Donald Trump's transition team is planning for all political appointees to receive sweeping security clearances on the first day and only face FBI background checks after the incoming administration takes over the bureau and its own officials are installed in key positions, according to people familiar with the matter. read more
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has suggested a ceasefire deal with Russia could be possible if the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) accepts Ukraine's membership request, allowing occupied territories to be addressed diplomatically at a later stage. read more
Office buildings have become like web browsers -- they're full of tracking technology, a trend documented in a report out this week by Cracked Labs.
Amid threats of new tariffs, the incoming U.S. president said Mexico's Claudia Sheinbaum had "agreed to stop migration." read more
You can opt out of facial recognition at airports, for now, but the TSA has indicated it wants to make the invasive technology a requirement. read more
Some great guitar playing on this one...
Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown - We're Outta Here (1992)
www.youtube.com
No lyrics excerpt here. This one is solely about the music.
Think You're Not Being Watched? DeFlock Says Think Again
www.forbes.com
... A new open-source project called DeFlock is shining a spotlight on the widespread use of automated license plate readers as debates about surveillance and privacy remain front of mind for many.
DeFlock enables communities to map and monitor the locations of ALPR cameras, empowering individuals to push back against unchecked surveillance practices. ...
Are automated license plate readers in your city? How to find out
www.latimes.com
... Will Freeman wants people to know they're being tracked.
His desire to shed light on the proliferation of license plate readers in his neighborhood in Huntsville, Ala., this year spurred an idea for a crowdsourced database where people across the world can upload the locations of the readers. The database, called DeFlock, also provides users with the option to list who manufactured the cameras for greater transparency. ...
More ...
San Fernando Valley gets 100 license plate-reading cameras to help police crack down on crime
www.latimes.com
... An automated license plate reader camera takes a photo or a video of a vehicle's license plate information.
With optical character recognition the plate number is compared to one or more law enforcement crime databases of vehicles of interests or "hot lists," according to the International Assn. of Chiefs of Police.
The reader technology can also detect the vehicle type and color, GPS location data and date and time of an incident, according to the Congressional Research Service. The cameras can be fixed onto poles, traffic lights, buildings or bridges and mobile cameras are frequently mounted on police cars. ...
... GPS location data and date and time of an incident ...
"An incident?"
What "incident" is that?
Driving around town is now an "incident?"
@#12 ... How accurate? ...
So... you're not a person of color?
Racial Discrimination in Face Recognition Technology (2020)
sitn.hms.harvard.edu
... We unlock our iPhones with a glance and wonder how Facebook knew to tag us in that photo. But face recognition, the technology behind these features, is more than just a gimmick. It is employed for law enforcement surveillance, airport passenger screening, and employment and housing decisions.
Despite widespread adoption, face recognition was recently banned for use by police and local agencies in several cities, including Boston and San Francisco.
Why?
Of the dominant biometrics in use (fingerprint, iris, palm, voice, and face), face recognition is the least accurate and is rife with privacy concerns. ...
@#11 ... No, but I think you need an iris scanner to walk through customs from an international flight. ...
I haven't flown internationally since 2005 or so, so I do not know current requirements.
I found this...
NEXUS Iris Scans " Why and Where (2019)
nexuscardapplication.com
... If you want to use your NEXUS Card for air travel, you need an iris scan. You need an iris scan because the Global Entry kiosks in US airports will match your eyes to the iris scan on file. The kiosks are part of the US Global Entry system and are mandatory to use when using your NEXUS Card to clear customs in an airport in Canada or the US when travelling to the US.
There is no way around this requirement for NEXUS air travel: either you get an iris scan or you only use your NEXUS Card for driving across the border or crossing the border by boat. This is why iris scanners are not at all border enrolment centres. ...
License Plate Cameras to Track Residents in Two States (March 2024)
www.govtech.com
An AI license plate surveillance startup installed hundreds of cameras without permission (February 2024)
qz.com
... Flock, a startup which promotes a surveillance state, has installed car tracking cameras in 4,000 cities among 42 states. The company makes its money and shareholder value by delivering AI-based tracking hardware and software to local police departments, which are more than happy to pay Flock's $3,000 annual fee.
