Californias Supreme Court just allowed the search of cell phones as personal property and without a warrant. This happened recently in a case involving a drug purchase from a police plant which caused the arresting officers to search the text message file of the detainees cell phone. This was taken to the Supreme Court in the Peoples Republic of California (PRoC) who allowed the search as legal. It turns out that the person arrested was involved in another drug related deal so this was added to his list of crimes. The PRoC sees this as absolutely legal. This sets an unbelievable precedent for the rest of us.
The PRoC Supreme Court ruled that the cell phone is personal property and subject to search just like clothing and books, etc. This opens Pandoras Box for search and evidence. It appears that notebook and laptop computers now fall into this personal property category and as such subject to search. This creates all manner of problems with privacy and information security. If you carry company sensitive information on your laptop and arrested for any minor infraction, the arresting officer now has a right to inspect the contents of your computer. If it is encrypted and you refuse to open the files you can be charged with being uncooperative and resisting arrest regardless of the sensitivity of the information.
Is there nothing sacred? Are we really approaching the Orwellian predictions of his novel 1984? I just completed a reread of 1984 and was subsequently blessed with an airing of the movie. Orwell was right-on unfortunately about 25 years off in his estimates. I look for full implementation of these concepts in 2020: by then we should be well indoctrinated and malleable enough and just ripe for the governmental takeover. Our surrender to governmental control is completely voluntary. We have been heading in this direction for the past several decades. The biggest governmental control grab was the Patriot Act. We lost significant ground with that one. I dont think it will be too much longer before we completely lose our freedoms and fall into the control of Big Brother.
Unauthorized wiretaps, searches of phone records, emails, and now cell phone call and text records are the tip of the iceberg. I can hardly wait for them to begin the interpretation of you intent from intercepted data. Thats where the thought police begin to enter the picture; from here the leap to governmental indoctrination begins.
Almost everything we read and hear from the media is carefully controlled and reinterpreted to give us the correct or proper spin on events. Our news is purposefully crafted to provide just enough data to either placate or frighten us. We are being lead to the correct conclusions about the events of the day. The news is controlled to lead us to the intended conclusion. Sound bytes are selected to give the intended messages. Teleprompters are used so that our leaders do not stray from the carefully crafted messages.
We know that the government is already reading (actually scanning) all of our email traffic. Their claim is that this is for national security, but where is the rationale for this decision. Sure the enemy is using email as a means of transmitting information, but they are not stupid enough to actually spell out their intent. Im sure that they use some sort of cryptic language to mask their discussions and information. Something like the misdirection used during several wars. If not they are using unencrypted or plain language in these messages they are dumber than I thought; or maybe we are.
What concerns me is that we are already under significant governmental scrutiny. We are being tracked by more means that you or I could ever know. They are aware of our shopping habits by using demographic financial data. Every time we shop using a credit or debit card someone captures that information; data which is available to anyone with marketing needs or security concerns especially the government. Every stroke on the internet is captured by someone. Consider that using search engines like Google or Bing allows them to capture the data, it is stored in a relational database, and used to serve up ads that address the information searched. If you search for shoes, the next several searches will present ads for shoes in the top or side banners in the browser window. As you change your search criterion, the ads will change to select ads appropriate to your new searches. Consider that our government is also looking at your search habits. Dont kid yourself; if you are looking for Islamic Fundamentalist organizations or meetings; someone somewhere is aware of your actions.
Every phone conversation regardless of terrestrial or cellular is being monitored for key words and phrases. When one speaks the key words or phrases, the recording starts, an analyst is flagged and the conversation is monitored to ensure national security. I do not suggest that you test this personally. It could lead down a very deep and dark rabbit hole that you really dont want to enter.
So where does this lead? We are being herded into a corner where we will be managed. Since the government is so interested in our personal conversations and since we have lost most of our freedom of speech and the privacy that our constitution intended, we will be indoctrinated and told what to think and how to think it. It has already begun and supported by the PRoC and other Supreme Court approvals.
Big Brother has or is in the process of removing religion from everything public. The 10 Commandments that were proudly posted in prominent places, have been removed. The US flag proudly displayed behind the President of the United States is conspicuously absent. The phrase In God We Trust is in jeopardy of being removed from our currency. Prayer is no longer acceptable in schools or at sporting events. It is however allowed in the opening of Congress, although I doubt is does much good. It will not be long before it is abolished here as well. Big Brother will be our new god.
Big Brother is in the public schools, too. Our children are being systematically dumbed-down and taught State approved curriculum’s designed to homogenize those impressionable young minds into the correct thought process. The teachers have no control over how subjects are presented. They are given a course outline that specifies the content of the subjects. Our youth is being indoctrinated into the Big Brother Club. They will be the next leaders of our governments. They will be in control in a very few years. They are being taught by experts in educational brainwashing how to manage our world in the next 15 years.
With the process in place, the thought police will begin working with the worse offenders next. That would be those of us that continue to push our rights to freedom of speech; those of us who insist in sharing our opinions and cautions against their loss. We will be taught how to think properly and not be so insistent on sharing our misguided and anti-governmental rhetoric. We will be retrained to be more useful propagandists for Big Brother.
Big Brother wants the guns Owners beware. They will get them, too. Somehow, someway they will convince us all that gun ownership is contrary to the good of the country. Holdouts will be vilified and prosecuted for non-compliance. Those that insist on their constitutional rights to bare arms will become enemies of the state, persecuted, prosecuted, and retrained. Do you actually think that Big Brother would risk an armed revolution? Do you think that really want us to have any power? Can they afford to have an armed rabble out there threatening their control and their power?
Big Brother promotes a two class system: The Inner Party (Rulers) and Outer Party (Their Servants, basically everyone else, the majority). This segregation allows absolute control over who is involved and at what level they can access the information. Good citizens will be allowed to live quietly in carefully guided camps working for the good of the Party. Those of us that fight the system will be retrained or sent to special camps where we can have no adverse affect on the general populace. We will be put away.
Am I overreacting? Maybe Its my super-cynical nature and my concern for what was the greatest country on Earth. We had it all and we stand to lose it all if we dont start taking control of the things that our Government is forcing on us. Our next few years will determine our future direction. We have a new Congress with some bright new faces. Lets hope that they can make the right choices and get our country back on track. Thats my hope, but my super-cynical side tells me that these new leaders will roll over just like the incumbents. They will fall prey to the special interest groups and lobbyists that promise money and power in trade for precious votes. That moves us even closer to our new god Big Brother!