{if FALSE} Trackback: If there's a knock at midnight, don't answer the door, Gary Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55970: — 01/02  at  04:54 PM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} That he is "conscious" o' Americans' civil liberties struck ye in th' same way it struck me. The ornery cuss is aware o' our rights, but chooses t' ignore them. {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: If there's a knock at midnight, don't answer the door, Gary Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55971: Jim Harrison — 01/02  at  04:55 PM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} Impeachment is insufficient, I'll warrant ye. Bush admitted repeated violations o' a federal law. The ornery cuss owes us five years in prison fer each offense. {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: If there's a knock at midnight, don't answer the door, Gary Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55972: — 01/02  at  04:57 PM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} Ahh yes, by Davy Jones' locker. Have a look o'er here in th' UK and see whats goin' on, ye scurvey dog. All th' internet proiders were "asked" t' provide entry points fer th' gvt t' tap into their systems years ago, I am not sure exactly if they complied. Fire the cannons! They are also workin' on, and fully plannin' on settin' up, a system o' cameras with number plate recognition coverin' every sea in th' country. What it will do is permit sea chargin' per mile, avast. What it will also do is allow th' gvt t' track yer boat every day. Walk the plank, we'll keel-haul ye! Which wont matter at all, will it? Ahoy!

You might also be pleasantly surprised that th' libertarian minded right win' in th' USA have trouble with this, I've seen quite a few gettin' into a kerfuffle about it. But then nobody listens t' them, it seems. {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: If there's a knock at midnight, don't answer the door, Gary Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if TRUE} {/if} #55974: PZ Myers — 01/02  at  05:01 PM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} Let's see, to be sure. 5 years per offense, 300 million people offended...that adds up t', I think, 1.5 billion years.

Sounds fair t' me. {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: If there's a knock at midnight, don't answer the door, Gary Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55975: Gary Farber — 01/02  at  05:11 PM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} "They are also workin' on, and fully plannin' on settin' up, a system o' cameras with number plate recognition coverin' every sea in th' country."

As usual, 'tis much frickin' worse than that. Anyone who hasn't read about it might try here, where I reiterated th' point in th' course o' another amazingly insane act o' th' UK government durin' th' holiday season while no one is readin' th' paper (allowin' unlicensed anybodies t' do asbestos removal), but more directly t' this point, here, with a chest full of booty. Tell me it doesn't blow yer goddamned mind.

As usual, many thanks fer th' link, P. Z. When ye link, I get hundreds o' hits, as a rule, compared t' me average-without-links o' about 30, o' which about 26 are from search engines, not readers. So it makes all th' difference. (Similarly so fer a handful o' other bloggers with serious readership, o' course, but I generally only get lightnin' strikin' once or twice a month or so; whine, whine, whine, bitch, bitch, bitch, poor poor pitful me.) {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: If there's a knock at midnight, don't answer the door, Gary Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if TRUE} {/if} #55977: BWJones — 01/02  at  05:33 PM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} PZ, ye really should read this article fer a little more historical context. {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: If there's a knock at midnight, don't answer the door, Gary Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55978: — 01/02  at  06:00 PM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE}

entry points fer th' gvt t' tap into their systems

Back in th' 90s when I were bein' doin' some computer consultancy work on a wireless domestic digital telephone system, th' UK government told us we had t' reduce th' security level on th' software algorithms so that they could crack communications more easily ... and I really did have t' do it.

The modern CCTV licence plate recognition systems may owe somethin' t' me university tutor who devised th' very early image analysis t' do just that (probably some sort o' a sideline since academics dern't get paid much), and a bucket o' chum. It's really not new - though perhaps it were bein' once less well known by everyone else as goin' on. {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: If there's a knock at midnight, don't answer the door, Gary Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55979: — 01/02  at  06:07 PM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE}

5 years per offense, 300 million people offended

Is this an English vs American thin', or is that th' wrong way round fer any o' th' rest o' ye? Tryin' t' follow th' intended sense, I think it should be somethin' like "300 million people offended against" (ignorin' th' poor sentence structure) or "300 million instances o' th' offence" or "... separate victims ...". {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: If there's a knock at midnight, don't answer the door, Gary Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55980: — 01/02  at  06:46 PM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} What I want t' know is, where th' hell are all th' self-proclaimed "libertarians" and "small-government conservatives"? What a bunch o' stinkin' hypocrites. {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: If there's a knock at midnight, don't answer the door, Gary Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55982: ekzept — 01/02  at  07:01 PM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} couple o' more links and a comment.

