters never see it? And why do they never raise issues that are not handed to them by Republican media sources. For example, Republican media sources will not cover this; therefore, none of the Republicans on this board will know about it.

Republicans are destroying the barrier between the individual and state. It is now easier for Government to watch, pry, and detain.

Where is the Tea Party on this issue? Obviously, the Tea Party is locked into rightwing media sources which are not covering this issue. We all knew they were a reflex of the Republican Machine.

The Republicans always use National Security to grow the power of Washington. Reagan's War On Drugs and Bush's War on Terrorism grew Big Government (through law enforcement and intelligence powers) more than anything LBJ ever dreamed.

Why do Republicans always grow government? And why do their voters never see it?

Please turn off Rush Limbaugh and get your news from planet earth.

 

[SniperFire]

What are you hiding?

 

[007]

You don't really have all your facts straight, but then again, you sound like a partisan leftist hack anyway...

House passes cyber security bill over Obama's objections - CSMonitor.com

QUIZ: How much do you know about cybersecurity?

More than 10 years after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, proponents cast the bill as an initial step to deal with an evolving threat of the Internet age. The information sharing would be voluntary to avoid imposing new regulations on businesses, an imperative for Republicans.

 

[ThinkCritically]

Can you say thought police. Our generation is so fortunate yet so cursed at the same time. We will get to see the introduction of amazing technology, and we will get to see it used against us in the end.

Guilty until proven innocent is the mantra of a post 911 world. We will give up all our freedoms in the end so that the government can give us the illusion of safety.

 

[Dot Com]

big government conservatives?

 

[SniperFire]

Can you say thought police.

Disable your anti-virus program right now.

 

[SniperFire]

Similar to the concept behind Homeland Security information sharing:

'Napolitano Backs Senate Cybersecurity Bill, Industry Reporting Requirement — Homeland Security Department Secretary Janet Napolitano told lawmakers the White House approves of the Lieberman Senate computer security legislation requiring critical sectors to report network intrusions to the government. The information-sharing measures that she supports would involve businesses whose computers are vital to U.S. financial markets, power grids, transportation systems and other services that if disrupted, could cause mass casualties, prolonged evacuations or catastrophic economic damage. Covered companies would have to inform the government of "significant cyber incidents" that jeopardize their systems or be subject to civil penalties, reports Nextgov.com.'

 

[Londoner]

What are you hiding?

Are you assuming that the only value of privacy is to hide something?

I think you have way too much faith in the competence of government. What if a corrupt president was elected and he used his Federal powers under this act to track gun sales so that he could confiscate them? What if a president used the Patriot Act to track the financial withdraws of Democratic Governors? And what it that governor was stupid enough to take out more than 10K and spend it on hookers? What if a rogue administration started to use their expanded surveillance powers to hunt political enemies? White Collar Crime - Yahoo! Voices - voices.yahoo.com

This is my point. The minute you give the State more power, that power can be used by incompetent and corrupt bureaucrats from both sides.

 

[dilloduck]

Can you say thought police. Our generation is so fortunate yet so cursed at the same time. We will get to see the introduction of amazing technology, and we will get to see it used against us in the end.

Guilty until proven innocent is the mantra of a post 911 world. We will give up all our freedoms in the end so that the government can give us the illusion of safety.

And how could we have done anything different ? I certainly didn't cede any of my freedoms to the government. Did you ? and if so, how?

 

[SniperFire]

Can you say thought police. Our generation is so fortunate yet so cursed at the same time. We will get to see the introduction of amazing technology, and we will get to see it used against us in the end.

Guilty until proven innocent is the mantra of a post 911 world. We will give up all our freedoms in the end so that the government can give us the illusion of safety.

And how could we have done anything different ? I certainly didn't cede any of my freedoms to the government. Did you ? and if so, how?

'Think Critically' spews platitudes without giving them a lot of critical thought.

 

[Duped]

"Hi, I'm from the government, and I'm here to help keep you safe"

The GOP House passed a Cybersecurity Bill today.

It allows the government to collect vastly more information on private individuals. It brings big business into the service of collecting, storing, and transferring data on private individuals to Big Government

Republicans are growing government under the cloak of national security. By giving government more access to the internet tracks and buying habits of private citizens, Republicans believe that it will be easier for bureaucrats to protect us.

Here is the problem. Government is incompetent, and it is run by flawed human beings, some of whom are corrupt. This is why Libertarians oppose giving government more power, even when it is for a good cause like national security. Libertarians oppose giving government large powerful levers because they don't believe concentrated power can be safely or effectively used. They don't believe Big Government has the competence to save or improve the world. They think that giving government more power only leads to waste and abuse.

Today Republicans further eroded privacy barriers between the State and the Individual. They made it easier for Big Government to watch free citizens.

