Feed: Spying On Your Neighbor - AggScore: 12.8

Spying On Your Neighbor

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img srchttpwww.personalliberty.comwpcontentthemesredesignimagesspyingimage.jpg altSpying On Your Neighbor hspace5 vspace5 alignright emWith those children, he thought, that wretched woman must lead a life of terror. Another year, two years, and they would be watching her night and day for symptoms of unorthodoxy It was almost normal for people over thirty to be frightened of their own children. And with good reason, for hardly a week passed in which the emTimesem did not carry a paragraph describing how some eavesdropping little sneakchild hero was the phrase generally usedhad overheard some compromising remark and had denounced his parents to the Thought Police. em1984, George OrwellBig Brotheror more accurately in this case, Big Sisteris invading your local WalMart, 9,000 Federal buildings, businesses, communities and sporting events with video message boards, or telescreens, right out of George Orwells em1984em.Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano on Monday announced the plan to expand the If You See Something, Say Something public awareness campaign to WalMart stores nationwide. On Wednesday, DHS issued a press release announcing other partners taking part in the program were, Mall of America, the American Hotel amp Lodging Association, Amtrak, the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, the sports and general aviation industries, and state and local fusion centers across the country. Fusion centers refers to the 72 facilities that were created after the 911 attacks to allow for more pervasive and coordinated surveillance by governments. And there are plans to expand the program in the coming months.The message encourages people to watch for suspicious behavior and report it to the government. Its right out of em1984em, or Soviet Russia or Nazi Germany. Its totalitarian, policestate tactics designed to foster suspicion and create unease under the guise of keeping us safe.Its creepy enough that messages from Big Sister will be bombarding people standing in the checkout lines at the local WalMart. But go to the website peopleofwalmart.com and then ask yourself, Do I want someone like that watching me for suspicious activityAnd then ponder whom the government considers terrorists. Its not alQaida the government is concerned with. According to the DHS report from 2009, emRightwing Extremism Current Economic and Political Climate Fueling Resurgence in Radicalization and Recruitmentem, possible terrorists include people opposed to President Barack Obama, those upset by the high unemployment rate, supporters of gun rights, those who believe in conspiracy theories involving a coming martial law declaration and the creation of detention camps, those who stockpile food, ammunition and weapons in anticipation of a collapse and Christians. And a report from the Missouri Information Analysis Center called libertarians, supporters of Ron Paul, Bob Barr and Chuck Baldwin and militia group members possible terrorists.History has shown that programs like this are not designed to keep people safe. They are designed to quash dissenting views, stifle free speech and generate fear and suspicion. Programs like this are ripe for abuse, with neighbors reporting neighbors in order to avenge some slight or end a disagreement.Its the mark of the end of a free society.