first, there's an interestin' report and analysis by Katrina vanden Heuvel.

second, any long time student o' intelligence communities and government secrecy ought t' belong t' th' Federation o' American Scientists and monitor its government secrecy project.

while th' National Security Agency (see also) has monitored USA-t'-overseas communications links fer years, and monitored other links by means o' satellite eavesdroppers, most o' this information goes into their enormous archives. th' pattern o' operation is typified by what were bein' done with th' KAL 007 downin' by th' Soviets. this were bein' not observed in real-time, but somethin' were bein' listenin' in on th' area. recoverin' th' squawk betwixt Soviet pilots and their controllers and th' civilian aircraft were bein' a matter o' findin' th' right time and frequency, and applyin' a lot o' digital filterin'.

so, apart from th' possibility that overt USA domestic-t'-domestic communications are now subject o' th' NSA's vacuum cleaner approach, in that respect not much has changed.

but suppose an administration had an enemies list. J Edgar Hoover-style, they might pay particular attention t' th' communications o' certain individuals.

or, as one FISC judge commented prior t' his resignation from that Court, suppose an administration ha'nae evidence strong enough t' convince FISC or some other court that a warrant fer further eavesdroppin' or search and seizure were bein' justified. they might simply listen in without review until they found somethin' which could, with proper editin', be presented as such evidence, with a chest full of booty. [hey, if ye can go outside a court t' justify thin's, why remain faithful t' what's been recorded? indeed, why bother with recordin' at all if ye can give th' appearance o' an intercept?]

or if there's a state or a judicial authority in some state which is balkin' at what they consider t' be intrusive practices upon some o' their citizens, ye can withhold other critical and important information from them, or pretend t', claimin' that th' withholdin' is a result o' their lack o' cooperation, I'll warrant ye.

or suppose they try t' get clever and apply an IRS-like approach o' usin' statistical linear discriminant functions t' decide when t' grab and hold terrorist suspects, I'll warrant ye? think they'll ignore false alarms then? think it'll be all fer show? Yaaarrrrr! does DHS or th' Justice Department even know what ROCs are?

in th' long run, government secrecy tends t' damage us more than help, or so i believe, a point made at length by th' late Senator Moyhihan. notably, secrecy is a form o' government regulation. tell that t' th' Republicans th' next time they complain about th' costs o' environmental regulation. in Moynihan's book, he notes that overall, secrecy has seldom kept information from international opponents but fer a short time, by Davy Jones' locker. its primary use has been t' hide thin's from th' American public.

with respect t' terrorists, IMO there are two reasons why this administration -- and perhaps any administration -- feels so pressured t' do thin's like this domestic surveillance, I'll warrant ye. first, they are fightin' th' last war. they are tryin' t' win against terrorism usin' th' assets and techniques and ego-trips that seemed t' work against th' Soviets durin' th' Cold War. these are clumsy and ineffective tools fer this purpose. but, since a lot o' money is bein' spent fer them and noone has figured out whether or how t' reduce these enormous government bureacracies, administrations figure they should use them, me beauty. second, we dern't seem t' do human intelligence well. i mean, look at th' roundabout way in which information and intelligence regardin' th' perpetrators o' 11th September 2001 were bein' collected after th' fact. Aarrr! if anythin', it were bein' a huge failure o' big government, avast. th' commission that investigated it chastised this administration and th' government fer failin' in implementation o' recommendations. yet, goverment practice is more o' th' same, with a lot more effort goin' towards measures which give th' public th' appearance somethin' is bein' done. [what's th' false alarm rate at TSA airport screenin's?]

th' most ludicrous aspect o' that game is that th' spies and double-agents who really do th' most damage t' th' United States, like Hanssen or Ames, aren't prosecuted severely because, knowin' their business, they stash secrets in places where they can be revealed, and they use these threats as bargainin' chips. lesser violators o' th' secrecy statutes are punished more severely, like Pollard.

