Twilight of the Psychopaths

Twilight of the Psychopaths

Dr. Kevin Barrett
The Canadian
January 4, 2007

“Our society is run by insane people for insane objectives. I think we’re being run by maniacs for maniacal ends and I think I’m liable to be put away as insane for expressing that. That’s what’s insane about it.” – John Lennon, before his murder by CIA mind-control subject Mark David Chapman

When Gandhi was asked his opinion of Western civilization he said it would be a good idea. But that oft-cited quote, is misleading, assuming as it does that civilization is an unmitigated blessing.

Civilized people, we are told, live peacefully and cooperatively with their fellows, sharing the necessary labour in order to obtain the leisure to develop arts and sciences. And while that would be a good idea, it is not a good description of what has been going on in the so-called advanced cultures during the past 8,000 years.

Civilization, as we know it, is largely the creation of psychopaths. All civilizations, our own included, have been based on slavery and “warfare.” Incidentally, the latter term is a euphemism for mass murder.

The prevailing recipe for civilization is simple:

Ron Paul Wins Presidential Election

According to Google Trends, if the election happened today, Ron Paul would be the next U.S. President. In a competition between Hillary Clinton, Ron Paul is the most searched for presidential candidate in the 2008 election. What CNN doesn’t realize, what the neocons don’t realize, is that Google is all-powerful, even beyond them. Google Trends accurately predicted the last U.S. President, George W. Bush.Will Ron Paul’s popularity continue to rise and spread? We hope so. 

Is Your Printer Spying On You?

Imagine that every time you printed a document, it automatically included a secret code that could be used to identify the printer – and potentially, the person who used it. Sounds like something from an episode of “Alias,” right?

Unfortunately, the scenario isn’t fictional. In a purported effort to identify counterfeiters, the US government has succeeded in persuading some color laser printer manufacturers to encode each page with identifying information. That means that without your knowledge or consent, an act you assume is private could become public. A communication tool you’re using in everyday life could become a tool for government surveillance. And what’s worse, there are no laws to prevent abuse.

The ACLU recently issued a report revealing that the FBI has amassed more than 1,100 pages of documents on the organization since 2001, as well as documents concerning other non-violent groups, including Greenpeace and United for Peace and Justice. In the current political climate, it’s not hard to imagine the government using the ability to determine who may have printed what document for purposes other than identifying counterfeiters.

Yet there are no laws to stop the Secret Service from using printer codes to secretly trace the origin of non-currency documents; only the privacy policy of your printer manufacturer currently protects you (if indeed such a policy exists). And no law regulates what sort of documents the Secret Service or any other domestic or foreign government agency is permitted to request for identification, not to mention how such a forensics tool could be developed and implemented in printers in the first place.

With no laws on the books, there’s nothing to stop the privacy violations this technology enables. For this reason, EFF is gathering information about what printers are revealing and how – a necessary precursor to any legal challenge or new legislation to protect your privacy. And we could use your help.

In the preliminary research paper linked below, we explain what we’ve observed so far, briefly explore the privacy implications, and ask you to print and send us test sheets from your color laser printer and/or a color laser printer at your local print shop. That way, we can watch the watchers and ensure that your privacy isn’t compromised in ways that harm your fundamental consitutional rights.

In addition to documenting what printers are revealing, EFF has filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, and we will keep you updated on what we discover. In the meantime, we urge you to participate and pass the word along about this research project. Thank you for your support!

Search and Support Ron Paul

Lately, we’ve been seeing banner signs popping up in major cities around the country with directives like Google Ron Paul and Youtube Ron Paul. What a powerful way to get U.S. citizens to interact and actively participate in the Ron Paul Revolution. If they care to see who Ron Paul is, then they will have to go online, use Google or Youtube to search for him.

It doesn’t give any information directly on the banner. We really wonder how powerful this type of grassroots banner campaign will be. Will people actually be prompted to go online to the Internet and plug Ron Paul’s name into search engines? Will they even know he is a candidate in the 2008 Presidential Elections?

Our initial assumptions are this: 1) those who use the Internet often will key in Ron Paul because its a short name, just because they curious and it involves a major service provider, 2) if you don’t know who Ron Paul is, it won’t prompt you to do anything and you’ll ignore the banner all together, and 3) you have heard of Ron Paul , so you Google or Youtube to find out more information about his campaign

Our recommendations to those putting these banners up is to mix in other messages with the directives. For example, place No More Taxes on the first line, second line place Ron Paul. If people are driving around the city, see that type of message, its powerful and its something Ron Paul would highly push for. Then you are driving around later, and you see a Google Ron Paul. On a psychological level, it instructs you to see who Ron Paul is because he obviously agrees with U.S. citizens not paying taxes.

We would love to have comments and opinions about this Ron Paul campaign.