October 19, 2007

IMPEACH BUSH


IMPEACH CHENEY

THE FULL SCOPE OF PRIVACY

Some people make the inane argument that they don't mind if the government spies on them because they have "nothing to hide." Privacy is a fundamental right. A desire for privacy does not mean a person is hiding something bad. They are simply claiming the personal space to which all people should be entitled. This article by John Dean is at www.smirkingchimp.com:

For several years I have been reading the work of George Washington University Law School Professor Daniel J. Solove, who writes extensively about privacy in the context of contemporary digital technology. The current apathy about government surveillance brought to mind his essay "'I've Got Nothing To Hide' And Other Misunderstandings of Privacy."

Professor Solove's deconstruction of the "I've got nothing to hide" position, and related justifications for government surveillance, is the best brief analysis of this issue I have found. These arguments are not easy to zap because, once they are on the table, they can set the terms of the argument. As Solove explains, "the problem with the nothing to hide argument is with its underlying assumption that privacy is about hiding bad things." He warns, "Agreeing with this assumption concedes far too much ground and leads to an unproductive discussion of information people would likely want or not want to hide." Solove's bottom line is that this argument "myopically views privacy as a form of concealment or secrecy."

WORKING PEOPLE DON'T COUNT WITH THIS GOVERNMENT

It's despicable that George W. Bush vetoed a bill extending health care to millions of children in the United States. It's despicable that Congress failed to override that veto. We have a disgraceful health care system in this country. I have a friend who had to get some dental work done. It cost $4,000. The insurance plan provided by her employer pays about $1,000 of that bill. No one should have to be confronted with that situation in this country. This article by Donna Smith at www.smirkingchimp.com expresses some of my outrage:

So, President Bush vetoes the State Children's Health Insurance Program expansion and Congress fails to override that veto. So this is our government? No, it is not. It may be the insurance companies' government and the health care profiteers' government, but it sure as hell isn't mine.

This government tries to protect life in the womb but devalues that life once a child is born and fails to provide basic health care for working-class children. That's not my government.

This government doesn't value my work ethic or my determination to provide for myself. Since I am among those classified as the "working poor," I can fend for myself for health care coverage. That's not my government.

This government does an awful lot of finger-pointing about who's to blame for what but never watches out for my health care needs. It's a weak Congress. It's a bumbling administration or worse - it's a selfish one. That's not my government.