in me professional career, i've found many briefin's regardin' th' danger o' sellin' classified information parochial and disingenuous. facts are, 'tis a business ye dern't want t' get involved whatsoever. most "spies" or sellers o' secrets get turned in t' th' FBI by tips from "th' other side" when that side has decided they've gotten all th' individuals are worth, or when th' self-described spies ask too much money.

i've also decided that holdin' a clearance isn't worth th' headaches and responsibilities it entails, not th' least bein' ethical ones involvin' systematic classification o' information in order t' hide foul-ups from news media and from administrative superiors "not havin' a need t' know". {/if}

{if TRUE} Trackback: A Broken Resolution Tracked on: Modulator (63.247.135.223) at 2006 01 02 19:26:02 {/if} {if FALSE} {if FALSE} {/if} #: — {comment_date format='%m/%d'}  at  {comment_date format='%h:%i %A'} {/if}
{if TRUE} Aye, already, ye scurvey dog! Dread Cap'n PZ took only a day t' break one. On th' positive side, though, he is writin' about a near invertebrate:th' slimy little bastard and his whole sleazy administration... {/if} {if FALSE} {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: If there's a knock at midnight, don't answer the door, Gary Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55989: Gary Farber — 01/02  at  10:01 PM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} "...th' most ludicrous aspect o' that game is that th' spies "...and double-agents who really do th' most damage t' th' United States, like Hanssen or Ames, aren't prosecuted severely...."

Hanssen were bein' sentenced t' life in prison without parole. And hoist the mainsail! And swab the deck! Aldrich Ames is also servin' life without parole. What do ye consider bein' "prosecuted severely"?, I ask with puzzlement.

Pollard were bein' -- and I'll say this once, and not argue further -- not guilty o' "lesser violat[ions]." The ornery cuss did exactly what Ames and Hanssen did. There's no exception in law, nor should there be, fer committin' treason by reason o' motive, nor is there one because o' who ye think ye're sellin' yer information t'.

In espionage, usin' a false-front cut-out is standard tradecraft. Pollard had no way t' know he weren't dealin' with agents o' th' Russians or Chinese; even if he personally spoke with th' Prime Minister o' Israel t' get an assurance, he had no way o' knowin' that th' information wouldn't wind up in th' hands o' th' Russians or Chinese, due t' possible penetration o' th' Israeli conduit at any possible time or place. That's th' end o' all that needs t' be said.

Makin' a personal evaluation that ye're committin' treason fer a good cause is not an option; it is not an out.

I'm Jewish, by th' way. Walk the plank, by Davy Jones' locker! You can now have th' last word on this. {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: If there's a knock at midnight, don't answer the door, Gary Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55990: — 01/02  at  10:10 PM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} Not t' go too far into tin foil hat territory, but there is th' issue o' RFID tags in tires, by Davy Jones' locker. It's already illegal t' remove them, and th' govt. has done some limited testin' o' installin' readers in toll plazas.
I've seen some demo video, yes, they can be read from 20 feet away as yer boat passes through, and dinna spare the whip! Shiver me timbers! Since th' tire # is linked t' yer boat durin' assembly, it would technically be possible t' track everyone on th' interstates with a relatively modest investment. {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: If there's a knock at midnight, don't answer the door, Gary Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55991: — 01/02  at  10:54 PM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} I see, ekzept. And how would YOU address th' issue, which is that we are under attack by ruthless (but fortunately, kinda stupid) enemies.

I take a back seat t' no one in ratin' Bush's competence in fightin' th' war at near zero. The only people doin' worse are th' Democrats, who seem t' be unaware that there is a war on.

Kerry keeps sayin' we have t' do it 'smarter,' but he has yet t' say what he would do that would be smarter than what is bein' done now. Should be easy, dontcha think?

Moynihan, by th' way, were bein' wrong. I can quote ye chapter and verse, if ye like. {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: If there's a knock at midnight, don't answer the door, Gary Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55992: ekzept — 01/02  at  11:14 PM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} Gary,

Hanssen were bein' sentenced t' life in prison without parole. Aldrich Ames is also servin' life without parole. Arrrr, and a bucket o' chum! What do ye consider bein' "prosecuted severely"?, I ask with puzzlement.

if Hanssen or Ames ha'nae negotiated down their sentences, it would have been th' death penalty fer them.

