The Rise of Facial Scanning Surveillance

Read this today: Facial scanning surveillance becoming a reality in the U.S., new documents reveal

So, readers, having read that, are any of you even remotely concerned?  I know I am.

What scares me is that the definition of "bad guy" could get very slippery. In a way it already is.

I think the following from Skyfall is a very accurate quote:

"I'm frightened because our enemies are no longer known to us. They do not exist on a map. They're not nations, they're individuals. And look around you. Who do you fear? Can you see a face, a uniform, a flag? No! Our world is not more transparent now, it's more opaque! It's in the shadows."

You could get detained because you "look like" someone. And if its false, will the authorities apologize, and what if such a detention affects your life/career?  What then? 

Yet we are almost blindly accepting these things.  That's even scarier. All this is being done in the name of "security", but ask yourself, what are we potentially giving up? I'm not sure I want to know the answer.

Post Denver Thoughts on Guns

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bill-moyers/watch-living-under-the-gu_b_1691100.html

A friend on my FB called this "brilliant". I disagree. I love how when a singular lunatic does something like this, the NRA and gun owners as a whole get blamed. Moyers is trying to score cheap points. Some of the "facts" in his editorial are dubious at best and have some pretty heavy historical distortions. The whole incident is tragic, but to paint all gun owners with the same brush is pretty low and offensive to me, as a gun owner. Canadian laws are different, mind you, but I have taken the required courses, filled out my paperwork, been checked out by the authorities. There has always been a gun in my home since I was an infant, and it has never been raised in anger or malice towards anyone, ever. If people didn't have guns, or anything that could be considered a traditional weapon, they'd fashion their own, or resort to their bare hands. If someone wants to kill, they will. No laws on earth could ever hope to stop that. He was right on one point, violence is ingrained in humans, not to mention most animals. But its the humans that cause these things to happen, not inanimate objects. And to cast blame at gun owners, who are mostly law abiding people is shameful and disrespectful to the victims.

Bottom line: Its not the majority of gun owners that are the problem here.  They are responsible about their guns, whatever type they happen to be.  It is a very small number that cause a problem.  Deal with them, and the criminal element.  That is where the problem really lies.  But its easier to go after legal gun owners, because they have nothing to hide and are an easy target.

Banning guns isn't going to make the problem go away.  You are just taking them away from people who didn't cause a problem in the first place.

Most gun owners have shown that they can be trusted owning them.  If someone shows they can't, then they should be taken away, no question.  I don't have a problem with people owning any type of gun if they are responsible about it.

People ask why should it be allowed?  Why not?  Its people's private money and if they want to spend it on guns, so what?  If they aren't hurting anyone, there is no harm.  Last time I checked we were a supposedly free society.  By all means, have regulations, courses, permits etc prior to owning them.  Education is never a bad thing.  Not only that, it is an industry and keeps many people employed as well.

As an aside, I was introduced to guns at a very young age.  I was taught the proper handling and respect that they deserve.  When I was young, we had a .22 in the corner of the living room, loaded.  I never once touched without permission or treated it as a toy.  Guns themselves aren't bad.  Shooting a gun, although not a necessary skill for most people, does have benefits. 

I found the following from 2008: http://gunowners.org/op0302.htm

Some of it I think is somewhat subjective, but some of the benefits I agree with from that page are (I've adding the bolding):

"1) It is a Fun Sport. No fancy excuses or rationalizatio n here, the shooting sports are just plain fun. Whether shooting inside, using your BB or pellet gun, or outside plinking at cans, target shooting, or cowboy action shooting, it is great fun. However, as important as words are to good communication, this "fun" element of the shooting sports cannot fully be described. It must be experienced! So, grab a friend and go the closest shooting range and "taste and see" for yourself.

2) It is a Safe Sport. Though the instruments of this sport can be dangerous, in reality when compared to other individual or group sporting activities (football, basketball, tennis, swimming, driving, biking etc.) the shooting sports are quite safe.

According to the National Safety Council, Injury Facts, 1999 and a 1991 Harvard Medical Practice Study:

    You are 100 times more likely to be injured in a swimming pool than by a gun.

    You are 31 times more likely to be injured riding in a car than by a gun.

    You are 1,900 times more likely to be injured by an "iatrogenic" error than by a gun ("iatrogenic" error is medical speak for a doctor or hospital injuring you accidentally).

And, with the growing number of gun safety/training programs, the number of injuries are declining and are at an all time low. This is in contrast to the fact that the number of firearm owners in America (as a whole) is on the rise.

