US citizens: phone your congresscritter to support modifying the PAT RIOT Act to reduce government power for warrantless collection of data, in Section 215.

The bill under consideration would affect section 215, which allows the FBI to collect almost any data base of personal data with "national security letters". The FISA court admitted that it was unable to exercise effective control over the FBI's use of these powers. I think section 215 should be eliminated entirely.

The Capitol Switchboard numbers are 202-224-3121, 888-818-6641 and 888-355-3588.

Everyone: state your support for Glenn Greenwald.

If you sign, please spread the word!

US citizens: Call on Microsoft to liberate the code of Windows 7.

If you sign, please spread the word!

Fast, efficient, domain-limited voice-command recognition can operate locally without sending personal data to anyone.

This technology can in principle respect privacy, but that doesn't guarantee it will respect privacy. It could transmit data just so that a company gets personal data. How can we make sure it doesn't?

• If it has no form of communication, and no facility for the manufacturer to change the code or examine the data, that blocks the attempt.
• If the software in the device is free, users can make sure it is honest.

The UK has made no changes in its auditing system in two years since a major government contractor went bankrupt while its directors concealed what was happening.

The directors made out handsomely from this. Perhaps laws should be changed so that directors cannot do that in the future -- but unscrupulous rich people wouldn't want those laws. Do you think Tories would ever pass such laws?