http://www.FairfaxCountyPrivacyCouncil.org
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FCPC ALERT
#2004-5
Originally Published on
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Greetings! This message is
intended for members of the Fairfax County Privacy Council, and anyone else who
might be interested in advancing privacy in
Privacy Notice: All communication from the Fairfax Privacy Council is sent
using blind carbon copy ("BCC") format for your security and privacy.
ALERT ITEM
SUMMARY:
1. Representative Tom Davis (
2. PATRIOT Act:
3. Biometric
Passports with electronic chips coming this spring…for Americans
4.
5. Delta Airlines to VA
family: your papers are not in order
6. ACLU reports: “Pizza
Privacy, Surveillance-Industrial Complex reports
7. VA DMV legal presence scheme
gone wild
8. URGENT
– national ID card bills moving fast in House and Senate
9. Upcoming
quarterly FCPC meeting: Wednesday, 13 October 2004 at 7:30 PM
10. Essay: “Less freedom means
less security”
11. Privacy Quotes: “What a
lot of people don't realize…” & “We can sleep easy tonight.”
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1.
Representative Tom Davis (R-Fairfax County) changes vote, quashes Freedom to
Read Act
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Oren J. Teicher, chief operating officer of the
American Booksellers Association writes that “…[Section 215 of the
PATRIOT Act] gives the FBI the right to look at the book purchase or borrowing
records of any American without showing any evidence that the person is engaged
in terrorist activity… Last month, a majority of the members of the House of
Representatives voted to deny funding for FBI searches of bookstore and library
records under Section 215 of the U.S.A. Patriot Act. After a two-year fight, it
appeared we had prevailed by a vote of 219-201 in restoring the protections for
the privacy of bookstore customers and library patrons that were eliminated by
the Patriot Act. We were cheering…Then, strange things began to happen.
As we watched on C-SPAN, the vote tally showed that the total in favor was
slipping: 218, 217, 216... At the same time, the vote against the Freedom to
Read Amendment was growing: 202, 203, 204...We held our breath, waiting for the
15 minutes set aside for the vote to expire. But the deadline passed, and the
votes continued to change. Members of Congress were shouting at the House
leaders to close the vote, but it dragged on for another 23 minutes. When the
gavel finally fell, the vote was tied 210 to 210 and the Freedom to Read
Amendment failed [due to **vote reversals** by just enough Congressman,
including our own Representative Tom
Davis (
Take Action: “Thank or Spank” your Congressman at http://www.aclu.org/NationalSecurity/NationalSecurity.cfm?ID=16128&c=24.
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2.
PATRIOT Act: Fairfax County “studies” while City of Falls Church acts
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Asserting that "the possible erosion of civil liberties has a direct
impact on the operations of the Falls Church City government and on the lives
of the people living in the City, necessitating that the City Council express
its opinion," the Falls Church City Council, by a 6-1 margin, passed…a
strongly-worded resolution calling for Congress to modify provisions of the
U.S.A. Patriot Act that "threaten to undermine the fundamental rights of
all our citizens." The resolution, entitled "Resolution to Protect
Civil Liberties and Fight Terrorism," …affirms that the Mary Riley Styles
Library in Falls Church shall post in a prominent place a notice citing that
under the Patriot Act, "Records of the books and other materials patrons
borrow from this library may be obtained by federal agents" and that the
law "prohibits librarians from informing a patron if records about him/her
have been requested or obtained by federal agents." It adds that a similar
sign be posted at all computer workstations in the library stating,
"Activity on this computer may be monitored according to state and federal
law” (see “F.C. City Council OKs Sharp Resolution Vs. Patriot Act Abuses of
Civil Liberties,” The Falls Church News Press, by Nicholas F. Benton; http://www.fcnp.com/423/council.htm).
The complete text of the resolution is published at http://www.fcnp.com/423/text.htm.
