Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/172926
4A Daily News – Tuesday, September 17, 2013 Opinion Excessive security makes us all less secure DAILY NEWS RED BLUFF TEHAMA COUNTY T H E V O I C E O F T E H A M A C O U NTY S I N C E 1 8 8 5 Greg Stevens, Publisher gstevens@redbluffdailynews.com Chip Thompson, Editor editor@redbluffdailynews.com Editorial policy The Daily News opinion is expressed in the editorial. The opinions expressed in columns, letters and cartoons are those of the authors and artists. Letter policy The Daily News welcomes letters from its readers on timely topics of public interest. All letters must be signed and provide the writer's home street address and home phone number. Anonymous letters, open letters to others, pen names and petition-style letters will not be allowed. Letters should be typed and cannot exceed two double-spaced pages or 500 words. When several letters address the same issue, a cross section of those submitted will be considered for publication. Letters will be edited. 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However the Fourth Amendment only protects you against searches that violate your reasonable expectation of privacy. A reasonable expectation of privacy exists if 1) you actually expect privacy, and 2) your expectation is one that society as a whole would think is legitimate. This rule comes from a decision by the United States Supreme Court in 1967, Katz v. United States, holding that when a person enters a telephone booth, shuts the door, and makes a call, the government cannot record what that person says on the phone without a warrant. Even though the recording device was stuck to the outside of the phone booth glass and did not physically invade Katz's private space, the Supreme Court decided that when Katz shut the phone booth's door, he justifiably expected that no one would hear his conversation, and that it was this expectation — rather than the inside of the phone booth itself — that was protected from government intrusion by the Fourth Amendment. This idea is generally phrased as "the Fourth Amendment protects people, not places." In the latest revelation about the NSA's activities, The Guardian, the New York Times, and ProPublica suggest that the organization gained access, less by technical savvy, but by coercion, strongarming companies that work with data, by "getting their voluntary collaboration, forcing their cooperation with court orders or surreptitiously stealing their encryption keys or altering their software or hardware." Encryption might still work in some form, but the revelation indicates that there are many vulnerabilities that the entire cryptography community so far missed. Researchers are now fearful of compromised elements in products they would previously have sworn were secure. For instance, it's troubling to experts that the NSA has been working with the National Institute of Standards and Technology. NIST sets the public standard — writes the modern cookbook for how cryptography should work.. But if, according to new reports, the NSA has worked to set these standards to their advantage, products built along those guidelines could be weaker than the security community pre- people must now reclaim their rights to privacy by chalviously thought. lenging illegal spying by Which raises the the very government question: If the NSA is entrusted to protect listening in, who else is, them. Allowing efforts too? It is plausible that designed to protect our other governments like safety to override efforts Israel or even organized that protect our privacy crime rings may be able ironically leaves all of us to take advantage of the less safe. Those who back doors the NSA has assert such spying left in. Based on the should be of no concern information available so to those with nothing to far, the flaws are hard to catch because it's hard to Richard hide are in my opinion selling their souls to the tell what techniques the devil by entrusting entiNSA is using. Many ties unknown to meddle argue that one way to in their private affairs. In find out is more whistle a country that purports blowing, like that of to place its trust in God I Edward Snowden that suggest that we do more made us aware of this of that and bridle the egregious violation of the constitution in the first place. clandestine domestic activities of Until such brave Americans come the NSA and the power of the forward we can have little trust Homeland Security Agency over that internet security is indeed law abiding Americans because their excessive security is making secure. More than once have my bank- us all less secure. ing activities been compromised Richard Mazzucchi is a retired by fraudsters that assembled suffiresearch engineer specializing in cient information via the internet to decrypt my account numbers energy efficiency and renewable and security codes. Such energy. He has travelled instances are increasingly com- extensively and now makes his mon, in part due to the fact that home in Los Molinos, where he is our government has precluded the striving to manifest a sustainable implementation of entirely secure and spiritual lifestyle and operate communications citing national a barbecue equipment and supply business. He can be reached at security concerns. It is sad that that the American living-green@att.net. Mazzucchi Positive Point Your officials STATE ASSEMBLYMAN — Dan Logue, 1550 Humboldt Road, Ste. 4, Chico, CA 95928, 530-895-4217 STATE SENATOR — Jim Nielsen, 2635 Forest Ave., Ste. 110, Chico, CA 95928, (530) 8797 4 2 4 , senator.nielsen@senate.ca.gov GOVERNOR — Jerry Brown, State Capitol