The Atlanta-based company has grown nearly 2,700 percent since 2020, and at least some of that growth, according to a new report from Forbes, has come from a willingness to bend the rules to get their cameras installed and tracking your every movement. ...
More cities installing license plate reading cameras; what are they used for? (2023)
www.wxyz.com
... The city of Ferndale is the latest city in Michigan that will install license plate reading cameras to help fight crime.
It's expected the city will have them in place in around three months, and police say they will make the city safer without violating privacy. However, drivers are responding and some people have important questions. ...
OK, tangentially related?
License Plate Recognition Cameras | Transformative Surveillance
www.cctvsecuritypros.com
... License Plate Recognition Cameras (LPR) can revolutionize home and business security. Using highly sophisticated imaging technologies, LPR cameras offer an unprecedented level of surveillance capabilities.
They possess the ability to read and store data from license plates, hence providing seamless monitoring and control over vehicular movement.
Designed for optimal functionality, these cameras are equipped with high-contrast imaging, ideal for capturing clear and accurate license plate records, especially in low light and high-speed situations.
Their enhanced compatibility also enables easy integration into your existing surveillance system. ...
And, for the record, here is the pre-season prediction I saved...
NOAA forecasts extraordinarily busy Atlantic hurricane season (May 2024)
www.axios.com
... By the numbers: The NOAA is forecasting the season will bring 85% odds of an above normal season, with 17"25 named storms of tropical storm intensity or greater, eight to 13 of which will become hurricanes, and four to seven major hurricanes of Category 3 or greater. ...
So... how did that forecast do?
There's this...
2024 Atlantic hurricane season
en.wikipedia.org
... Seasonal statistics
Total depressions 18
Total storms 18
Hurricanes 11
Major hurricanes (Cat. 3+) 5
...
Yup.
And this is with a slow start ...
Unusually mild Atlantic hurricane season likely to ramp up (August 2024)
www.axios.com
... 2024 was forecast to be one of the busiest Atlantic hurricane seasons on record. Yet Atlantic storm activity is in a near-historic pause.
Why it matters: The reduced activity highlights the challenge of long-term forecasting, even as short-term forecasts indicate things will soon kick back up.
Between the lines: The causes of the pause come down to a few big factors. ...
Another view...
Syria insurgents enter Aleppo in new anti-Assad offensive
www.dw.com
... Insurgents reached Aleppo, Syria's second city, on Friday, in a swift offensive against Bashar Assad's forces, who are supported by Russian and Iranian allies.
The fighting is some of the deadliest in years, with 255 people, mostly combatants killed, according to the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
It started on Wednesday in areas controlled by the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS). Turkish-backed rebels, calling themselves the Syrian National Army, joined the fighting. ...
@#10 ... NBC actually fired him from The Apprentice. ...
I did not know that.
NBC fired Donald Trump from "The Apprentice" for "making racist remarks."
www.snopes.com
... Rating: True ...
@#15 ... Nope. The pardon power only extends to "Offenses against the United States," i.e. federal crimes. The underlying civil judgment in this is for state law defamation against two individuals. ...
OK the reason I had wondered about the pardon ability is that I saw mention of this case as bing in a Federal court.
'The Court Will Take Action': Judge Upbraids Combative Rudy Giuliani During Outburst at Hearing
www.law.com
... Rudy Giuliani was chastised in Manhattan federal court on Tuesday after the ex-New York City mayor attempted to shout down the judge overseeing attempts by Georgia poll workers he defamed to collect on their nearly $150 million judgment.
U.S. District Judge Lewis Liman of the Southern District of New York interrupted a nearly 30-second rant by Giuliani to say he would not be permitted to speak in court again unless he wanted to represent himself pro se.
"The court will take action," Liman told Giuliani if there were future interruptions. "You can't have hybrid representation."
"We can have him take the stand in the future," the judge told defense attorney Joseph Cammarata.
The outburst came following disputed accounts over the location of a car title that Giuliani has so far failed to turn over to plaintiffs Ruby Freeman and Wandrea "Shaye" Moss, in violation of a court order. ...
That is the case of which I spoke.
Is it a Federal case?
Xymox - Imagination (1989)
www.youtube.com
Lyrics excerpt...
genius.com