The Falls Church News Press On-Line further reports that “While Falls Church
joined its Arlington and Alexandria neighbors with perhaps the most
strongly-worded resolution on the Patriot Act of all, its Fairfax County
neighbor was not willing to weigh in when the matter came before its Board of
Supervisors last June 21. In a 5-3 vote, the Fairfax Board voted to send a
watered-down version of a Patriot Act resolution to the County executive for
more study and no deadline for return. Voting to punt were
Board chair Jerry Connolly, Dana Kaufman, Sharon Bullova, Lynda Smith and Joan DuBois. The resolution's sponsor, Cathy Hudgins, was joined by Penny Gross and Elaine McConnell in the unsuccessful effort to see the resolution through.
Gerald Hyland and Michael Frey were not present…The Patriot Act, which passed
the U.S. House 356-66 and the Senate 98-1 in the wake of 9/11 in October 2001,
expands the reach of law enforcement agencies to monitor and search people if
they're suspected of involvement with terrorism. Since its passage, several
members of Congress have voiced concerns for the overreaching application of
the law, including some who originally voted for it, such as Representative Jim Moran [(D-Fairfax County)].”
And down in Charlottesville, councilmen are sticking to their earlier
opposition to the Patriot Act (see “Councilors stick by national stances,” The
Daily Staff Writer, 4 October 2004;
http://www.dailyprogress.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=CDP/MGArticle/CDP_BasicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1031778322014&path
See ACLU videos entitled “Its American” (http://www.aclu.org/itsamerican/american.html?orgid=EA081104C&MX=1476&H=1)
and “Unconstitutional” (http://www.aclu.org/unconstitutional/adpopup.html)
for more perspective on the PATRIOT Act. As FCPC reported in Alert
#2004-4, the Fairfax County Bill of Rights Coalition (https://home.comcast.net/~fairfaxfree)
has been seeking a resolution "affirming the civil liberties of its
citizens" from the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors that would also
call for reform of the federal PATRIOT Act.
Frankly, FCPC does not understand what the hold up is getting a resolution
passed by a board dominated by Democrats – after all, in 2003, the Fairfax
County Democratic Committee issued a blistering demarche against the PATRIOT
Act at http://fairfaxdemocrats.org/news/resolution.htm,
demanding the “…repeal of those aspects of the Patriot Act and Executive Orders
that violate fundamental rights and liberties.”
Take Action: Email Fairfax
County Executive Anthony H. Griffin at CoExec@fairfaxcounty.gov
and ask him to promptly wrap up and deliver his study to the
Dear Mr. Griffin:
Study hall is over for the Board of Supervisors.
Whereas,
The USA PATRIOT Act and related Executive Orders and
edicts now grant the federal government powers that are too easily
abused and that threaten free speech, privacy and due process -- the
fundamental rights of every American; and,
Time Magazine compares the PATRIOT Act to the notorious Alien and Sedition Act
of 1798 (see “The Patriot Act of the 18th Century: The Alien and Sedition Acts
sparked controversy in the country's early years,” TIME, by Ishmael Reed, 5
July 2004; http://www.time.com/time/archive/preview/0,10987,1101040705-658357,00.html);
and,
We know that many or most Congressmen have serious second thoughts about
passing the PATRIOT Act; and,
Due to Section 215 of the PATRIOT Act, Fairfax County residents have grave
concerns about their using county library services; and,
Recent disclosures by the federal government show that the PATRIOT Act’s
Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court does not even provide procedures for
outside litigants (such as potentially even Fairfax County) to file memorandums
or otherwise influence a case (see “Secret Court Poses Challenges:
Non-Government Litigants Lack Access, Ways to Influence Cases,” The
Washington Post, By Dan Eggen, August 30,
2004, A21; http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A45166-2004Aug29.html),
therefore,
Please report what you know about the PATRIOT Act’s impact on civil liberties
in Fairfax County to the Board of Supervisors so that they can act upon an
appropriate resolution.
