http://www.ciol.com/content/search/showarticle1.asp?artid=89956
"The Bangalore police last year managed to solve 18 missing persons cases. All thanks to the nifty software at the cyberforensics lab attached to the Cybercrime police station in the city.According to Sanjay Vir Singh, Deputy Inspector General of Police, Economic Offenses, Corp of Detectives (COD), Bangalore, the lab has a set of 12 softwares including a “read-notify” solution that can tell the location/city from when a person accesses his or her e-mail account. “Even if the missing person does not write an email and just clicks into the account, we can track it,” he explained."
SOCIETY, SOCIAL MEDIA, ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE< GOVERNMENT>JUSTICE - a selective newsfeed
society
Sunday, October 22, 2006
[Netherlands] Refugee children behind bars : Action, action everywhere - but not a change in sight / Radio Netherlands, 21 Oct 2006
http://www.radionetherlands.nl/documentaries/061021doc
Mindy Ran
"Currently in the Netherlands there are over 200 children of refused asylum seekers held in high-security detention with their parents. While both the number of children affected and the protests against this are rising, the government appears not to be listening."
Mindy Ran
"Currently in the Netherlands there are over 200 children of refused asylum seekers held in high-security detention with their parents. While both the number of children affected and the protests against this are rising, the government appears not to be listening."
An overview of the nature and extent of illicit drug use amongst the Traveller community /
PDF - http://www.ndc.hrb.ie/attached/3004-3193.pdf
"A new study aimed at assessing the nature and extent of drug use amongst the Travelling Community in Ireland shows that Travellers are a risk group for whom the impact of drug use and its consequent problems is now emerging."
"A new study aimed at assessing the nature and extent of drug use amongst the Travelling Community in Ireland shows that Travellers are a risk group for whom the impact of drug use and its consequent problems is now emerging."
[Iraq]HUNTING GAYS IN IRAQ: How the Death Squads Work / Direland, 22 Oct 2006
http://direland.typepad.com/direland/2006/10/hunting_gays_in.html
"The Badr Corps’ murderous campaign is not limited to street executions—it includes Internet entrapment and intimidation backed by violence. Networks of neighborhood informers—SCIRI militants and sympathizers—track suspected gays and report them for targeting by the terror campaign."
"The Badr Corps’ murderous campaign is not limited to street executions—it includes Internet entrapment and intimidation backed by violence. Networks of neighborhood informers—SCIRI militants and sympathizers—track suspected gays and report them for targeting by the terror campaign."
Saturday, October 21, 2006
The Impact of Implicit Stereotyping on Offender Profiling: Unexpected Results From an Observational Study of Shoplifting
Criminal Justice and Behavior 2006 33: 646-674
PDF - http://cjb.sagepub.com/cgi/reprint/33/5/646
Dean A. Dabney, Laura Dugan, Volkan Topalli, and Richard C. Hollinger
PDF - http://cjb.sagepub.com/cgi/reprint/33/5/646
Dean A. Dabney, Laura Dugan, Volkan Topalli, and Richard C. Hollinger
VIOLENCE BETWEEN THE POLICE AND THE PUBLIC : Influences of Work-Related Stress, Job Satisfaction, Burnout, and Situational Factors
Criminal Justice and Behavior 2006 33: 613-645
PDF - http://cjb.sagepub.com/cgi/reprint/33/5/613
PATRIK MANZONI ; MANUEL EISNER
PDF - http://cjb.sagepub.com/cgi/reprint/33/5/613
PATRIK MANZONI ; MANUEL EISNER
Gangs not out of control / Hackney Gazette, 20 Oct 2006
http://digbig.com/4nkma
"A SENIOR police officer has blasted reports that he described gang warfare in Hackney as spiralling out of control. Supt Leroy Logan denied that he had labelled Hackney as one of the most dangerous boroughs in London, rife with US-style postcode killings by rival mobs, after an internal report he wrote in May was leaked to a national newspaper last weekend. "There's nothing in my report which says anything of that nature," he said. "We're doing extremely well in keeping these things in perspective. "The report, which focuses on Hackney, says that the borough is "suffering from the highest rates of increase of gun and knife crime in London".
"A SENIOR police officer has blasted reports that he described gang warfare in Hackney as spiralling out of control. Supt Leroy Logan denied that he had labelled Hackney as one of the most dangerous boroughs in London, rife with US-style postcode killings by rival mobs, after an internal report he wrote in May was leaked to a national newspaper last weekend. "There's nothing in my report which says anything of that nature," he said. "We're doing extremely well in keeping these things in perspective. "The report, which focuses on Hackney, says that the borough is "suffering from the highest rates of increase of gun and knife crime in London".
Are you a middle-class criminal? / Financial Times, 20 Oct 2006
http://digbig.com/4nkky
Richard Tomkins
"Working late at the office, you are loading some more paper into the printer when you suddenly remember you have run out of A4 at home. “Well,” you tell yourself, “I’m working overtime for nothing, so I’m owed.” Thus exonerated, you unlock the stationery cupboard and help yourself to a pack of 500 sheets – followed by a roll of Sellotape, three pens and a Pritt stick. This, of course, is an act of pure, unvarnished theft. If you were caught nicking the stuff from Ryman, the police would come and arrest you. But somehow, the middle classes have managed to persuade themselves that when they commit a crime for personal gain, it is not the same as when the criminal classes do. So they lie, cheat and steal with abandon." [Sub Required]
Richard Tomkins
"Working late at the office, you are loading some more paper into the printer when you suddenly remember you have run out of A4 at home. “Well,” you tell yourself, “I’m working overtime for nothing, so I’m owed.” Thus exonerated, you unlock the stationery cupboard and help yourself to a pack of 500 sheets – followed by a roll of Sellotape, three pens and a Pritt stick. This, of course, is an act of pure, unvarnished theft. If you were caught nicking the stuff from Ryman, the police would come and arrest you. But somehow, the middle classes have managed to persuade themselves that when they commit a crime for personal gain, it is not the same as when the criminal classes do. So they lie, cheat and steal with abandon." [Sub Required]
The case against vetting
http://www.spiked-online.com/index.php?/site/earticle/1888/
Josie Appleton
" A new report reveals the damage done by the never-ending expansion of criminal records checks for anyone involved with children. Criminal records vetting was once for people in unusual positions, such as spies and judges; now millions of fathers and mothers need the all-clear before they can go on school trips, become school governors, or volunteer with the local boys’ football team. I have written a Manifesto Club report, The Case Against Vetting: How the Child Protection Industry is Poisoning Adult-Child Relations. The report documents just how far vetting has gone, and draws on testimonies from childcare experts, sports teachers and community workers, to show how the massive expansion of these bureaucratic procedures is eroding relationships of trust.
Josie Appleton
" A new report reveals the damage done by the never-ending expansion of criminal records checks for anyone involved with children. Criminal records vetting was once for people in unusual positions, such as spies and judges; now millions of fathers and mothers need the all-clear before they can go on school trips, become school governors, or volunteer with the local boys’ football team. I have written a Manifesto Club report, The Case Against Vetting: How the Child Protection Industry is Poisoning Adult-Child Relations. The report documents just how far vetting has gone, and draws on testimonies from childcare experts, sports teachers and community workers, to show how the massive expansion of these bureaucratic procedures is eroding relationships of trust.
New Agency promises to reach out to the 'world of policing' / Jane's Police Review, 18 Oct 2006
http://jpr.janes.com
"OFFICERS are due to get a say on the direction of policing via a number of practitioners' panels at the new National Policing Improvement Agency, its chairman has promised. Peter Holland, appointed last month by the Home Secretary, told Police Review the panels would help the Agency work better with officers than its predecessors did. [Sub required]
"OFFICERS are due to get a say on the direction of policing via a number of practitioners' panels at the new National Policing Improvement Agency, its chairman has promised. Peter Holland, appointed last month by the Home Secretary, told Police Review the panels would help the Agency work better with officers than its predecessors did. [Sub required]
[Belgium] Foreigners detained unnecessarily / Expatica News, 20 Oct 2006
http://digbig.com/4nkkt
"A quarter of all asylum seekers are being held in one of Belgium's six asylum centres (centres fermés) under poor conditions and unnecessarily according to a report based on eye-witness accounts. There are also a number of complaints listed about the use of violence during forced repatriations and currently detainees have little chance of proving their claims as currently there is no video surveillance during the process and no overall monitoring of the events following the arrival and detention of asylum seekers. In view of this, Refugee Work Flanders has called for all forced repatriations to be filmed."
The report is available in French at http://www.cire.irisnet.be/
"A quarter of all asylum seekers are being held in one of Belgium's six asylum centres (centres fermés) under poor conditions and unnecessarily according to a report based on eye-witness accounts. There are also a number of complaints listed about the use of violence during forced repatriations and currently detainees have little chance of proving their claims as currently there is no video surveillance during the process and no overall monitoring of the events following the arrival and detention of asylum seekers. In view of this, Refugee Work Flanders has called for all forced repatriations to be filmed."
The report is available in French at http://www.cire.irisnet.be/
Community Policing Tactics Win Global Recognition / GovTech, 17 Oct 2006
http://www.govtech.net/magazine/channel_story.php/101714
"Police departments from the United States, Canada and India received the Webber Seavey award, an annual recognition of innovative police programs from around the world that is sponsored by the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) and Motorola Inc. The 15th annual Webber Seavey Award for Quality in Law Enforcement this year spotlights programs that combated identity theft in the United States, drug smuggling/addiction in remote areas of Quebec and the organized sex trade in India. Each year, the award recognizes innovative policing programs that can serve as models for law enforcement agencies worldwide."
"Police departments from the United States, Canada and India received the Webber Seavey award, an annual recognition of innovative police programs from around the world that is sponsored by the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) and Motorola Inc. The 15th annual Webber Seavey Award for Quality in Law Enforcement this year spotlights programs that combated identity theft in the United States, drug smuggling/addiction in remote areas of Quebec and the organized sex trade in India. Each year, the award recognizes innovative policing programs that can serve as models for law enforcement agencies worldwide."
