Darwin's Theories - Politics category

Another Top 10

Mon, 25 Jan 2010 17:29:00 GMT

Here we go again:

Security Theatre, Part n

Thu, 31 Dec 2009 20:35:00 GMT

According to a BBC report on the latest security theatre, airline customers are now to be subject to the following indignities for in-flight entertainment:

Customers to remain seated during final hour of flight;
No access to hand luggage and a ban on leaving possessions or blankets on laps during this hour.

Now I don't know about you, but I don't find this very comforting. The thought of being forced to sit still is inculcated in obedient citizens from kindergarten (a German word meaning roughly "vegetable garden to grow kids"). But at a certain point things like bladder pressure will win out. And what happens if you're in mid-whiz at the one-hour mark? Do you get shot by the air marshall while trying to return to your seat? (Watch the news for this one, folks). The entire process is utterly ridiculous. If the bomber had tried to light his fuse at the 45 minute mark into the flight, who can doubt that they'd ban visiting the toilet between 37 and 52 minutes after takeoff?

Remember the shoe bomber and how airport security made everybody take their shoes off before flight? Didn't stop the next religious fanatic with a fuse to light, did it?

The notion of an allegedly civilized nation dancing its "security" policies in the wind every time there's a real or perceived threat, to so vastly inconvenience its population while at the same time making no difference to the actual terrorists, is so laughable it's earned the term "security theater" - putting on a big show, but doing nothing for actual security.

It's not just me saying so. See Bruce Schnier's many writings on this topic, and his essay The Psychology of Security. Bruce is a well-known cryptology and security researcher; he knows whereof he speaks. TSA, not so much.

Truly Frightening

Wed, 28 Jan 2009 04:09:00 GMT

South of the border, Glenn Greenwald has been doing a pretty good job of showing how mainstream US journalists not only no longer expose law- and constitution-breaking by upper-echelon politicians, but actively support, encourage, condone and support it in their writings. And, about that country's vicious two-tier justice system.

Meanwhile, north of the border, we have a new federal budget. Today on the news, one of our darling Opposition critics was complaining about the Prime Minister's "tax gimmicks" - Harper plans to cut taxes as part of a package to get people spending. Calling this a "tax gimmick" is vicious - money collected by taxes does not originally and automatically belong to the Almighty State - it is taken by force of law from the people that own it. A personal income tax cut, for example, leaves more money in the hands of middle class and working poor. The "gimmick" is in taking this money away from them, then giving it to failing multi-nationals that are probably going down anyway (both because they have totally failed to renew and revitalize their business processes and their products, and because they're being bled out by the labour unions). These are the same multi-nationals whose US CEOs flew to Washington to beg... each in their own private executive jet. A gimmick like that, we don't need. In either country.

It's true what they say about the Bush Administration

Sun, 21 Dec 2008 20:31:00 GMT

Elizabeth de la Vega lays out a clear statement of facts surrounding the outgoing administration in her article The White House Criminal Conspiracy. Read it. If you're a U.S. Citizen, you might want to act on it, before it's too late.

It's true what they say about airport security

Sat, 18 Oct 2008 20:41:00 GMT

"Airport security in America is a sham—“security theater” designed to make travelers feel better and catch stupid terrorists. Smart ones can get through security with fake boarding passes and all manner of prohibited items—as our correspondent did with ease..."

There's nothing I can add to this. While you're there, check the other security-related articles on the site.