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* Posts by Wotan Son of Tharg

2 publicly visible posts • joined 23 Jun 2008

Public support for ID cards dips to 55 per cent

Wotan Son of Tharg

French Resistance in WW2

In WW2 the Germans forced the French to carry ID cards. Their use then didn't stop the activities of the French Resistance who continued to blow-up infrastructure and kill in the name of their cause. Some got caught but their 'terrorism' continued. So ID cards didn't then and won't today prevent terrorism.

The UK government wants us to believe ID cards will protect us by controlling immigration. People moving within the EU are not now classed as immigrants. Those not from the EU are a relatively small number. So ID cards do not help control immigration since immigration is now allowed but has a new name.

The government would have us believe ID cards will ensure state benefits are only received by those entitled to them. For years the National Insurance number achieved this function so ID cards again are not required.

But perhaps the real reason is that the state now wants to move to the next level simply because it can. Having sanctioned and encouraged ubiquitous communicating and information sharing it wants to harvest the benefits. Computers can monitor phone calls, email and internet traffic/usage without the use of humans, thereby technically not breaking any laws that require warrants to be signed. Computers already plot relationships between people, their thoughts and purchases. The UK government wants a new Generation 2 surveillance system, basically an upgraded version of ECHELON that the EU parliament has already investigated and questioned twice, at a cost that vastly exceeds any damage that could be inflicted by the terrorists and criminals it is intended to catch. But all this will be a waste of money if the government is not 100% sure who is at the end of the communication. That is why it needs ID cards - to close a gap in the chain.

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The war on photographers - you're all al Qaeda suspects now

Wotan Son of Tharg
Unhappy

Surveillance mentality

I am shocked you would even publish this article knowing terrorists are on the lookout for evidence of how we protect our society. People don't take photographs just for fun you know they have a reason and the police are within their rights to ask how they have the time when they should be elsewhere. Besides, only terrorists would spend so much money on an SLR, so that's pretty clear evidence of guilt.

But they need to go much further to protect us. We need every form of surveillance available. They need to install CCTV and recording equipment on every street corner and in every room in every home. I for one wish they would install them in the countryside too. There is a lot going on out there that is not being watched closely enough. What are those people watching on TV and listening to on the radio, what are they saying in the pubs and why are they laughing like that...?

We should praise all those who watch us and those who watch the watchers. They are doing all this surveillance stuff in my name and in the names of so many other innocent UK citizens to make our lives safe from tyranny and repression. If the terrorists won they would make us live in a surveillance state, everyone reporting on everyone else. Do you want to live in a country like that, because I don't.

But all this surveillance stuff is really expensive so we need to think of cost saving ways of doing it. When I visit the US I hope the UK authorities ensure my fingerprints and photograph, as well as everyone else's, are passed back to the security services of the UK for inclusion in our national register. It would save so much time and trouble rather than seeking Parliamentary approval to collect such data. Why stop there? I also hope the government realises just how much money and paperwork can be saved by asking the security service's of other nations to record my phone calls, indeed everyone's phone calls. Having to fill in a load of paperwork and get warrants must be such a pain when they have such an important job tracking down terrorists and those who would challenge the freedoms laid down in Magna Carta. Terrorists you see don't appreciate Magna Carta because it is such an old bit of parchment. It's all out of date these days.

Lets encourage the authorities to introduce national ID cards as quickly as possible. During the second world war ID cards were such a help as it allowed the Germans to identify French resistance fighters because each of their cards had 'RESISTANCE FIGHTER' written in big letters on it. Today we could print 'TERRORIST' on the card making ID cards such an easy way for the police to know the holders intention.

Finally, we need to make sure there is no hiding place for terrorists and for that reason we have to encourage those who protect us to monitor MP's as well even if they tell the MP's it against some rule or other. After all, imagine what would happen if the MP's started to meet in corners and planned to defeat these surveillance measures. That would make them no better than terrorists plotting to overthrow the will of the people.

So that's why asking people why they are taking photographs of buildings is so necessary.

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