[Australia] 'No end' to terror threat / News.com, 19 Oct 2006
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,20607229-421,00.html
Patrick Walters
"THE nation's security outlook remains complex and dangerous, with ASIO warning there is no sign the range of threats to Australians is diminishing. The annual report from the country's chief spy agency says the terror group Jemaah Islamiah remains a serious threat to Australian interests and continues to foment violent jihad in parts of Indonesia. ASIO says it is now clear that Islamic extremists see Australian interests around the world and Australia itself as targets for terrorist attacks. In its review of the global terrorist threat, ASIO concluded that al-Qa'ida had a reduced ability to undertake terrorist operations, with its primary role now largely inspirational. "
ASIO Annual Report 2005-2006 - PDF - http://digbig.com/4nkks
Patrick Walters
"THE nation's security outlook remains complex and dangerous, with ASIO warning there is no sign the range of threats to Australians is diminishing. The annual report from the country's chief spy agency says the terror group Jemaah Islamiah remains a serious threat to Australian interests and continues to foment violent jihad in parts of Indonesia. ASIO says it is now clear that Islamic extremists see Australian interests around the world and Australia itself as targets for terrorist attacks. In its review of the global terrorist threat, ASIO concluded that al-Qa'ida had a reduced ability to undertake terrorist operations, with its primary role now largely inspirational. "
ASIO Annual Report 2005-2006 - PDF - http://digbig.com/4nkks
Interferons on a budget / Corrections connection, 18 Oct 2006
http://www.corrections.com/news/article.aspx?articleid=14335
Sarah Etter
"When the Centers for Disease Control released its guidelines for the prevention and treatment of Hepatitis C two years ago, the North Dakota Department of Correction and Rehabilitation faced a health problem that came with a hefty price tag. It is one expensive disease to treat. Most of the people who need Hep C treatment are usually alcoholics or drug users, and in prison, it’s a real problem because they are a much higher concentration of that population.” Roughly 6.3 percent of the agency’s population has been diagnosed with the virus, and it is responsible for treating all long-term offenders. But Hep C treatment can cost, on average, upwards of $21,165 annually per inmate. For ND’s 1,300 Hep C positive inmates that’s a hefty $275,145 yearly bill."
Sarah Etter
"When the Centers for Disease Control released its guidelines for the prevention and treatment of Hepatitis C two years ago, the North Dakota Department of Correction and Rehabilitation faced a health problem that came with a hefty price tag. It is one expensive disease to treat. Most of the people who need Hep C treatment are usually alcoholics or drug users, and in prison, it’s a real problem because they are a much higher concentration of that population.” Roughly 6.3 percent of the agency’s population has been diagnosed with the virus, and it is responsible for treating all long-term offenders. But Hep C treatment can cost, on average, upwards of $21,165 annually per inmate. For ND’s 1,300 Hep C positive inmates that’s a hefty $275,145 yearly bill."
Managing Migration Means Potential EU Complicity in Neighboring States’ Abuse of Migrants and Refugees / HRW, October 2006
http://hrw.org/backgrounder/eca/eu1006/
PDF - http://hrw.org/backgrounder/eca/eu1006/eu1006web.pdf
Current lack of protection in states bordering the EU
The case of Ukraine
The case of Libya
PDF - http://hrw.org/backgrounder/eca/eu1006/eu1006web.pdf
Current lack of protection in states bordering the EU
The case of Ukraine
The case of Libya
Thousands of Zimbabweans deported to Malawi / andnetwork .com, 19 Oct 2006
http://digbig.com/4nkkq
"At least 3 000 Zimbabweans are said to have been deported from the UK to Malawi during the past few months. Zimbabweans are said to be using Malawian travel documents to escape scrutiny by immigration officials in the United Kingdom and other Western countries. Muzuwa said the deportees had documents proving they were actually Zimbabweans travelling on Malawi papers, because they require no visas. But the British government did not verify their authenticity with the Zimbabwean government." [Passports]
"At least 3 000 Zimbabweans are said to have been deported from the UK to Malawi during the past few months. Zimbabweans are said to be using Malawian travel documents to escape scrutiny by immigration officials in the United Kingdom and other Western countries. Muzuwa said the deportees had documents proving they were actually Zimbabweans travelling on Malawi papers, because they require no visas. But the British government did not verify their authenticity with the Zimbabwean government." [Passports]
[Canada] Senator blasts inaction on air security / Toronto Star, 19 Oct 2006
http://digbig.com/4nkkp
PETER EDWARDS
"Organized crime groups and potential terrorists continue to operate freely at Pearson International Airport because of federal government indifference, says a senator who heads a post-9/11 probe on national security. He said he's concerned by what he considers easy access to aircraft by potential terrorists and outlaw bikers such as Hells Angels, as well as Asian crime groups, traditional organized-crime groups or mobsters, Russian organized-crime groups and South American drug cartels."
PETER EDWARDS
"Organized crime groups and potential terrorists continue to operate freely at Pearson International Airport because of federal government indifference, says a senator who heads a post-9/11 probe on national security. He said he's concerned by what he considers easy access to aircraft by potential terrorists and outlaw bikers such as Hells Angels, as well as Asian crime groups, traditional organized-crime groups or mobsters, Russian organized-crime groups and South American drug cartels."
Netherlands grants asylum to gay Iranians / Pink News, 19 Oct 2006
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-2768.html
Marc Shoffman
"Gay Iranian asylum seekers in the Netherlands will not be sent back to their home country. Reacting to pressure from human rights groups, Dutch Immigration Minister Rita Verdonk has granted gays and lesbians from Iran special asylum rights. Asylum seekers fleeing because of fear of persecution because of their sexual orientation will now be granted full residence status. The about-turn comes after Human Rights Watch wrote to Dutch authorities calling on them not to return people to countries where they face torture, ill-treatment or death, a fate known to be awaiting LGBT people in Iran where Sharia law proscribes the death penalty for homosexuality."
Marc Shoffman
"Gay Iranian asylum seekers in the Netherlands will not be sent back to their home country. Reacting to pressure from human rights groups, Dutch Immigration Minister Rita Verdonk has granted gays and lesbians from Iran special asylum rights. Asylum seekers fleeing because of fear of persecution because of their sexual orientation will now be granted full residence status. The about-turn comes after Human Rights Watch wrote to Dutch authorities calling on them not to return people to countries where they face torture, ill-treatment or death, a fate known to be awaiting LGBT people in Iran where Sharia law proscribes the death penalty for homosexuality."
Pakistan to send back immigrants deported from Spain / EITB 24, 19 Oct 2006
http://digbig.com/4nkkn
"Pakistan's embassy in Spain issued "emergency passports" to 42 illegal immigrants but informed immigration officials in Pakistan that it was unsure about their nationalities. A planeload of illegal immigrants landed in Pakistan from Spain but officials found that most of the passengers were from Indian Kashmir and planned to send them back to Spain. Pakistan's embassy in Spain issued "emergency passports" to 42 illegal immigrants but informed immigration officials in Pakistan that it was unsure about their nationalities. "To the surprise of our staff, there was only one Pakistani among them," said Tariq Pervez, head of the Federal Investigation Agency, which deals with immigration. He said most of the passengers were from Indian Kashmir. "We are interrogating them and will send the non-Pakistanis back to Spain," Pervez said." [Brief]
"Pakistan's embassy in Spain issued "emergency passports" to 42 illegal immigrants but informed immigration officials in Pakistan that it was unsure about their nationalities. A planeload of illegal immigrants landed in Pakistan from Spain but officials found that most of the passengers were from Indian Kashmir and planned to send them back to Spain. Pakistan's embassy in Spain issued "emergency passports" to 42 illegal immigrants but informed immigration officials in Pakistan that it was unsure about their nationalities. "To the surprise of our staff, there was only one Pakistani among them," said Tariq Pervez, head of the Federal Investigation Agency, which deals with immigration. He said most of the passengers were from Indian Kashmir. "We are interrogating them and will send the non-Pakistanis back to Spain," Pervez said." [Brief]
Fighting Terrorism by Sharing Data / Wall Street Journal, October 2006
http://digbig.com/4nkkm
Robert Block
"Under intense criticism from local officials, the Department of Homeland Security will revamp its information-sharing programs and the way it works with police in the fight against terrorism. Among the changes expected to be announced are plans to speed up security clearances for local police; to provide faster, better threat ..." [Sub Required]
Robert Block
"Under intense criticism from local officials, the Department of Homeland Security will revamp its information-sharing programs and the way it works with police in the fight against terrorism. Among the changes expected to be announced are plans to speed up security clearances for local police; to provide faster, better threat ..." [Sub Required]
Infrequent Pot Use Often Goes Undetected On Hair Strand Tests / NORML, 19 Oct 2006
http://www.norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=7075
"Drug testing technology that detects the residual presence of cannabinoids and/or their metabolites in the hair typically fails to identify occasional marijuana users, according to trial data published online (ahead of print) by the journal Forensic Science International."
"Drug testing technology that detects the residual presence of cannabinoids and/or their metabolites in the hair typically fails to identify occasional marijuana users, according to trial data published online (ahead of print) by the journal Forensic Science International."
[Netherlands] 1,400 Amsterdam Muslims 'are potential extremists' / Expatica, 18 Oct 2006
http://digbig.com/4nkkk
"Research has indicated that more than 1,400 young Muslims in Amsterdam, or 2 percent of the capital's Islamic population, are potential extremists. The University of Amsterdam academics identified the potential extremists as 16 to 18-year-olds of Moroccan and Turkish origin with a high school education. They would be socially isolated and display a deep distrust of the political system. The academics said the youths were susceptible to radicalisation because of their very orthodox beliefs combined with deep dissatisfaction with the debate over Islam in the Netherlands."
"Research has indicated that more than 1,400 young Muslims in Amsterdam, or 2 percent of the capital's Islamic population, are potential extremists. The University of Amsterdam academics identified the potential extremists as 16 to 18-year-olds of Moroccan and Turkish origin with a high school education. They would be socially isolated and display a deep distrust of the political system. The academics said the youths were susceptible to radicalisation because of their very orthodox beliefs combined with deep dissatisfaction with the debate over Islam in the Netherlands."
Sefton Centre for Restorative Practices: Heading for a RestorativeCommunity / Real Justice, October 2006
http://www.realjustice.org/library/beth06_finnismoran.html
Mark Finnis and Paul Moran,
" The center offers restorative conferences for victims and offenders andtheir communities of care -- in cases ranging from "deaths to the theft of a pencil and everything in between" -- as well as family groupconferences for incidents within families. Sefton schools have greatly benefited from restorative practices training and consulting providedby the center. Restorative approaches -- from informal interventions inplayground disputes to formal conferences in which affected partiesaddress transgressions -- have been implemented throughout Sefton schools, and are preparing children to deal with issues far beyond theclassroom."
PDF - http://fp.enter.net/restorativepractices/beth06_finnismoran.pdf
Mark Finnis and Paul Moran,
" The center offers restorative conferences for victims and offenders andtheir communities of care -- in cases ranging from "deaths to the theft of a pencil and everything in between" -- as well as family groupconferences for incidents within families. Sefton schools have greatly benefited from restorative practices training and consulting providedby the center. Restorative approaches -- from informal interventions inplayground disputes to formal conferences in which affected partiesaddress transgressions -- have been implemented throughout Sefton schools, and are preparing children to deal with issues far beyond theclassroom."