Sincerely,
Your Name
Your Address
Note: You might want to cc the County Supervisors - chairman@fairfaxcounty.gov, braddock@fairfaxcounty.gov, hntrmill@fairfaxcounty.gov, dranesville@fairfaxcounty.gov, leedist@fairfaxcounty.gov, mason@fairfaxcounty.gov, mtvernon@fairfaxcounty.gov, provdist@fairfaxcounty.gov, springfield@fairfaxcounty.gov, sully@co.fairfax.va.us
And of you have a couple minutes handy, use the following links to keep up the
pressure against the PATRIOT Act, and its spin-offs and add-ons being
considered in Congress: http://action.eff.org/action/index.asp?step=2&item=2925,
http://action.eff.org/action/index.asp?step=2&item=2907,
http://action.eff.org/action/index.asp?step=2&item=2906,
http://www.aclu.org/NationalSecurity/NationalSecurity.cfm?orgid=n&ID=16491&c=24&MX=1603&H=1
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3.
Biometric Passports with electronic chips coming this spring…for Americans
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You might want to move quickly to obtain a new or
renewed US Passport(s) for you and your family. The US State Department
is moving to mandate biometric passports for Americans with implanted
electronic identification chips, perhaps as early as Spring 2005 (see “Passport
ID Technology Has High Error Rate,” The Washington Post, by Jonathan Krim, August 6, 2004, Page A01; http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A43944-2004Aug5.html).
But hurry up and get your passport now, because if the US is like the UK and
Canada, it will soon ban smiling for passport photos – smiling sort of ruins
the secondary use of your digital photo in facial surveillance schemes (see
"E-Passports Are Nothing To Smile
About," CNETNews.com, 6 July 2004; http://att.com.com/E-passports+are+nothing+to+smile+about/2100-7348_3-5299928.html).
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4. US
passport application privacy success story
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After several months of a standoff with the US State Department, FCPC Charter
Member Rich Shelton (Kingstowne) reports that he
finally received his passport. Rich applied (sans SSN of course) for the
passport at a US Post Office on Route 1, providing his US birth certificate,
expired US passport, and driver’s license to the passport agent. US
postal officials conferred worriedly with furrowed brows…but conclude that the
application was in order. A month later Rich received word from the State
Department that his application was denied pending further documentation, which
must include a yearbook and affidavits from blood relatives with copies of
their identification credentials. None of the State Department demands
bore any privacy act or paperwork reduction act warnings. Smelling
something fishy, Rich mailed in his yearbook, but refused the other
demands. To make a long story short, somewhere between inquiries by Congressman
Moran’s staff, and Rich’s calls and emails to various State Department offices,
the State Department decided to quietly mail him his passport…with no written
explanation.
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5. Delta
Airlines to VA family: your papers are not in order
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Catherine Carter and her family was trying to fly from Richmond International
Airport to Mexico on July 2 but instead left the terminal with a bad case of
the
post-Sept. 11 blues...The Carters were told at the Delta Air Lines counter that
Catherine Carter's birth certificate, issued in West Virginia, wasn't
acceptable for boarding the plane because it was issued by the hospital and not
by the state. ‘I wasn't going to argue with the lady. She just said it's not
acceptable since 9/11, 'next person, please’,' recalled Gregory Carter, 56, of
the woman at the counter. ‘I very graciously picked up our suitcases. I
didn't want to spend my week in jail’ (see “Documentation problem puts snag in
travel plans,” The Richmond Times Dispatch, by Jeffery Kelley,
Delta blamed the TSA, but the fact is that the TSA does not
determine entry and exit documentation requirements in
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6. ACLU
reports: “Pizza Privacy, Surveillance-Industrial Complex reports
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To see the ACLU’s “Pizza Privacy” video, see http://www.aclu.org/pizza/index.html?orgid=EA071904&MX=1414&H=1
– although humorous, scary that it might be true some day.