Bldg., Sacramento, CA 95814; (916) 445-2841; Fax (916) 558-3160; E-mail: governor@governor.ca.gov. U.S. REPRESENTATIVE — Doug LaMalfa 506 Cannon House Office Building, Washington, DC 20515, 202-225-3076. U.S. SENATORS — Dianne Feinstein (D), One Post Street, Suite 2450, San Francisco, CA 94104; (415) 393-0707. Fax (415) 393-0710. Barbara Boxer (D), 1700 Montgomery St., Suite 240, San Francisco, CA 94111; (510) 2868537. Fax (202) 224-0454. Commentary 2nd class citizens; welfare; take the money? More unused items from my bag of stuff: An undated piece called attention to proposed changes to a city ordinance in San Antonio, Texas, due to "the addition of some controversial and vague language that critics believe will lead to a crackdown on free speech. Gay rights activists and select officials in the city are looking to revamp the city's anti-discrimination ordinance to include 'sexual orientation' and 'sexual identity.' The new text, if adopted, could essentially ban citizens who have shown a bias in these areas from serving on commissions and in local government posts. Meaning: If you oppose homosexuality in 'word or deed,' you could be precluded from holding these positions." Characteristics such as race, color, national origin, religion, sex, age and handicap/disability are already accepted in civil and legal society for which derogatory or prejudicial words or actions are proscribed. But if expressing critical opinions of homosexuality, same-sex-whatevers, as a private citizen or in some capacity as a moral or spiritual leader—if that disqualifies you for office or appointment, you're made a second-class citizen. Like the mandates from some courts, state laws and regulations prohibiting your right, as a florist, baker, photographer or event planner, to decline to participate in the celebration of a relationship that you morally disapprove of—it smacks of ideological, political correctness shoved down the throats of an otherwise free people. Again, I ask: Are you for or against such high-handed force-feeding of conscience-negating mandates? How far are we from not being able to say anything critical of those living off the fruits of our collective labor: the welfare state denizens reaping housing, food, medical, income assistance, disability and whatever else is contained in the many dozens of such programs at federal and state levels. Have you ever had anyone using food stamps turn around and say "thank you" to the people behind them? No, me neither. Then there are the stories about people determined to got off the "dole," provide for their own needs and begin contributing to society. Oh, wait—I never see such stories. Would it surprise you to know that resentful, fun-poking sentiments have been around for over 60 years? In late 1949 and early 1950, a sarcastic, tongue-in-cheek poem, "Ode to the Welfare State," (searchable by title, snopes.com says "probably true") appeared in a number of papers across the country: "Mr. Truman's St Paul, Minn., pie-for-everybody speech last night reminded us that, at the tail-end of the recent session of Congress, Representative Clarence J. Brown (R-Ohio) jammed into the Congressional Record the following poem, describing its author only as "a prominent Democrat of the State of Georgia": DEMOCRATIC DIALOG Father, must I go to work? No, my lucky son. We're living now on Easy Street, On dough from Washing- butionist rhetoric and put Republiton. cans firmly in charge in We've left it up to Congress, much like Uncle Sam, So don't get under Clinton, when exercised. the Gingrich wave Nobody has to give a swept Republicans into damn—We've all been control of the House of subsidized. Representatives. Just, But if Sam treats us all coincidentally, like in so well, And feeds us 2010. milk and honey, I've found the chart Please, daddy, tell me showing "The amount what the hell, He's going of total taxable income to use for money. for all filers by adjusted Don't worry, bub, gross income level for there's not a hitch, In this Don 2008" which shows here noble plan— that seizing the entire He simply soaks the Polson income of "millionaires filthy rich, And helps the common man. The way and billionaires" would have totaled $938 bilBut father, won't there lion. Confiscating every come a time, When they I see it dollar of income of all run out of cash filers from $100,000 And we have left them not a dime, When things will go to and up would get you about $3.4 trillion, more than the $2.9 trillion smash? My faith in you is shrinking, 2008 budget but far short of the $4.0 trillion 2009 budget. Does son, You nosy little brat: You do too damn much think- other people's money really run out? ing, son, To be a Democrat. "Five Lessons for America You see, there was Republican opposition to Democratic efforts to from the European Fiscal Crisis" by title, "promote the general welfare" at (search that time and, just as Obama is danieljmitchell.wordpress.com): doing now, Truman was out …3) A welfare state cripples the speech-i-fying: "We know that human spirit. 4) Nations reach a there will be more prosperity for all point of no return when the numif all groups have a fair share of the ber of people mooching off govwealth of the country. We know ernment exceeds the number of that the country will achieve eco- people producing. (All articles at nomic stability and progress only if posted the benefits of our production are donpolson.blogspot.com) widely distributed among all its citDon Polson has called Red Bluff izens." home since 1988. He can be By then, American voters were by e-mail at no longer enamored of the reached FDR/Truman progressive, redistri- donplsn@yahoo.com.