PDF - http://fp.enter.net/restorativepractices/beth06_finnismoran.pdf
Friday, October 20, 2006
DR Congo 'No Place for children' - but still the UK send them back / NCADC, 20 Oct 2006
http://www.ncadc.org.uk/index.htm
"DR Congo at the moment is one of the worst places in which to be born and to grow up" Secretary of State for International Development (Hilary Benn). There are more than 250,000 homeless children in the DRC. [I would also like to raise the ongoing and acute humanitarian needs of millions of Congolese. Misery and deprivation remain a fact of life for too many Congolese. Hilary Benn 11th September 2006, on his return from a visit to DR Congo]
There was a debate in Parliament 'Street Children in DR Congo'on Wednesday the 18th October 2006. All the MPs who spoke, most of whom have visited DR Congo this year, gave a very depressing picture of life in DR Congo and offered no hope as to how to end the relentless cycle of civil strife, poverty, corruption, lack of health care, lack of state care, a hopeless infrastructure."
"DR Congo at the moment is one of the worst places in which to be born and to grow up" Secretary of State for International Development (Hilary Benn). There are more than 250,000 homeless children in the DRC. [I would also like to raise the ongoing and acute humanitarian needs of millions of Congolese. Misery and deprivation remain a fact of life for too many Congolese. Hilary Benn 11th September 2006, on his return from a visit to DR Congo]
There was a debate in Parliament 'Street Children in DR Congo'on Wednesday the 18th October 2006. All the MPs who spoke, most of whom have visited DR Congo this year, gave a very depressing picture of life in DR Congo and offered no hope as to how to end the relentless cycle of civil strife, poverty, corruption, lack of health care, lack of state care, a hopeless infrastructure."
NUMBER OF IDENTITY FRAUD VICTIMS REACHES RECORD LEVEL / CIFAS, 16 Oct 2006
http://www.cifas.org.uk/press_20061016.asp
"The latest Identity Fraud figures were released today by CIFAS, The UK’s Fraud Prevention Service, at the launch of this year’s National Identity Fraud Prevention Week. T hey show that, at the end of the third quarter of 2006, the number of identity fraud victims recorded by CIFAS Members had reached a record level."
"The latest Identity Fraud figures were released today by CIFAS, The UK’s Fraud Prevention Service, at the launch of this year’s National Identity Fraud Prevention Week. T hey show that, at the end of the third quarter of 2006, the number of identity fraud victims recorded by CIFAS Members had reached a record level."
Organised crime fails to stop skiddies / Register, 20 Oct 2006
http://digbig.com/4nkgn
Guy Kewney
"Disorganised web to blame. About a year ago, I attended a top-level roundtable meeting of malware experts, where we discussed organised crime on the internet, and came to the conclusion that, in one sense, it might be a good thing for users. That sense was trivial, of course, compared with the problems of extortion and "protection" rackets. But it looked real: it did seem as if there would be a small "up side" in that the big-time gangsters would find it irritating to be upstaged by script-kiddies, and might start taking them down."
Guy Kewney
"Disorganised web to blame. About a year ago, I attended a top-level roundtable meeting of malware experts, where we discussed organised crime on the internet, and came to the conclusion that, in one sense, it might be a good thing for users. That sense was trivial, of course, compared with the problems of extortion and "protection" rackets. But it looked real: it did seem as if there would be a small "up side" in that the big-time gangsters would find it irritating to be upstaged by script-kiddies, and might start taking them down."
Joan Ryan speech to Biometrics 2006 Conference / Information Politics Blog, 20 Oct 2006
http://digbig.com/4nkgk
"Ryan supports Liam Bryne, MP - the minister overseeing ID cards programme in the Home Office. Building a safe, just and tolerant society - We’ve spent a long time setting out the case for a biometric identity cards scheme. Debate on this started in 2002 and the reasons and goals for the proposed scheme were rigorously scrutinised as the legislation made its passage through parliament. I am not here today to make the case for a joined up, secure identity management scheme - that case has already been made. What I am here to talk about is how we intend to deliver it. We have to be clear how we are managing the risks around delivery of this scheme and how we can ensure that we do it in a way that is cost-effective, makes best use of resources and maintains public trust. Finally, while concentrating on delivery, we need to have an eye for the future - to understand the potential benefits of this scheme and how we as individuals might use it."
"Ryan supports Liam Bryne, MP - the minister overseeing ID cards programme in the Home Office. Building a safe, just and tolerant society - We’ve spent a long time setting out the case for a biometric identity cards scheme. Debate on this started in 2002 and the reasons and goals for the proposed scheme were rigorously scrutinised as the legislation made its passage through parliament. I am not here today to make the case for a joined up, secure identity management scheme - that case has already been made. What I am here to talk about is how we intend to deliver it. We have to be clear how we are managing the risks around delivery of this scheme and how we can ensure that we do it in a way that is cost-effective, makes best use of resources and maintains public trust. Finally, while concentrating on delivery, we need to have an eye for the future - to understand the potential benefits of this scheme and how we as individuals might use it."
Data protection law doesn't stop crimefighters / Silison, 20 Oct 2006
http://www.silicon.com/publicsector/0,3800010403,39163407,00.htm
Steve Ranger
"Don't hide behind data privacy law, says watchdog. Companies can't use the Data Protection Act (DPA) as an excuse not to release personal information when it is needed in the fight against crime. The data privacy legislation doesn't prevent companies from giving out personal information in this situation, according to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO)."
Steve Ranger
"Don't hide behind data privacy law, says watchdog. Companies can't use the Data Protection Act (DPA) as an excuse not to release personal information when it is needed in the fight against crime. The data privacy legislation doesn't prevent companies from giving out personal information in this situation, according to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO)."
Risk, Responsibility and Regulation - Whose risk is it anyway? / Better Regulation Commission, October 2006
PDF - http://www.brc.gov.uk/downloads/pdf/risk_res_reg.pdf
"Asserts that "we have all... been complicit in a drive to purge risk from our lives and we have drifted towards a disproportionate attitude to the risks we should expect to take". However, "enough is enough - it is time to turn the tide"."
"Asserts that "we have all... been complicit in a drive to purge risk from our lives and we have drifted towards a disproportionate attitude to the risks we should expect to take". However, "enough is enough - it is time to turn the tide"."
Kangaroo youth justice / ARCH Blog, 19 Oct 2006
http://archrights.blogspot.com/2006/10/kangaroo-youth-justice.html
"Some more extraordinary ideas from the Home Office. The Youth Courts Committee of the Magistrates' Association is concerned about the proposals, which it argues could pressure innocent young people to admit guilt to avoid a court appearance, and place too much power in the hands of the police. The overt rationale is that contact with the criminal justice system has been shown to have a strongly negative effect on youth offending. For example, the Edinburgh University study: 'Youth Transitions and Crime' found that one of the most powerful predictors of whether a young person continued to commit offences beyond the age of 17 (rather than ceasing spontaneously) was whether they had entered the system."
"Some more extraordinary ideas from the Home Office. The Youth Courts Committee of the Magistrates' Association is concerned about the proposals, which it argues could pressure innocent young people to admit guilt to avoid a court appearance, and place too much power in the hands of the police. The overt rationale is that contact with the criminal justice system has been shown to have a strongly negative effect on youth offending. For example, the Edinburgh University study: 'Youth Transitions and Crime' found that one of the most powerful predictors of whether a young person continued to commit offences beyond the age of 17 (rather than ceasing spontaneously) was whether they had entered the system."
Classification and Deterrence - where's the evidence? / Transform Drugs Policy Forum Blog, 18 Oct 2006
http://digbig.com/4nkfr
"In the first of series of blog posts considering the Government's response to the The Science and Technology Select Committee's report 'Drug Classification; Making a Hash of it?' we consider what is arguably the most significant finding of the Select Committee and the most stunningly inadequate of the Government’s responses."
"In the first of series of blog posts considering the Government's response to the The Science and Technology Select Committee's report 'Drug Classification; Making a Hash of it?' we consider what is arguably the most significant finding of the Select Committee and the most stunningly inadequate of the Government’s responses."
Al Qaeda ‘building cells in Britain’ / Herald, 20 Oct 2006
http://www.theherald.co.uk/news/72591.html
IAN BRUCE
"A resurgent al Qaeda has made the UK its priority target and is building active service units among disaffected young British Muslims, according to senior intelligence officials. MI5 also fears the July 7 Tube and bus bombings were "just the beginning" of a rolling campaign aimed at inflicting mass civilian casualties and damaging the economy. The terror network has also taken a lead from the Provisional IRA, organising followers into self-contained cells to make infiltration by the security services almost impossible."
IAN BRUCE
"A resurgent al Qaeda has made the UK its priority target and is building active service units among disaffected young British Muslims, according to senior intelligence officials. MI5 also fears the July 7 Tube and bus bombings were "just the beginning" of a rolling campaign aimed at inflicting mass civilian casualties and damaging the economy. The terror network has also taken a lead from the Provisional IRA, organising followers into self-contained cells to make infiltration by the security services almost impossible."
Thursday, October 19, 2006
Multicultural madness needs such antidotes / The Australian, 18 Oct 2006
http://digbig.com/4nkbp
Janet Albrechtsen
"A twentysomething visitor from Britain brings us the message that there should be no special rules for Muslims. IN another sign of predictable cultural capitulation, a check-in employee with British Airways is banned from wearing a small Christian cross but Muslim and Sikh employees may wear turbans and the hijab. Little wonder, then, that Munira Mirza is so refreshing. This young woman, reared as a Muslim, says it's time to scrap multiculturalism and to stop defining people as members of a minority group. Specifically, it's time for our political leaders to stop engaging with Muslims as Muslims. They are citizens; no special rules apply."
Janet Albrechtsen
"A twentysomething visitor from Britain brings us the message that there should be no special rules for Muslims. IN another sign of predictable cultural capitulation, a check-in employee with British Airways is banned from wearing a small Christian cross but Muslim and Sikh employees may wear turbans and the hijab. Little wonder, then, that Munira Mirza is so refreshing. This young woman, reared as a Muslim, says it's time to scrap multiculturalism and to stop defining people as members of a minority group. Specifically, it's time for our political leaders to stop engaging with Muslims as Muslims. They are citizens; no special rules apply."
Jihadis Provide Internet Training for Female Mujahideen . Terrorism Focus, Volume 3, Issue 40 (October 17, 2006)
http://digbig.com/4nkbm
Abdul Hameed Bakier
"The use of female suicide bombers by Islamist militant groups in countries such as Iraq, Jordan, Afghanistan and Indian Kashmir has exceeded the traditional constraints that Salafi-Jihadi ideology imposes on women. Observers of jihadi cyber activities have noticed an increase in the number of websites dedicated to mujahidat (female mujahideen), linked either directly or ideologically to al-Qaeda. The physical and spiritual preparation of the mujahidat has recently spread to many jihadi websites."
Abdul Hameed Bakier
"The use of female suicide bombers by Islamist militant groups in countries such as Iraq, Jordan, Afghanistan and Indian Kashmir has exceeded the traditional constraints that Salafi-Jihadi ideology imposes on women. Observers of jihadi cyber activities have noticed an increase in the number of websites dedicated to mujahidat (female mujahideen), linked either directly or ideologically to al-Qaeda. The physical and spiritual preparation of the mujahidat has recently spread to many jihadi websites."