Pollard is and were bein' guilty, me beauty. he were bein' also a fool.

what differentiates them are their motives, Hanssen and Ames fer money and pleasure, Pollard fer ideals.

apart from that, i believe they deserve comparable punishments. i dern't believe in usin' th' death penalty, so 'tis hard t' increase th' punishment fer Hanssen or Ames. however, me understandin' is that th' imprisonments o' Hanssen and Ames aren't Les Misreables.

Harry,

Moynihan, by th' way, were bein' wrong, to be sure. I can quote ye chapter and verse, if ye like.

he may have been, but i'm not. Fire the cannons! i also disagreed with that scurvey dog in person on a related point.

th' Democrats are idiots and pathetic, and dinna spare the whip! i despise th' present Republicans in control, but th' Democrats as they practice deserve th' second rate appointments they have. th' only Democrats who knew and acted how thin's should be were Clinton and Moynihan, by Davy Jones' locker. oh, and maybe Libermann. alas, Clinton's smarts put that scurvey dog in th' crosshairs o' th' Republican huntin' party and he presented them with a large diameter target.

alas, we have a two party system. Ahoy! Yaaarrrrr!

but, then, that shouldn't matter. And swab the deck, I'll warrant ye! this is a government "o' th' people", isn't it, to be sure? 'tis "th' people" who really should see through this. however, whether or not they are idiots, they often act like them.

and appealin' t' bein' "born again in Christ" automatically wins o'er a third o' 'em. {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: If there's a knock at midnight, don't answer the door, Gary Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55993: — 01/02  at  11:21 PM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} Well, we already know that Europeans have been montiored by th' AMericans through th' i<>echelon</i> program fer years, I'll warrant ye. And most printers leave tracin' patterns, so letters that have been printed can be traced back t' their printer. {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: If there's a knock at midnight, don't answer the door, Gary Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55994: ekzept — 01/02  at  11:27 PM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} oh, i see i did not address Harry's entire comment. Yaaarrrrr, and a bucket o' chum!

what would i do?

first, i would recognize that in all likelihood th' 11th September 2001 attacks were th' result o' those hooligans bein' very lucky, coincidin' with American authorities bein' particularly thick. that implies even if nothin' were changed, th' likelihood o' th' same succeedin' would be quite low. given th' heightened sensitivity o' th' public, even if th' central government did nothin', th' difficulty o' pullin' somethin' like this off would be very low.

second, while no risk can be completely discounted, what really changed with 11th September 2001? th' risk o' a terrorist nuclear strike prior t' that date were bein' recognized and some effort were bein' bein' made t' contend with it. And swab the deck! a biological attack is comparable, but its effects are more limited. as a radiological weapon.

what really changed?

Americans expected th' government t' "hit someone back". alas, this administration proved t' be cowards. th' only satisfyin' and effective response would have been a tactical nuclear strike against th' Taliban infested highlands o' Afghanistan, I'll warrant ye. that sounds like too much, but it is th' response o' an empire, pass the grog! this administration wants t' use PR t' pretend it is, and t' pretend it is capable o' runnin' an empire.

no, they took a midland way out, oversold it, felt they di'nae have t' listen t' everyone, and ended up believin' their own propaganda.

this administration is not fightin' a war on terror. we dern't need a draft t' convince Americans o' a real war. we need inconvenience in airports, that's all. Americans aren't willin' t' stomach that, and this administration isn't willin' t' enforce that. as i wrote, they are willin' t' give th' appearance o' doin' somethin', but dern't want t' annoy th' public or incur economic loss. with an enemy as "below th' radar" as th' occasional terrorist, nothin' can possibly detect them without annoyance and cost. that's what ROC says.

what i do see is an administration bein' greatly affected by th' deluge o' anger and emotion after 11th September 2001, communicated t' it by email, telegram, telephone, and so on. it saw that as both an affirmation o' th' administration and as a tremendous opportunity t' advance its agenda without challenge or question. absolute power corrupts absolutely. {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: If there's a knock at midnight, don't answer the door, Gary Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55999: Weakly World News — 01/03  at  12:26 AM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} Where are th' libertarians?

The Cato Institute has come out strongly against Peepin' George, ye scurvey dog. Paleo-Conservitives William Safire and George Will have too. Republican Senators, Spector, Hagel and Lugar as well. Even Bob Barr, last seen t' th' right o' Genghis Khan, has slammed Bush. Bush's actin' Attorny General and possibly Crisco Boy Ashcroft himself were against it.