Here is my question. Why do Republicans keep growing government? And why do their voters never see it? And why do they never raise issues that are not handed to them by Republican media sources. For example, Republican media sources will not cover this; therefore, none of the Republicans on this board will know about it.

Republicans are destroying the barrier between the individual and state. It is now easier for Government to watch, pry, and detain.

Where is the Tea Party on this issue? Obviously, the Tea Party is locked into rightwing media sources which are not covering this issue. We all knew they were a reflex of the Republican Machine.

The Republicans always use National Security to grow the power of Washington. Reagan's War On Drugs and Bush's War on Terrorism grew Big Government (through law enforcement and intelligence powers) more than anything LBJ ever dreamed.

Why do Republicans always grow government? And why do their voters never see it?

Please turn off Rush Limbaugh and get your news from planet earth.

Your right, the right, and the left both suck. They both grow government - but the left sucks a whole lot more; socialism.

 

[Londoner]

More than 10 years after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, proponents cast the bill as an initial step to deal with an evolving threat of the Internet age. The information sharing would be voluntary to avoid imposing new regulations on businesses, an imperative for Republicans.

Do you know any of the specifics that have to do with expanded information sharing between big business and the State? That is, have you seen any of the specific language in the bill that has to do with the kinds of information that can be collected and shared? Do you know Ron Paul's response to this? Or the right leaning CATO Institute? Do you know the objections that are coming from an admittedly small part of the Right? Those objections are much more literate, intelligent, and interesting than anything coming from the Left.

 

[Londoner]

This is not an attack of the GOP Bill from the mainstream Left. Obama's position is no less comforting. He wants to give the power of surveillance in this case to Homeland Security. In both cases, individual privacy is being destroyed.

 

[ThinkCritically]

Can you say thought police. Our generation is so fortunate yet so cursed at the same time. We will get to see the introduction of amazing technology, and we will get to see it used against us in the end.

Guilty until proven innocent is the mantra of a post 911 world. We will give up all our freedoms in the end so that the government can give us the illusion of safety.

And how could we have done anything different ? I certainly didn't cede any of my freedoms to the government. Did you ? and if so, how?

Let me clarify....You won't have to cede any of your freedom's they will just be taken away....capishe?

 

[Londoner]

"A coalition of liberal and conservative groups and some lawmakers strongly opposed the measure, complaining that Americans' privacy could be violated. They argued that companies could share an employee's personal information with the government, data that could end up in the hands of officials from the National Security Agency or the Defense Department. They also challenged the bill's liability waiver for private companies that disclose information, complaining that it was too broad."

There are many intelligent people on the Right, mostly having a strong libertarian streak, who are weary of giving business expanded powers to share private data on citizens with big government. I don't like Obama's position on this, but I suspected the Right would never criticize the GOP House because they have so much faith in their government leaders.

 

[ThinkCritically]

If sniper was a part of homeland security he would have me arrested and throw away the key for the rest of eternity....right Snipper?

 

[Londoner]

"In an effort to foster information sharing, this bill would erode the privacy protections of every single American using the Internet. It would create a `Wild West' of information sharing,"


Said Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas: "Until we protect the privacy rights of our citizens, the solution is worse than the problem."

 

[SniperFire]

You are right to be concerned, Londoner.

But it seems we have a security plan for shipping lanes and air travel, so it is illogical not to address cyber vulnerability as well. How far we need to go is the real question, and I don't know enough about it.

 

[Londoner]

The Bill gives business the ability to share private data with government. It means that more of what people do will be stored, analyzed and transferred to big government bureaucrats. It gives the State more points of intervention in individual lives. This is what tyrannical governments do. It's in the KGB handbook: "Show me the man and I'll show you the crime". This is the playbook for disrupting political enemies, i.e., create a wider context for surveillance, then add more vague laws to the books, and then you go phishing. What if a Liberal President takes power and wants to collect information on people who buy guns? This Bill gives business the power to share that information. It creates a dangerous point of collusion between the state and business. Study history. This is exactly what happens right before a free society is closed down.

We all want a perfect utopia of total safety, but it's dangerous to give government expanded surveillance powers in order to achieve this end. In fact, as the Republican Congressman from Texas said of this GOP Bill, "the medicine is worse than the cure."

He's right. Giving government more power to solve a problem always makes the problem worse. We are decidedly less safe with a government that encourages businesses to collect, store, and share private information with Big Brother. When will Republicans learn? When will they stop giving government more power?

I thought they didn't want to become like Democrats?

 

[francoHFW]

Dems will kill this like all the other Pub BS

I know, taxcuts for the rich, and destroy Medicare!

So vote Dem, chumps...

Let's see what Obama can do without a full blown Pub Depression gd it..