Legal highs: the new 'social tonics'? / New Statesman, 23 Oct 2006
http://www.newstatesman.com/200610230025
Stephen Armstrong
"Britain's drugs laws are in a mess, and into the confusion has stepped a new breed of drugs entrepreneurs who claim they have the answer: safe, substitute substances." [Sub required]
Stephen Armstrong
"Britain's drugs laws are in a mess, and into the confusion has stepped a new breed of drugs entrepreneurs who claim they have the answer: safe, substitute substances." [Sub required]
Cannabis: a drug more dangerous than heroin / Herald, 19 Oct 2006
http://www.theherald.co.uk/features/72474.html
Melanie Reid
The dangers of cannabis use by young people have been evident for several years. Growing numbers of teenagers are encountering mental health problems and their distressed families, searching for answers, are discovering an unwelcome truth: that everywhere circumstantial links exist between heavy cannabis use and various forms of psychosis. Most painfully of all, these families are realising that there is no way back; that the damage is done.
Melanie Reid
The dangers of cannabis use by young people have been evident for several years. Growing numbers of teenagers are encountering mental health problems and their distressed families, searching for answers, are discovering an unwelcome truth: that everywhere circumstantial links exist between heavy cannabis use and various forms of psychosis. Most painfully of all, these families are realising that there is no way back; that the damage is done.
"How Orwellian can you get?" - RFID for air travellers / Silicon, 17 Oct 2006
http://networks.silicon.com/lans/0,39024663,39163311,00.htm
Natasha Lomas
"Best of Reader Comments: Plan is "a solution looking for a problem" - A plan to tag air travellers with RFID chips to improve airport security by monitoring passengers as they kill time after check-in in airport coffee shops and departure lounges has been slammed by silicon.com readers as "another ill thought out idea", "a solution looking for a problem" and even "dead in the water"."
Natasha Lomas
"Best of Reader Comments: Plan is "a solution looking for a problem" - A plan to tag air travellers with RFID chips to improve airport security by monitoring passengers as they kill time after check-in in airport coffee shops and departure lounges has been slammed by silicon.com readers as "another ill thought out idea", "a solution looking for a problem" and even "dead in the water"."
FutureForce: A Guide to Building the 21st Century Community Corrections Workforce / NCIC, 2006
PDF - http://nicic.org/Downloads/PDF/Library/021799.pdf
"This guide "explores current and future workforce challenges facing community corrections" (p. xiii). Chapters contained in this guide are: rationale -- why now?; organizational culture -- moving from a "workplace" to a place where people want to work; recruitment -- looking in the right places for the right people; retention -- keeping the right people in the right places; and strategies for success -- getting started. "
"This guide "explores current and future workforce challenges facing community corrections" (p. xiii). Chapters contained in this guide are: rationale -- why now?; organizational culture -- moving from a "workplace" to a place where people want to work; recruitment -- looking in the right places for the right people; retention -- keeping the right people in the right places; and strategies for success -- getting started. "
Terrorists targeting energy sector, says spy chief / Expatica Germany, 12 Oct 2006
http://digbig.com/4njyg
"Terrorists are setting their sights on the global energy infrastructure, the head of Germany's foreign intelligence service (BND). Ernst Uhrlau told a Berlin seminar on energy and security there had been a marked increase in the number of terrorist attacks directed at energy targets in recent years. Groups like al-Qaeda, he said, had improved their capability and were concentrating on global energy supplies instead of local attacks of fuel depots or pipelines."
"Terrorists are setting their sights on the global energy infrastructure, the head of Germany's foreign intelligence service (BND). Ernst Uhrlau told a Berlin seminar on energy and security there had been a marked increase in the number of terrorist attacks directed at energy targets in recent years. Groups like al-Qaeda, he said, had improved their capability and were concentrating on global energy supplies instead of local attacks of fuel depots or pipelines."
25 Terrifying Information Technology Horror Stories / CIO, October 2006
http://www.cio.com/specialreports/horror.html?source=nlt_cioleader
"Information technology bites back: CIO.com presents 25 tales of IT terror"
"Information technology bites back: CIO.com presents 25 tales of IT terror"
Bulgarian Citizenship Becomes More and More Attractive / FOCUS News Agency, 16 Oc 2006
http://www.focus-fen.net/index.php?id=n97740
"According to the former Bulgarian Minister of Foreign Affairs Solomon Passy, who is current chairman of the Parliamentary commission of Foreign Policy, a total of 82,000 foreigners have applied for Bulgarian citizenship so far, the Macedonian daily Vreme reports. Despite the high interest for Bulgarian passports in Macedonia, the largest number of passports have been issued to people from Moldova, he said. As the Bulgarian citizenship is becoming more and more attractive, the Parliament of the country adopted to make the procedure even easier." [Brief]
"According to the former Bulgarian Minister of Foreign Affairs Solomon Passy, who is current chairman of the Parliamentary commission of Foreign Policy, a total of 82,000 foreigners have applied for Bulgarian citizenship so far, the Macedonian daily Vreme reports. Despite the high interest for Bulgarian passports in Macedonia, the largest number of passports have been issued to people from Moldova, he said. As the Bulgarian citizenship is becoming more and more attractive, the Parliament of the country adopted to make the procedure even easier." [Brief]
[France] Police predict new round of violence in suburbs / Expatica, 16 Oct 2006
http://digbig.com/4njxr
"Almost a year after France's suburban riots, police warned Monday of a new spiral of violence in the country's high-immigration 'banlieues' — where they say they are increasingly the target of attacks with intent to maim, or worse. A crescendo of outraged alarm from police unions has been triggered by three serious clashes in tough estates near the capital, where officers were stoned and beaten by gangs of youths, as well as by figures showing a growing defiance towards the forces of law and order." [Public Order]
"Almost a year after France's suburban riots, police warned Monday of a new spiral of violence in the country's high-immigration 'banlieues' — where they say they are increasingly the target of attacks with intent to maim, or worse. A crescendo of outraged alarm from police unions has been triggered by three serious clashes in tough estates near the capital, where officers were stoned and beaten by gangs of youths, as well as by figures showing a growing defiance towards the forces of law and order." [Public Order]
[USA] Is The NYPD Mishandling Evidence? / New York Resident, 16 Oct 2006
http://70.47.124.114/node/284
Mike McPhate
"It’s not uncommon for police to lose evidence: The legal group the Innocence Project, which has helped to exonerate 184 prisoners, said it’s closed between 30 and 35 cases in New York state simply because crime scene evidence couldn’t be unearthed from storage. The release earlier this month of 45-year-old Fappiano, who was told his evidence was lost in 2002, brought renewed attention to the injustice that can be spawned by the NYPD’s aging evidence tracking system."
Mike McPhate
"It’s not uncommon for police to lose evidence: The legal group the Innocence Project, which has helped to exonerate 184 prisoners, said it’s closed between 30 and 35 cases in New York state simply because crime scene evidence couldn’t be unearthed from storage. The release earlier this month of 45-year-old Fappiano, who was told his evidence was lost in 2002, brought renewed attention to the injustice that can be spawned by the NYPD’s aging evidence tracking system."
Fears of 'Two-Speed Europe' Still Exist / WJLA, 16 Oct 2006
http://www.wjla.com/news/stories/1006/369311.html
"Underscores a rekindled debate over a "two-speed Europe": the yawning gap between major EU powers such as Britain, France, Germany and Italy - the continent's undisputed political and economic engines - and the poor, ex-communist newcomer nations of Eastern Europe. The EU took in eight former Soviet-bloc countries, plus Malta and Cyprus, in May 2004. Bulgaria and Romania will join on Jan. 1, widening the bloc to 27 nations and 480 million citizens. Yet despite gaining access to millions in lucrative EU subsidies and the potential of billions more in increased foreign investment, the new states have not been granted all the privileges of their hard-won membership."
"Underscores a rekindled debate over a "two-speed Europe": the yawning gap between major EU powers such as Britain, France, Germany and Italy - the continent's undisputed political and economic engines - and the poor, ex-communist newcomer nations of Eastern Europe. The EU took in eight former Soviet-bloc countries, plus Malta and Cyprus, in May 2004. Bulgaria and Romania will join on Jan. 1, widening the bloc to 27 nations and 480 million citizens. Yet despite gaining access to millions in lucrative EU subsidies and the potential of billions more in increased foreign investment, the new states have not been granted all the privileges of their hard-won membership."
US prophets of Europe’s doom are half wrong / Financial Times, 16 Oct 2006
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/bae746ae-5d38-11db-9d15-0000779e2340.html
Gideon Rachman
"In Bruce Bawer’s While Europe Slept (Doubleday) – now into its eighth printing – the American reader is told that by ignoring the threat from radical Islam: “Europe is steadily committing suicide and perhaps all we can do is look on in horror.” Tony Blankley, author of The West’s Last Chance (Regnery), warns that: “The threat of the radical Islamists taking over Europe is every bit as great to the United States as was the threat of the Nazis taking over Europe in the 1940s.” In The Cube and the Cathedral (Basic), George Weigel, a Catholic conservative, claims that “western Europe is committing a form of demographic suicide”. In this he echoes Pat Buchanan, who argued in his best-selling The Death of the West (Thomas Dunne) that Europe’s population is set to fall to 30 per cent of its current level by 2100, meaning that “the cradle of western civilisation will have become its grave”. "
Gideon Rachman
"In Bruce Bawer’s While Europe Slept (Doubleday) – now into its eighth printing – the American reader is told that by ignoring the threat from radical Islam: “Europe is steadily committing suicide and perhaps all we can do is look on in horror.” Tony Blankley, author of The West’s Last Chance (Regnery), warns that: “The threat of the radical Islamists taking over Europe is every bit as great to the United States as was the threat of the Nazis taking over Europe in the 1940s.” In The Cube and the Cathedral (Basic), George Weigel, a Catholic conservative, claims that “western Europe is committing a form of demographic suicide”. In this he echoes Pat Buchanan, who argued in his best-selling The Death of the West (Thomas Dunne) that Europe’s population is set to fall to 30 per cent of its current level by 2100, meaning that “the cradle of western civilisation will have become its grave”. "
[Netherlands] Inquiry into 'shocking' rise in police crimes / Expatica, 12 Oct 2006
http://digbig.com/4njxj
" Some 122 police officers were sacked last year after committing criminal offences, an increase of 30 percent compared with 2004. The Council of Chief-Superintendents has reacted with shock to the figures and is demanding an inquiry. Most officers were sacked for committing violent crimes, such as using excessive force in arresting suspects." [Police News]
" Some 122 police officers were sacked last year after committing criminal offences, an increase of 30 percent compared with 2004. The Council of Chief-Superintendents has reacted with shock to the figures and is demanding an inquiry. Most officers were sacked for committing violent crimes, such as using excessive force in arresting suspects." [Police News]
MySpace Predator Caught by Code / Wired, 16 Oct 2006
http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,71948-0.html?tw=wn_index_5
Kevin Poulsen
"I wrote a 1,000-line Perl script that checked MySpace for registered sex offenders. Sifting through the results, manually confirmed over 700 offenders, including a serial child molester in New York actively trying to hook up with underage boys on the site, and who has now been arrested as a result. MySpace told Congress last June that it didn't have this capability." Wired News says they will publish Poulsen's code under an open-source license later this week. "
Kevin Poulsen
"I wrote a 1,000-line Perl script that checked MySpace for registered sex offenders. Sifting through the results, manually confirmed over 700 offenders, including a serial child molester in New York actively trying to hook up with underage boys on the site, and who has now been arrested as a result. MySpace told Congress last June that it didn't have this capability." Wired News says they will publish Poulsen's code under an open-source license later this week. "
New Research To Cut Animal Testing / Medical News Today, 16 Oct 2006
http://digbig.com/4njxg
"Researchers at The University of Manchester have been awarded 130,000 pounds to develop new techniques to reduce the need for animals in drug testing. [..] The funding - awarded by the National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs) - will help the scientists establish new genotoxicity tests using cultured human liver cells. "
"Researchers at The University of Manchester have been awarded 130,000 pounds to develop new techniques to reduce the need for animals in drug testing. [..] The funding - awarded by the National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs) - will help the scientists establish new genotoxicity tests using cultured human liver cells. "
Giving Back: Introducing Community Service Learning / OJJDP, 2006
PDF - http://www.crf-usa.org/YouthCourt/Giving_Back_2006.pdf
"Provides skill-building strategies and materials to introduce juvenile offenders to fundamental concepts of community and community problems. The manual is a useful resource for youth courts and other juvenile justice agencies seeking to apply school-based learning methods to court-mandated community service."