The ACLU also released a report on the "Surveillance-Industrial
Complex," an in-depth look at all the ways that the government is
conscripting or recruiting private companies for its war individual privacy and
liberty. The report is online at: www.aclu.org/surveillance. A
related video entitled “Its American” can be viewed at http://www.aclu.org/itsamerican/american.html?orgid=EA081104C&MX=1476&H=1
Take Action: Ask companies at www.aclu.org/privatize to take a
"no-spy pledge" that they won't willingly cooperate with government
demands for their customers' data
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7. VA DMV
legal presence scheme gone wild
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US combat veteran denied VA driver’s license under VA legal presence laws – see
“Paying the price,” The Danville Register and Bee, 2 June 2004;
http://www.registerbee.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=DRB%2FMGArticle%2FDRB_BasicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1031775820507&path=!news!opinion.
See also “Real-life horror stories of
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8. URGENT – national ID card
bills moving fast in House and Senate
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A broad coalition of organizations oppose the very idea of National ID Cards,
including Gun Owners of America (see http://www.gunowners.org/a100404.htm),
the American Library Association, the Family Steering Committee for the 9/11
Independent Commission (see http://www.911independentcommission.org),
and the National Taxpayers Union (see http://ga1.org/campaign/nat_id/wns5ig2h8kt65).
According to Simon Davis, of Privacy International, “…[of the ] 25 countries
worst hit by terrorism over the last 20 years, 80 per cent had national ID card
schemes and almost two thirds of terrorists operated under their real
identities” (see “ID cards won't stop attacks, says Blunkett,”
The
News Telegraph, by Philip Johnston, 27 April 2004; http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2004/04/27/ncard27.xml&).
But our "… Homeland Security Department is
[still] developing criteria for a national identification card for U.S.
citizens to carry, said retired Army Lt. Gen. Patrick Hughes, DHS' assistant
secretary for information analysis…We are working on a national ID card
issue…We have to deal with it” (see “Lawmakers worry that homeland security
overshadows civil rights,” Government Executive, By Chris Strohm, August 17, 2004; http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0804/081704c1.htm).
Take Action to block "it"
in the House and Senate respectively at http://www.aclu.org/NationalSecurity/NationalSecurity.cfm?orgid=n&ID=16580&c=24&MX=1619&H=1
and http://www.ala.org/ala/issues/takeaction/takeaction.htm; and
for good measure, here too: http://ga1.org/campaign/nat_id/wns5ig2h8kt65.
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9.
Upcoming quarterly FCPC meeting:
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Location: John Marshall Library Meeting Room,
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10.
Essay: “Less freedom means less security”
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“Giving up freedom for security is a little like choosing to be beheaded rather
than to die by natural causes. There is some solace in knowing when and by
whose hand the axe will fall, but once executed, the deed is difficult to
undo…” (see “Less freedom means less security,” The
Yuma Sun, by Howard Blitz,
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11.
Privacy Quotes: “What a lot of people don't realize…” & “We can sleep
easy tonight.”
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"What a lot of people don't realize is that
information [disclosed to the TSA’s Trusted Traveler Program] could be used for anything
the government wants to use it for...I'd never be willing to give up what
little privacy I have left, least of all to the U.S. government."
- Toni Ballentine,
marketing director for OAG Worldwide, a global flight schedule database company in
“We can sleep easy tonight, Cat Stevens has left the
country....In a related matter, it is believed that U.S. intelligence has directed
its officials to be on the lookout for Canadian singer Gordan
Lightfoot at a border crossing near Detroit” – The Potomac News (see “Air madness II, Editorial, The
Potomac News, 23 September 2004; http://www.manassasjm.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=MJM%2FMGArticle%2FWPN_BasicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1031778193207&path=!opinion&tacodalogin=no).
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Questions, or to be added/deleted from future
Alerts? Contact Mike Stollenwerk atFCPCChairman@cox.net.