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Careless Government vs. Malicious Agents

Jamie Grace wrote this article.

The e-governance initiatives that Anderson et al deplored in their Database State report are not, as I’ve argued previously here in Panopticonic, malicious works of a totalitarian state – they are about deploying information in a timely and accurate manner, about citizens in need of healthcare or social care. The true risk to information security and privacy comes from individuals working to intrude illegitimately into these databases and caches of personal data. I term these individuals, rather abstractly, ‘malicious agents.’

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Respected UK Trust Slams Government Databases

Jamie Grace wrote this article.

Sunday Times journalist David Leppard has given an important pointer to an upcoming political tug-of-war in the UK. The Jospeh Rowntree Foundation (an important ‘liberty & democracy’ campaigning funder) has produced a report – published on Monday the 23rd of March – that slams the myriad of Government-sponsored ‘giant databases’ that exist or are planned for implementation in the UK.

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Incarcerating the Amateur Photographer

It was once a hobby of many – taking photographs of the beautiful trains that crisscross the countryside. There are so many different trains and, judging by the number of model train enthusiasts, a considerable number of people interested in looking at them.  Amtrak recently sponsored a contest to take photographs of its own trains. The winner would get a thousand dollars in travel vouchers and get their photo published in Amtrak’s annual calendar.

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Sacrificing UK Privacy for Profit or Security?

Jamie Grace wrote this article.

What do you think of under-age drinking? What about social menacing or unavoidable rite-of-passage for teens? Are you concerned about illegal immigration or the threat of terrorism? Or is growing anti-social behaviour in your neighborhood more of an immediate concern?

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The Great Depression Depression

Gordon Davidescu wrote this article.

In theory, it was all supposed to go a certain way. I was supposed to have everything in my apartment packed and either shipped, sold, or eliminated in other ways. I was supposed to stay with a friend on the Upper West Side of Manhattan for a little while until I found my own place to live, and then I was going to live there. That is how it was supposed to go, but that is not at all how it went; life has had other plans for me thusfar.

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