"Provides skill-building strategies and materials to introduce juvenile offenders to fundamental concepts of community and community problems. The manual is a useful resource for youth courts and other juvenile justice agencies seeking to apply school-based learning methods to court-mandated community service."
Kurdistan unsafe but Home Office has restarted forced returns / Kurdish Media, 19 Oct 2006
http://www.kurdmedia.com/news.asp?id=13458
"Coalition to Stop Deportations to Iraq: Kurdistan unsafe but Home Office has restarted forced returns
The dangers of central and southern Iraq are well-known. Less well-known are conditions in Northern Iraq / South Kurdistan. But news from there shows that contrary to what Tony Blair would have us believe, Northern Iraq too is not free, safe and democratic. "
"Coalition to Stop Deportations to Iraq: Kurdistan unsafe but Home Office has restarted forced returns
The dangers of central and southern Iraq are well-known. Less well-known are conditions in Northern Iraq / South Kurdistan. But news from there shows that contrary to what Tony Blair would have us believe, Northern Iraq too is not free, safe and democratic. "
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
The community got nothing out of me going to prison – in fact, they had to pay for it / Hunts Post 24, 18 Oct 2006
http://digbig.com/4njqx
ANGELA SINGER
"Is a stint behind bars beneficial? Last week saw a national debate on over-crowded prisons and tagging. The question is: Who are we sending to prison and should they be there? We spoke to a Huntingdonshire woman who left prison seven weeks ago after being jailed for fraud. RITA (not her real name) now wears a tag on her leg. She is out on licence after serving a quarter of her prison sentence and is under a curfew. She is not allowed out of her house between 7pm and 7am - even into the garden. A box in the house (like the box used for wireless connections for computers) will send a signal to a control room if she leaves the house during curfew. However, the crime she committed had no link to the time of day. Rita, 44, and a mother of three, stole £44,000 from her employers to try to pay off her credit cards." [Sentencing; Treatment of Offenders]
ANGELA SINGER
"Is a stint behind bars beneficial? Last week saw a national debate on over-crowded prisons and tagging. The question is: Who are we sending to prison and should they be there? We spoke to a Huntingdonshire woman who left prison seven weeks ago after being jailed for fraud. RITA (not her real name) now wears a tag on her leg. She is out on licence after serving a quarter of her prison sentence and is under a curfew. She is not allowed out of her house between 7pm and 7am - even into the garden. A box in the house (like the box used for wireless connections for computers) will send a signal to a control room if she leaves the house during curfew. However, the crime she committed had no link to the time of day. Rita, 44, and a mother of three, stole £44,000 from her employers to try to pay off her credit cards." [Sentencing; Treatment of Offenders]
Monday, October 16, 2006
Computer hacking one of worst cases seen / Norwich Evening News, 16 Oct 2006
http://digbig.com/4nhtr
NAOMI CANTON
"Crafty hackers got into a city man's computer, changed his password and then tried to con people out of money on eBay by using his account. The firm in Norwich which is cleaning out the victim's computer has said the hacking case is one of the most serious it has ever encountered and Tiscali, the broadband provider, has confirmed it is carrying out an investigation."
NAOMI CANTON
"Crafty hackers got into a city man's computer, changed his password and then tried to con people out of money on eBay by using his account. The firm in Norwich which is cleaning out the victim's computer has said the hacking case is one of the most serious it has ever encountered and Tiscali, the broadband provider, has confirmed it is carrying out an investigation."
Try to resist the Islamofatigue / This Scepter'd Isle [Blog], 16 Oct 2006
http://digbig.com/4nhtc
"It is an attempt to take advantage of a trait among British people to do everything possible to avoid giving offence to someone. For too long it feels as if politeness has been mistaken for weakness and we have conceded too much in our efforts to be welcoming, understanding and tolerant. If people choose to live in a society then I believe that they should conform to some extent to that society's norms. That does not mean their rights to worship as they see fit, or live their lives by a particular code should be sacrificed. It does not mean people should be forced to adopt codes of conduct that may offend them. It just means that in living their lives as they choose they should not be imposing restrictions on other people in society. Tolerance is a two way street. We should be tolerant of Muslims as we have frequently been told, but conversely Muslims must also tolerate the rest of society and that is where I see the current impasse."
"It is an attempt to take advantage of a trait among British people to do everything possible to avoid giving offence to someone. For too long it feels as if politeness has been mistaken for weakness and we have conceded too much in our efforts to be welcoming, understanding and tolerant. If people choose to live in a society then I believe that they should conform to some extent to that society's norms. That does not mean their rights to worship as they see fit, or live their lives by a particular code should be sacrificed. It does not mean people should be forced to adopt codes of conduct that may offend them. It just means that in living their lives as they choose they should not be imposing restrictions on other people in society. Tolerance is a two way street. We should be tolerant of Muslims as we have frequently been told, but conversely Muslims must also tolerate the rest of society and that is where I see the current impasse."
Combating illegal immigration at centre of ID card plans / e-Gov Monitor, 16 Oct 2006
http://www.egovmonitor.com/node/8084
"Key milestones for combating illegal immigration through the introduction of the National Identity Scheme were outlined by the Government. Speaking at an IPPR event, Home Office Minister Liam Byrne confirmed that ID cards will be implemented rapidly, starting with biometric cards for foreign nationals in 2008. These will prove eligibility to work and provide the vast majority of legitimate employers with a simple, secure means of checking entitlement to work."
"Key milestones for combating illegal immigration through the introduction of the National Identity Scheme were outlined by the Government. Speaking at an IPPR event, Home Office Minister Liam Byrne confirmed that ID cards will be implemented rapidly, starting with biometric cards for foreign nationals in 2008. These will prove eligibility to work and provide the vast majority of legitimate employers with a simple, secure means of checking entitlement to work."
Smuggled firearms '75% replicas' / BBC News, 16 Oct 2006
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6054264.stm
Andrew Hosken
"Many smuggled weapons come from Eastern Europe or the US. Three-quarters of firearms used by UK criminals are converted replica and imitation guns, one of the country's most senior police experts has said."
Andrew Hosken
"Many smuggled weapons come from Eastern Europe or the US. Three-quarters of firearms used by UK criminals are converted replica and imitation guns, one of the country's most senior police experts has said."
[USA] Florida Attorney General Promotes Free Wireless AMBER Alerts Program / GovTech, 13 Oct 2006
http://www.govtech.net/magazine/channel_story.php/101666
"Florida Attorney General Charlie Crist has announced that his office is helping bring free wireless AMBER Alerts to more Floridians, making it easier for citizens to assist in efforts to locate abducted children. The Florida Attorney General's Web site now features a direct link to sign up for the free wireless service, in a move designed to raise public awareness of the Wireless AMBER Alerts initiative and encourage Floridians to subscribe to the service. "Every minute a child is missing is a minute too long," said Crist. "We must take every action possible to help ensure that children are safely returned to their loved ones as quickly as possible. This program saves lives." [see http://www.childrescuealert.com/ for UK practice]
"Florida Attorney General Charlie Crist has announced that his office is helping bring free wireless AMBER Alerts to more Floridians, making it easier for citizens to assist in efforts to locate abducted children. The Florida Attorney General's Web site now features a direct link to sign up for the free wireless service, in a move designed to raise public awareness of the Wireless AMBER Alerts initiative and encourage Floridians to subscribe to the service. "Every minute a child is missing is a minute too long," said Crist. "We must take every action possible to help ensure that children are safely returned to their loved ones as quickly as possible. This program saves lives." [see http://www.childrescuealert.com/ for UK practice]
Islamic schools at heart of British debate on integration / International Herald Tribune, 15 Oct 2006
http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/10/15/news/brits.php
Alan Cowell
"Segregation is now so extreme in some schools that there is not much further it can go," Trevor Phillips, the chairman of the Commission for Racial Equality, told a parliamentary panel. "It doesn't help to prepare children in these schools for the real world." Neither, some believe, does it bridge the gap between a largely secular society and a profound commitment to a single faith."
Alan Cowell
"Segregation is now so extreme in some schools that there is not much further it can go," Trevor Phillips, the chairman of the Commission for Racial Equality, told a parliamentary panel. "It doesn't help to prepare children in these schools for the real world." Neither, some believe, does it bridge the gap between a largely secular society and a profound commitment to a single faith."
Problem families 'could be saved from eviction / 24Dash, 16 Oct 2006
'http://www.24dash.com/socialhousing/11618.htm
Ian Morgan
"Problem families who cause misery in their communities could be saved from eviction by a programme of intensive support, figures showed. Research into the scheme showed that in 85% of cases it had reduced anti-social behaviour to a level where tenancies were no longer at risk.
Intervention in these cases cost a fraction of the hundreds of thousands of pounds that would need to be spent overall on evicting each family."
Ian Morgan
"Problem families who cause misery in their communities could be saved from eviction by a programme of intensive support, figures showed. Research into the scheme showed that in 85% of cases it had reduced anti-social behaviour to a level where tenancies were no longer at risk.