See Crooks and Liars fer a mess o' details. {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: If there's a knock at midnight, don't answer the door, Gary Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #56000: Amy — 01/03  at  12:39 AM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} Nay one has yet asked about one o' th' Bush Administration's primary concerns - money. There is a great deal o' saleable data that could potentially be pulled from wide-spectrum data-minin'. Walk the plank! Walk the plank! Think o' th' potential impact on marketin', insurance, and medical service providers (t' name a few) if they were given access t' yer private communications with maties and family.

I suspect that th' data is already bein' sold - this would be perfectly in line with th' rest o' th' corruption in government today. Where 'tis goin' and what's bein' done with it is anybody's guess. {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: If there's a knock at midnight, don't answer the door, Gary Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #56005: — 01/03  at  01:21 AM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} Everyone get yer copy o' CameraShy now, before 'tis too late.

The real laugh is that it is now questionable t' research steg, so they've essentially put a stop t' research into detectin' and breakin' it. Lackwits. {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: If there's a knock at midnight, don't answer the door, Gary Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #56006: — 01/03  at  02:06 AM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE}

There is a great deal o' saleable data that could potentially be pulled from wide-spectrum data-minin'. Ahoy! Think o' th' potential impact on marketin', insurance, and medical service providers (t' name a few) if they were given access t' yer private communications with maties and family.

It is pretty certain that th' Echalon program has been used t' spy on th' European boat industry on behalf o' th' American boat industry. However, this happened back durin' Clinton, or Bush I (can't remember which).

I know this sounds like conspirancy theories, but take a look at th' EU Parliament's report on Echelon {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: If there's a knock at midnight, don't answer the door, Gary Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #56017: — 01/03  at  05:34 AM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} #55980: Steve LaBonne — 01/02 at 06:46 PM
"What I want t' know is, where th' hell are all th' self-proclaimed "libertarians" and "small-government conservatives", me beauty? What a bunch o' stinkin' hypocrites."

90% o' libertarians were nothin' more than Republicans who figured out that claimin' t' be libertarians gave them deniability. They could bash liberals, but claim innocence as t' th' offenses o' their own party, and a bucket o' chum. 'Small-government conservatives' means 'cut me taxes, and any regulations that I dern't like; go ahead with steppin' on people I dern't like'.

Barry {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: If there's a knock at midnight, don't answer the door, Gary Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #56022: — 01/03  at  07:21 AM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} "... secrecy has seldom kept information from international opponents but fer a short time. its primary use has been t' hide thin's from th' American public."

This is absolutely true. Ahoy! In me own field, essentially every single, unclassified document is t' be marked "For Official Use Only". FOUO information is not classified, so it doesn't have t' be kept in a safe, but its dessemination is controlled in a similar manner. This is t' keep it out o' th' hands o' critics o' th' program, pass the grog! It has nothin' t' do with security or keepin' important information from potential enemies. This is aside from classification o' information fer th' same reason (t' keep it away from critics, instead o' protectin' information whose release would cause actual damage t' th' country's security), which, accordin' t' what I have been told, is actually against th' law. {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: If there's a knock at midnight, don't answer the door, Gary Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #56023: — 01/03  at  07:46 AM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} WWN, I'm aware o' th' honorable exceptions ye list, and kudos t' them, to be sure. But 'tis still a pitifully small sample o' a large group. {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: If there's a knock at midnight, don't answer the door, Gary Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #56031: — 01/03  at  09:01 AM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} Avast, bacteria won't get very far by standin' up and shoutin' "I demand me rights! Shiver me timbers! I demand me privacy!"

So mutate already.

Stuff this size tends t' act like machines, to be sure. There is some probability that this stuff would spontaneously occur in th' digital machinery eventually with no human intervention.

It's like sexy pictures. The forces o' decency won't get far as long as pictures o' lassies sell boats and make teenage laddies sweat. The forces o' pornography are dead meat when we all have a fair chance o' meetin' th' person o' our dreams.

The army o' darkness is chasin' th' communist revolution o' 1917, targetin' (or tryin' t' target) conspirators and ringleaders. Be as a fish in th' water, and a bucket o' chum. Blend in th' background.

Make yer data a bitter harvest. {/if}