Thursday, July 10, 2008

info/ethno ning thing

http://informethno.ning.com/

Information Science \ Social Science > socio-info literacy solutions

ubuntu in yr library

Good old Ms West puts Ubuntu on some donated computers:




By the way, I guess you noticed I got my dates wrong on that FISA bill thing. But what the hell. Once you tell yr representatives that yr vote for their re-election is on the line, you've played the last hand. No ace card left, is there?

Monday, July 07, 2008

fisa vote tomorrow, 8 july

Today is the day to speak up. Tomorrow they vote.

http://www.boingboing.net/2008/07/07/daniel-ellsberg-on-w.html

"Over on Boing Boing Gadgets, our Joel posts this video in which Tim Ferriss interviews Daniel "Pentagon Papers" Ellsberg about tomorrow's vote on warrantless wiretapping in the USA. If Congress passes this bill (the "FISA bill"), it will become legal for intelligence agencies to bulk-wiretap American citizens without a warrant, using data-mining to listen in on millions of Internet and phone connections. Ellsberg, a heroic former intelligence officer, is eloquent and uncompromising in his condemnation of this -- and he makes a good case that any Congressperson who votes for it is violating her/his oath to uphold the Constitution."


also:
https://secure.eff.org/site/Advocacy?alertId=389&pg=makeACall

Action Alert: Tell Your Senators: "Don't Shred the Constitution this July 4th -- Reject Telecom Immunity!"

After the Fourth of July holiday, the Senate will vote on the FISA Amendments Act (FAA), a bill that would betray the spirit of 1776 by radically expanding the president’s spying powers and granting immunity to the companies that colluded in his illegal program. Now that the House has passed the FAA, the Senate is the last front left in the battle against immunity, and every vote -- from cloture, to the amendments, to final passage -- counts.

Therefore EFF urges all patriots to celebrate the Fourth of July this year by demanding that their senators uphold the rule of law and stand up for civil liberties, by voting against the FAA and for the amendments to the bill that would eliminate or weaken its telecom immunity provisions.

or email them:

https://secure.eff.org/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=391

verbiage like:

I'm a constituent and I urge you to oppose telecom immunity and the FISA Amendments Act (FAA). As a constituent, I am very troubled that during this patriotic holiday season, the Senate appears ready to toss civil liberties and the rule of law out the window, and so I urge you oppose telecom immunity with every vote that you have when the FISA bill comes to the Senate floor on Tuesday, July 8th:

Vote "YES" on the Dodd-Feingold amendment, which would strip telecom immunity from the bill entirely.

Vote "YES" on the Bingaman amendment, which would delay implementation of telecom immunity until after Congress has received the Inspectors General report on the president's warrantless surveillance program.

Vote "NO" on the cloture motion to end debate on the FAA,

And finally, vote "NO" on the FISA Amendments Act, an unconstitutional and dangerous bill that would radically expand the president's spying powers and immunize the companies that helped him break the law.


with an emphasis on "YOUR RE-ELECTION DEPENDS on you FIGHTING FOR THE 4th AMENDMENT."

http://www.votesmart.org/