Intervention in these cases cost a fraction of the hundreds of thousands of pounds that would need to be spent overall on evicting each family."
Al Qaeda leader in secret CIA jail / Stuff NZ, 16 Oct 2006
http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3829823a12,00.html
"A suspected al Qaeda leader, accused of being involved in September 11 and planning the 2004 Madrid train bombings, has been imprisoned in a secret US jail for the past year, Spain's El Pais newspaper reported. Mustafa Setmarian, 48, a Syrian with Spanish citizenship, was captured in Pakistan in October 2005 and is held in a prison operated by the US Central Intelligence Agency, Pakistani and European security service officials told El Pais. A spokesman for the US embassy in Spain declined to comment on the report. "
"A suspected al Qaeda leader, accused of being involved in September 11 and planning the 2004 Madrid train bombings, has been imprisoned in a secret US jail for the past year, Spain's El Pais newspaper reported. Mustafa Setmarian, 48, a Syrian with Spanish citizenship, was captured in Pakistan in October 2005 and is held in a prison operated by the US Central Intelligence Agency, Pakistani and European security service officials told El Pais. A spokesman for the US embassy in Spain declined to comment on the report. "
[Zimbabawe] Surviving The Peace / Zimbabwe Journalists, 15 Oct 2006
http://www.zimbabwejournalists.com/story.php?art_id=1152&cat=4
Stephen Kuuzabuwe
"THE attack on Kadoma residents by soldiers from the nearby Suri Suri defence forces base shows the rampart disregard for the law by the Defence forces. Only a few weeks ago it was the Zimbabwe Republic Police waging an orgy of violence on innocent unarmeddemonstrators.
In a country where the rule of law prevails, such an incident as the soldiers' attack would have been reported, thoroughly investigated and the culprits brought before the courts. Gone are the days when we looked up to the soldiers in uniform as our heroes, our liberators and defenders of our freedom. Overnight they have become symbols of oppression, torture, brutality and defenders of one of the most authoritarian regimes in the world." [Brief]
Stephen Kuuzabuwe
"THE attack on Kadoma residents by soldiers from the nearby Suri Suri defence forces base shows the rampart disregard for the law by the Defence forces. Only a few weeks ago it was the Zimbabwe Republic Police waging an orgy of violence on innocent unarmeddemonstrators.
In a country where the rule of law prevails, such an incident as the soldiers' attack would have been reported, thoroughly investigated and the culprits brought before the courts. Gone are the days when we looked up to the soldiers in uniform as our heroes, our liberators and defenders of our freedom. Overnight they have become symbols of oppression, torture, brutality and defenders of one of the most authoritarian regimes in the world." [Brief]
Cops scoot into future with new technology / Bostn |Herald, 15 Oct 2006
http://news.bostonherald.com/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=162360
Shaun Tolson
Sunday, October 15, 2006 - Updated: 11:01 AM EST
"At the 113th annual International Association of Chiefs of Police Conference at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center this weekend, one piece of new crime-fighting technology stood out as decidedly futuristic. The bulbous T3, developed by T3 Motion Inc. in Irvine, Calif., is a 240-pound electric vehicle that can be best described as the spawn of a tricycle and a Segway. “We like to refer to it as a tricycle on steroids,” said Gerry White, a retired Newport Beach police officer and national sales manager at T3 Motion. With an elevated platform, zero-degree turning radius, maximum speed of 25 mph and an operating cost of 10 cents a day, the T3 has turned a lot of heads during field tests in police departments on the West Coast. Apparently, it sure beats walking a beat. “We don’t see it replacing anything,” said Neil Brooker, president of the company. “We see it somewhere between a department’s mountain bike/foot patrol and motorcyle/car patrol.” [Brief]
Shaun Tolson
Sunday, October 15, 2006 - Updated: 11:01 AM EST
"At the 113th annual International Association of Chiefs of Police Conference at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center this weekend, one piece of new crime-fighting technology stood out as decidedly futuristic. The bulbous T3, developed by T3 Motion Inc. in Irvine, Calif., is a 240-pound electric vehicle that can be best described as the spawn of a tricycle and a Segway. “We like to refer to it as a tricycle on steroids,” said Gerry White, a retired Newport Beach police officer and national sales manager at T3 Motion. With an elevated platform, zero-degree turning radius, maximum speed of 25 mph and an operating cost of 10 cents a day, the T3 has turned a lot of heads during field tests in police departments on the West Coast. Apparently, it sure beats walking a beat. “We don’t see it replacing anything,” said Neil Brooker, president of the company. “We see it somewhere between a department’s mountain bike/foot patrol and motorcyle/car patrol.” [Brief]
Drug tests in jails stepped up after heroin use report / Herald, 16 Oct 2006
http://www.theherald.co.uk/news/72243.html
DOUGLAS FRASER
"Scottish prisons are reforming their drug-testing regime and stepping up security after a damning report on their own staff's concerns about heroin use behind bars. It shows staff think visiting regulations should be made tougher. Half of them thought testing for cannabis, which is detectable for a month after smoking it, is encouraging people to move on to heroin use which is harder to find in urine samples."
DOUGLAS FRASER
"Scottish prisons are reforming their drug-testing regime and stepping up security after a damning report on their own staff's concerns about heroin use behind bars. It shows staff think visiting regulations should be made tougher. Half of them thought testing for cannabis, which is detectable for a month after smoking it, is encouraging people to move on to heroin use which is harder to find in urine samples."
Parole tags could cause re-offence / The Australian, 16 Oct 2006
http://digbig.com/4nhrh
Katherine Field
"MURDERERS and paedophiles freed from jail and forced to wear electronic tags for their rest of their lives may be more likely to re-offend, civil libertarians warn.The NSW government will introduce legislation into parliament this week allowing the Corrective Services commissioner to monitor life-long parolees by electronic and possibly satellite tagging."
Katherine Field
"MURDERERS and paedophiles freed from jail and forced to wear electronic tags for their rest of their lives may be more likely to re-offend, civil libertarians warn.The NSW government will introduce legislation into parliament this week allowing the Corrective Services commissioner to monitor life-long parolees by electronic and possibly satellite tagging."
New country, desperate feeling / Toronto Star, 16 Oct 2006
http://digbig.com/4nhrg
NICHOLAS KEUNG
"But social workers, health workers and community advocates say mental health is an often-overlooked aspect of the settlement process. Depression and stress tend to be dismissed as a "normal and passing" phase. There's so much stress and anxiety as a result of the resettlement process. Without proper intervention, it could trigger a downward spiral and turn into a crisis. Immigrants need to feel connected to the community and (believe) there's hope in life"
NICHOLAS KEUNG
"But social workers, health workers and community advocates say mental health is an often-overlooked aspect of the settlement process. Depression and stress tend to be dismissed as a "normal and passing" phase. There's so much stress and anxiety as a result of the resettlement process. Without proper intervention, it could trigger a downward spiral and turn into a crisis. Immigrants need to feel connected to the community and (believe) there's hope in life"
Human Rights Annual Report 2006 / FCO, October 2006
PDF - http://www.fco.gov.uk/Files/kfile/hr_report2006.pdf
Individual chapters link [pdf] from http://digbig.com/4nhrc
Chapter 2: Major countries of concern
PDF - http://www.fco.gov.uk/Files/kfile/02%20OVERVIEW.5.pdf
Individual chapters link [pdf] from http://digbig.com/4nhrc
Chapter 2: Major countries of concern
PDF - http://www.fco.gov.uk/Files/kfile/02%20OVERVIEW.5.pdf
Trafficking in Women, Forced Labour and Domestic Work: in the context of the Middle East and Gulf Region / Anti-Slavery International 2006
PDF - http://digbig.com/4nhqx
"Migrant female domestic workers around the world are often vulnerable to serious human rights abuses, because of such factors as their invisibility and the lack of protection and access to public services. The report investigates the experiences of migrant domestic workers in the region, the dynamics and workings of the migration process and how migration (if at all) contributes to trafficking; and looks at what are some of the key inter-connecting dynamics involved between slavery, trafficking, migration and forced labour. It focuses particularly on several selected sending, receiving and transit countries (Egypt, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Lebanon, Sudan and Yemen)."
"Migrant female domestic workers around the world are often vulnerable to serious human rights abuses, because of such factors as their invisibility and the lack of protection and access to public services. The report investigates the experiences of migrant domestic workers in the region, the dynamics and workings of the migration process and how migration (if at all) contributes to trafficking; and looks at what are some of the key inter-connecting dynamics involved between slavery, trafficking, migration and forced labour. It focuses particularly on several selected sending, receiving and transit countries (Egypt, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Lebanon, Sudan and Yemen)."
Trafficking for Forced Labour: UK country report / Anti-Slavery International, 2006
PDF - http://digbig.com/4nhqt
Klára Skrivánková
"The result of research carried out between 2005 and 2006 with the aim of finding out more about trafficking for forced labour in the United Kingdom. This was a qualitative rather than quantative project, which aimed to provide information about how migrants become trafficked and which industries in the UK are affected.
Also available an executive summary and policy recommendations." [PDF ]
Klára Skrivánková
"The result of research carried out between 2005 and 2006 with the aim of finding out more about trafficking for forced labour in the United Kingdom. This was a qualitative rather than quantative project, which aimed to provide information about how migrants become trafficked and which industries in the UK are affected.
Also available an executive summary and policy recommendations." [PDF ]
Multiculturalism and feminism: do they mix? / Online Opinion, 15 Oct 2006
http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=5009
Leslie Cannold
"Do multiculturalism and feminism mix? What about feminism and religious freedom?"
Leslie Cannold
"Do multiculturalism and feminism mix? What about feminism and religious freedom?"
Estimating London's new migrant population: Stage I - review of methodology / GLA, September 2006
PDF - http://www.london.gov.uk/mayor/refugees/docs/nm-pop.pdf Professor Phil Rees ; Dr. Peter Boden
"This study examines options for estimating the number and characteristics of foreign-born residents in London who came to the UK in a given recent period."
"This study examines options for estimating the number and characteristics of foreign-born residents in London who came to the UK in a given recent period."
Sunday, October 15, 2006
The owl and the ostrich / Toronto Star, 15 Oct 2006
http://digbig.com/4nhpj
Ayaan Hirsi Ali
"Grano Speakers Series : the failings of European multiculturalism, the dangers of Islamic fundamentalism, and the steps needed to save the EU from economic disaster."
Ayaan Hirsi Ali
"Grano Speakers Series : the failings of European multiculturalism, the dangers of Islamic fundamentalism, and the steps needed to save the EU from economic disaster."
Haxdoor Trojan claims thousands of UK victims / ZdNet, 11 Oct 2006
http://news.zdnet.co.uk/0,39020330,39284024,00.htm
Tom Espiner
" The Metropolitan Police have revealed that cybercriminals used a particularly malicious piece of malware called the Haxdoor Trojan to steal data from thousands of UK users."
Tom Espiner
" The Metropolitan Police have revealed that cybercriminals used a particularly malicious piece of malware called the Haxdoor Trojan to steal data from thousands of UK users."
Leader: RIP the IT department? - Time to embrace DIY tech / Silicon, 12 Oct 2006
http://management.silicon.com/itdirector/0,39024673,39163157,00.htm
"Anyone who is still in doubt about the impact of the iPod and Google generation on the future of the corporate IT department need only look at the example currently being set by oil giant BP.
BP is pioneering an innovative 'do-it-yourself' IT support scheme for some of its employees - giving them $1,000 to buy their own kit and take care of their own IT support. That scheme is being led by Jim Ginsburgh, VP of enterprise architecture at BP, who said the driver for it came when he noticed some people were having a better computing experience in the home than in the office."
"Anyone who is still in doubt about the impact of the iPod and Google generation on the future of the corporate IT department need only look at the example currently being set by oil giant BP.
BP is pioneering an innovative 'do-it-yourself' IT support scheme for some of its employees - giving them $1,000 to buy their own kit and take care of their own IT support. That scheme is being led by Jim Ginsburgh, VP of enterprise architecture at BP, who said the driver for it came when he noticed some people were having a better computing experience in the home than in the office."
Not just for teachers! Welcome to Google for Educators
http://www.google.com/educators/index.html
"To your left, you'll find a guide to 12 Google products, including basic information about each tool, examples of how educators are using them, and lesson ideas. You'll also find lesson plans and videos from our partners at Discovery Education focusing on two of our most popular teaching tools: Google Earth and Google SketchUp. We think of this site as a platform of teaching resources – for everything from blogging and collaborative writing to geographical search tools and 3D modeling software – and we want you to fill it in with your great ideas." [Top Tips]
"To your left, you'll find a guide to 12 Google products, including basic information about each tool, examples of how educators are using them, and lesson ideas. You'll also find lesson plans and videos from our partners at Discovery Education focusing on two of our most popular teaching tools: Google Earth and Google SketchUp. We think of this site as a platform of teaching resources – for everything from blogging and collaborative writing to geographical search tools and 3D modeling software – and we want you to fill it in with your great ideas." [Top Tips]
Embedded chips not getting under shoppers' skin - Mind where you stick that reader / Silicon, 10 Oct 2006
http://www.silicon.com/retailandleisure/0,3800011842,39163093,00.htm
Tim Ferguson
"Most people still think paying for their shopping with a chip embedded under their skin is a step too far. According to Institute of Grocery Distribution research only one in 10 teenagers would be interested, while one in 20 adults would also be open to the idea. There was significantly greater interest in other biometric payment methods - such as iris recognition and fingerprinting - with 20 per cent of teenagers and 17 per cent of adults saying they would like to use these." [Top Tips]
Tim Ferguson
"Most people still think paying for their shopping with a chip embedded under their skin is a step too far. According to Institute of Grocery Distribution research only one in 10 teenagers would be interested, while one in 20 adults would also be open to the idea. There was significantly greater interest in other biometric payment methods - such as iris recognition and fingerprinting - with 20 per cent of teenagers and 17 per cent of adults saying they would like to use these." [Top Tips]
Lazy staff driving up electricity bills - Can't be bothered to turn PCs off... / Silicon, 9 Oct 2006
http://www.silicon.com/0,39024729,39163061,00.htm
Richard Thurston
"Employees who leave their PCs on overnight are costing their companies £70 each per year, according to a report produced by the National Energy Foundation. The report found 18 per cent of UK-based office workers never turn off their PC when they go home and a further 13 per cent frequently leave their PC on after hours. The result of this neglect is spiralling electricity use for the businesses concerned and additional carbon dioxide emissions across the UK equivalent to the output of 120,000 4x4 cars." [Top tip]
Richard Thurston
"Employees who leave their PCs on overnight are costing their companies £70 each per year, according to a report produced by the National Energy Foundation. The report found 18 per cent of UK-based office workers never turn off their PC when they go home and a further 13 per cent frequently leave their PC on after hours. The result of this neglect is spiralling electricity use for the businesses concerned and additional carbon dioxide emissions across the UK equivalent to the output of 120,000 4x4 cars." [Top tip]
Airport to tag passengers - EU trials radio surveillance / Register, 12 Oct 2006
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/10/12/airport_rfid/
Mark Ballard
"Airport security chiefs and efficiency geeks will be able to keep close tabs on airport passengers by tagging them with a high powered radio chip developed at the University of Central London. People will be told to wear radio tags round their necks when they get to the airport. The tag would notify a computer system of their identity and whereabouts. The system would then track their activities in the airport using a network of high definition cameras."
Mark Ballard
"Airport security chiefs and efficiency geeks will be able to keep close tabs on airport passengers by tagging them with a high powered radio chip developed at the University of Central London. People will be told to wear radio tags round their necks when they get to the airport. The tag would notify a computer system of their identity and whereabouts. The system would then track their activities in the airport using a network of high definition cameras."
Police search for UK victims of US ID theft / Register, 11 Oct 2006
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/10/11/id_theft/
John Leyden
"But wary Brits think email warnings are hoax. UK police are attempting to reach thousands of Brits who have become victims of malware-powered ID theft scam. Ironically, Met Police attempts to notify potential victims by email are often being ignored, ZDNet reports. "We're appealing for anyone who's had an email from the Met officers who work in the Computer Crime Unit to get in touch. There's a security measure that people have to go through when they ring, but people are ignoring the emails because they think they're a hoax." [Top Tip]
John Leyden
"But wary Brits think email warnings are hoax. UK police are attempting to reach thousands of Brits who have become victims of malware-powered ID theft scam. Ironically, Met Police attempts to notify potential victims by email are often being ignored, ZDNet reports. "We're appealing for anyone who's had an email from the Met officers who work in the Computer Crime Unit to get in touch. There's a security measure that people have to go through when they ring, but people are ignoring the emails because they think they're a hoax." [Top Tip]
US and EU stitch up airline passenger data deal - And data protection law / Register, 10 Oct 2006
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/10/10/pnr_stitchup/
Page: 1 2 Next >
Mark Ballard
"European data protection authorities are choking on their baguettes after seeing the detail of the data-sharing agreement the EU signed with the US on Friday. The passenger name record (PNR) agreement was presented as a formality that had been passed by the respective administrations without so much as a hiccup. But it's proving hard to swallow. On the face of it, the agreement secured the legal basis for the US to collect personal information about anyone who flies there from Europe. The European Commission, which negotiated the agreement, wanted to ensure European airline passengers were treated fairly after their personal information was collected by US authorities conducting anti-terrorist investigations."
Page: 1 2 Next >
Mark Ballard
"European data protection authorities are choking on their baguettes after seeing the detail of the data-sharing agreement the EU signed with the US on Friday. The passenger name record (PNR) agreement was presented as a formality that had been passed by the respective administrations without so much as a hiccup. But it's proving hard to swallow. On the face of it, the agreement secured the legal basis for the US to collect personal information about anyone who flies there from Europe. The European Commission, which negotiated the agreement, wanted to ensure European airline passengers were treated fairly after their personal information was collected by US authorities conducting anti-terrorist investigations."
Is Le Pen Right: Immigrants and the Fallacy of Labour Scarcity / Global Politican, 10 Oct 2006
Sam Vaknin, Ph.D.
"Jean-Marie Le Pen - France's dark horse presidential contender - is clearly emotional about the issue of immigration and, according to him, its correlates, crime and unemployment. His logic is dodgy at best and his paranoid xenophobia ill-disguised. But Le Pen and his ilk - from Carinthia to Copenhagen - succeeded to force upon European mainstream discourse topics considered hitherto taboos. For decades, the European far right has been asking all the right questions and proffering all the far answers."
"Jean-Marie Le Pen - France's dark horse presidential contender - is clearly emotional about the issue of immigration and, according to him, its correlates, crime and unemployment. His logic is dodgy at best and his paranoid xenophobia ill-disguised. But Le Pen and his ilk - from Carinthia to Copenhagen - succeeded to force upon European mainstream discourse topics considered hitherto taboos. For decades, the European far right has been asking all the right questions and proffering all the far answers."
Migration and Brain Drain / Global Politician, 9 Oct 2006
http://www.globalpolitician.com/articleshow.asp?ID=2210&cid=12
Sam Vaknin, Ph.D.
"Human trafficking and people smuggling are multi-billion dollar industries. At least 50% of the 150 million immigrants the world over are illegal aliens. There are 80 million migrant workers found in virtually every country. T hey flee war, urban terrorism, crippling poverty, corruption, authoritarianism, nepotism, cronyism, and unemployment. Their main destinations are the EU and the USA - but many end up in lesser countries in Asia or Africa."
Sam Vaknin, Ph.D.
"Human trafficking and people smuggling are multi-billion dollar industries. At least 50% of the 150 million immigrants the world over are illegal aliens. There are 80 million migrant workers found in virtually every country. T hey flee war, urban terrorism, crippling poverty, corruption, authoritarianism, nepotism, cronyism, and unemployment. Their main destinations are the EU and the USA - but many end up in lesser countries in Asia or Africa."
Was Exiled Radical Islamic Cleric Linked to London Bombings? / Global Politican, 6 Oct 2006
http://www.globalpolitician.com/articleshow.asp?ID=2209&cid=3
Jeremy Reynalds
"New information is emerging about exiled radical Islamic cleric Omar Bakri Mohammad and his possible involvement with the deadly London bombings. On recordings made of an Islamic discussion group (held nightly on Paltalk.com), answering a question about whether he was linked to the bombings, Bakri for the first time admitted going to Leeds, where two of the London bombers originated. He also confirmed that the bombers attended talks given by himself, jailed Islamic cleric Abu Hamza, Abu Qatada and Abdullah el-Faisal. However, following his disclosure and presumably aware that he was being monitored, Bakri said just because he traveled to the area was not an admission that he organized the bombings."
Jeremy Reynalds
"New information is emerging about exiled radical Islamic cleric Omar Bakri Mohammad and his possible involvement with the deadly London bombings. On recordings made of an Islamic discussion group (held nightly on Paltalk.com), answering a question about whether he was linked to the bombings, Bakri for the first time admitted going to Leeds, where two of the London bombers originated. He also confirmed that the bombers attended talks given by himself, jailed Islamic cleric Abu Hamza, Abu Qatada and Abdullah el-Faisal. However, following his disclosure and presumably aware that he was being monitored, Bakri said just because he traveled to the area was not an admission that he organized the bombings."
Hackers flog toolkits to 'newbie crims' / The Contractor, 12 Oct 2006
http://www.contractoruk.com/news/002895.html
"Professional malicious code writers are cashing in on wannabe cyber criminals who have little computer expertise but an insatiable desire for financial gain. Easy-to-use toolkits designed for the individual with no hacking experience have become ubiquitous on the Web, to the extent that they now power 15 % of ‘live’ malicious websites. These toolkits are growing in popularity, and “often” are for sale to the non-sophisticated user who may have read about the latest operating system vulnerability, Websense said. Announcing results from its report on the first half of 2006, the security outfit said the number of traditional hackers ‘who hack for fun’ are in decline, amid an upsurge in money-motivated crooks."
"Professional malicious code writers are cashing in on wannabe cyber criminals who have little computer expertise but an insatiable desire for financial gain. Easy-to-use toolkits designed for the individual with no hacking experience have become ubiquitous on the Web, to the extent that they now power 15 % of ‘live’ malicious websites. These toolkits are growing in popularity, and “often” are for sale to the non-sophisticated user who may have read about the latest operating system vulnerability, Websense said. Announcing results from its report on the first half of 2006, the security outfit said the number of traditional hackers ‘who hack for fun’ are in decline, amid an upsurge in money-motivated crooks."
Bring us your huddled masses / The Economist, 11 Oct 2006
http://digbig.com/4nhns
"Western Europe, like other rich places, attracts huge numbers of migrants but fails to manage them. A new migration agency might help to smooth such flows."
"Western Europe, like other rich places, attracts huge numbers of migrants but fails to manage them. A new migration agency might help to smooth such flows."
[USA] The Enemy Within / Frontline, 11 Oct 2006
http://www.pbs.org/frontline/rss/redir/wgbh/pages/frontline/enemywithin/
"Five years after the attacks on 9/11 and the massive, multibillion-dollar reorganization of government agencies which followed, FRONTLINE and New York Times reporter Lowell Bergman investigates the domestic counterterrorism effort and asks whether we are any better prepared to prevent another catastrophic attack. Relying on interviews with high-level sources in the U. S. government, Bergman looks into the major cases brought inside the United States and reveals troubling flaws in what has been the largest reorganization of the government in half a century. The documentary focuses on who is the real enemy within the United States and whether we are prepared to defeat him."
Available for viewing online. http://www.pbs.org/frontline/rss/redir/wgbh/pages/frontline/enemywithin/view/
"Five years after the attacks on 9/11 and the massive, multibillion-dollar reorganization of government agencies which followed, FRONTLINE and New York Times reporter Lowell Bergman investigates the domestic counterterrorism effort and asks whether we are any better prepared to prevent another catastrophic attack. Relying on interviews with high-level sources in the U. S. government, Bergman looks into the major cases brought inside the United States and reveals troubling flaws in what has been the largest reorganization of the government in half a century. The documentary focuses on who is the real enemy within the United States and whether we are prepared to defeat him."
Available for viewing online. http://www.pbs.org/frontline/rss/redir/wgbh/pages/frontline/enemywithin/view/
Tribes in Europe and the Disappearance of Trust / Brussels Journal, 12 Oct, 2006
http://www.brusselsjournal.com/node/1492
"2006 will go down in European history as the year when Muslims as a group became a dominant factor in elections. The demographics indicated this long ago, but it still came as a surprise to many multiculturalists that Muslims tend to vote primarily along ethnic lines: Muslims vote for Muslim candidates, even if the political parties give the latter almost unelectable places on the list of candidates. As a consequence the Muslim candidates got elected to the detriment of indigenous politicians. Party leaders, who used to be able to get those candidates elected which the leadership favoured, have been taken by surprise by Turks voting only for Turks and Moroccans voting exclusively for Moroccans. The parties that put Muslim candidates forward are being “cannibalized” from the inside. They risk being taken over by radical Muslims." [Gov & Pol; Integration...; Society]
"2006 will go down in European history as the year when Muslims as a group became a dominant factor in elections. The demographics indicated this long ago, but it still came as a surprise to many multiculturalists that Muslims tend to vote primarily along ethnic lines: Muslims vote for Muslim candidates, even if the political parties give the latter almost unelectable places on the list of candidates. As a consequence the Muslim candidates got elected to the detriment of indigenous politicians. Party leaders, who used to be able to get those candidates elected which the leadership favoured, have been taken by surprise by Turks voting only for Turks and Moroccans voting exclusively for Moroccans. The parties that put Muslim candidates forward are being “cannibalized” from the inside. They risk being taken over by radical Muslims." [Gov & Pol; Integration...; Society]
The Discriminatory Asylum Vouchers / IndyMedia, 14 Oct 2006
http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2006/10/353502.html
IMC Birmingham
"Over 5,000 'failed asylum seekers' in the UK receive £35-a-week vouchers instead of cash for their NASS support under Section 4 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999, despite concerted efforts by the Home Office to open routes of enforced and 'voluntary' return to get rid of them. The so-called "hard-case support" claimants are stigmatised, demeaned and discriminated against on a daily basis. Yet, the House of Commons have recently debated extending the use of vouchers for more asylum seekers, 4 years after the original Asylum Voucher Scheme was abolished following huge public pressure [1 2] and a lot of criticism."
IMC Birmingham
"Over 5,000 'failed asylum seekers' in the UK receive £35-a-week vouchers instead of cash for their NASS support under Section 4 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999, despite concerted efforts by the Home Office to open routes of enforced and 'voluntary' return to get rid of them. The so-called "hard-case support" claimants are stigmatised, demeaned and discriminated against on a daily basis. Yet, the House of Commons have recently debated extending the use of vouchers for more asylum seekers, 4 years after the original Asylum Voucher Scheme was abolished following huge public pressure [1 2] and a lot of criticism."
If the Police have to consult "community representatives" before launching anti-terror raids the public will be at greater risk from terror attacks -
argues Jon Davies / Social Affairs Unit Blog, 13 Oct 2006
http://www.socialaffairsunit.org.uk/blog/archives/001173.php
Jon Davies
"It has been proposed that before the police launch an anti-terror raid they should have to consult a panel of four "community representatives". If this were to happen the public would be at greater risk from terror attacks."
http://www.socialaffairsunit.org.uk/blog/archives/001173.php
Jon Davies
"It has been proposed that before the police launch an anti-terror raid they should have to consult a panel of four "community representatives". If this were to happen the public would be at greater risk from terror attacks."
[Australia] One man crime wave / Gotcha Blog, 12 Oct 2006
http://digbig.com/4nhnn
Gary Hughes
"Who said drugs aren’t linked to crime? Here is what one heroin addict stole during 55 burglaries carried out in just three months to fund his drug problem: 24 laptop and desktop computers, more than 13 watches, 25 cameras, 5 mobile phones, 4 televisions, 5 stereos, 3 DVD players, 2 video recorders, 3 computer game consoles, 2 cars, dozens of items of jewellery, thousands of dollars in cash, credit cards, passports, CDs, computer games, DVDs, clothes, bedding, a skateboard and a chainsaw. All that added to $483,988 in cash and goods – an average $5318 a day during his 91-day one man crime spree. And at the end of it all the burglar, who was on parole after serviving a jail sentence for earlier theft and burglary charges, stole a pistol off a detective trying to arrest him, led police or a chase through crowded city streets, hijacked a taxi and fired a shot in a crowded road."
Gary Hughes
"Who said drugs aren’t linked to crime? Here is what one heroin addict stole during 55 burglaries carried out in just three months to fund his drug problem: 24 laptop and desktop computers, more than 13 watches, 25 cameras, 5 mobile phones, 4 televisions, 5 stereos, 3 DVD players, 2 video recorders, 3 computer game consoles, 2 cars, dozens of items of jewellery, thousands of dollars in cash, credit cards, passports, CDs, computer games, DVDs, clothes, bedding, a skateboard and a chainsaw. All that added to $483,988 in cash and goods – an average $5318 a day during his 91-day one man crime spree. And at the end of it all the burglar, who was on parole after serviving a jail sentence for earlier theft and burglary charges, stole a pistol off a detective trying to arrest him, led police or a chase through crowded city streets, hijacked a taxi and fired a shot in a crowded road."
[Australia] Urgent report on scourge of ice / The Australian, 9 Oct 2006
http://theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,20547232-2702,00.html
Simon Kearney
"AUSTRALIA'S peak illicit drugs body has ordered an urgent report on crystal methamphetamine, or ice, after admitting it had underestimated the "huge problem" with use of the drug until two weeks ago. The report by the commonwealth's Australian National Council on Drugs will outline national policy options for the federal Government to tackle the drug."
Simon Kearney
"AUSTRALIA'S peak illicit drugs body has ordered an urgent report on crystal methamphetamine, or ice, after admitting it had underestimated the "huge problem" with use of the drug until two weeks ago. The report by the commonwealth's Australian National Council on Drugs will outline national policy options for the federal Government to tackle the drug."
[Australia] 'Voluntary' national service plan / Sunday Herald Sun, 15 Oct 2006
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,20582297-2,00.html
"SCHOOL leavers will be offered a year of voluntary national service in the armed forces as part of a new $1 billion recruitment plan. The Howard Government has rejected conscription, opting instead for "voluntary" national service. [..] It would imbue them with values of integrity, commitment, teamwork and problem solving. At the same time they'd be exposed to a range of technologies."
"SCHOOL leavers will be offered a year of voluntary national service in the armed forces as part of a new $1 billion recruitment plan. The Howard Government has rejected conscription, opting instead for "voluntary" national service. [..] It would imbue them with values of integrity, commitment, teamwork and problem solving. At the same time they'd be exposed to a range of technologies."
[Australia] Tracking plan for worst crims / News.com.au, 15 Oct 2006
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,20581913-421,00.html
"Under the laws, criminals could be obliged to report to a parole officer, reside at an approved address and could be subject to drug and alcohol testing and psychological counselling.
NSW's life parolees are currently supervised for only three years, at which point the Department of Corrective Services must apply for an extension. The new laws will require them to permanently report to authorities or wear a tracking device on a wrist or ankle."
"Under the laws, criminals could be obliged to report to a parole officer, reside at an approved address and could be subject to drug and alcohol testing and psychological counselling.
NSW's life parolees are currently supervised for only three years, at which point the Department of Corrective Services must apply for an extension. The new laws will require them to permanently report to authorities or wear a tracking device on a wrist or ankle."
'Ice' drug trial bid to help users kick habit / Sydney Morning Herald, 15 Oct 2006
http://digbig.com/4nhnc
Louise Hal
"ADDICTS of the dangerous party drug "ice" are taking part in a world-first trial in Sydney that could help users kick their destructive habit. Researchers are testing whether a drug normally used to treat the excessive sleep disorder narcolepsy can wean addicts off the illegal methamphetamine described as a "scourge on Australian society"."
Louise Hal
"ADDICTS of the dangerous party drug "ice" are taking part in a world-first trial in Sydney that could help users kick their destructive habit. Researchers are testing whether a drug normally used to treat the excessive sleep disorder narcolepsy can wean addicts off the illegal methamphetamine described as a "scourge on Australian society"."
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