3) It is a Family Sport. This is a sport that almost every family member can enjoy together. It is also a sport that boys and girls, or men and women, can participate in together. Granddad and grandson, father and daughter, great family memories lasting a lifetime are made here. Why not start making some of your own, now!

4) It is an Individual Sport. You can also shoot by yourself without any assistance from anyone, if that is your desire. Here, you have time to think and enjoy solitude. Time to grow in your marksmanship abilities at your own pace.

5) It is a Lifetime Sport. Shooting can begin early and continue through most of an adult's normal life span. And, with the expansion of high-tech gadgets available today, many disabled individuals can excel in some of the highest levels of competition.

6) Its Training: Builds Physical Discipline. In an age of the "couch potato," this sport can help build many physical disciplines that are not only healthy but enjoyable. Increased strength, stamina, hand-eye coordination, and fine motor skills are just a few of the physical disciplines acquired in the shooting sports that apply, not only to this sport, but to all of life.

7) Its Training: Increases Mental Discipline. To the surprise of many, the shooting sports are primarily mental sports. Experienced marksmen think sport shooting is 90% mental. Concentration levels are sharpened and expanded. Multiple problem solving activities involving logic, mathematics, and creative thinking (thinking "outside the box") are needed and employed to succeed at any level of the shooting sports. This is truly a "thinking man's" (and women's) sport.
8) Its Training: Advances Personal Responsibility . Personal responsibility is taught throughout the shooting sports to advance both safety and skill development. The shooting sports also cultivate personal responsibility because they are a foundation for both security and liberty in any family or nation.

    "Liberty means responsibility . That is why most men dread it." -- George Bernard Shaw

13) Its Training: Provides Enhanced Educational Opportunities. Another little-known fact is that the shooting sports are some of the most popular events in the Olympics. 17 Olympic events (10 for Men and 7 for Women) in four Olympic disciplines (rifle, pistol, running target and shotgun) were held during the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney and are scheduled in the 2004 Athens Games. This is why several universities and private trusts have monies allocated providing scholarships for young marksmen, male or female.

14) Its Training: Is Conducted in a Friendly and Helpful Environment. The people involved in the shooting sports are some of the most helpful, honest and "salt of the earth" kind of folks you will meet. Most are friendly people who are both able and willing to help you improve in any aspect of this sport.

15) Its Training: Promotes the Values Needed for a Safe, Courageous and Self-sacrificing Society. Character development is always necessary and good. The shooting sports can help you overcome fear, grow in patience and think of others as you would have them think of you ("Golden Rule" and "Good Samaritan" character traits).

    "Aggressive fighting for the right is the noblest sport the world affords." -- Theodore Roosevelt (America's 26th President)

Note: A parent added to the above by stating: "It's affordable, you learn to overcome peer pressure, to laugh at yourself and learn from your mistakes, you become a 'good sport', learn how to set goals and achieve them, and you meet new people. "

10 Years since September 11, 2001 - my personal recollections

I woke up this morning on the 10th anniversary of the terrorist attacks on the United States to a world that looked remarkably similar.  The sun was shining, the sky was clear... a beautiful September day.  Ten years ago, I was a student at Trent University in Peterborough, Ontario.  It was the start of my third year, and I was excited because it was the first day of my second year World War II course.  I had been on the waiting list for it, and was pretty positive I'd get in.  I had been told to go to the first class and speak to the prof.  The second half of my second year was particularly rough, as my father had passed away in February.  I thought of him often in the days following September 11 and wondered what his thoughts might have been.

I had awoken to the sounds of CBC radio.  They had reported the first plane strike, but at that point information was very sketchy.  From the sounds of the report, it had sounded like a small plane had hit it, not a full fledged passenger jet.  CBC continued with their regular programming, at that point unaware of the severity of the incident.  I got up from bed and prepared breakfast.  My now ex-wife wasn't a breakfast eater, so I usually prepared it myself.  I moved to our living room and turned on the morning news as was my custom most mornings.

At that point, the world turned on its head.  One plane strike had turned into two, and this was no longer a 10 second soundbite on CBC radio.  I remember being transfixed by the news reports, saying very little. I sat, and ate but it was a surreal experience.  By this time, it was clear that this was no accident.  By the time I had to leave for my class, the Pentagon had also been hit.  We were both very upset, and I promised to be back as soon as possible.

Arriving at the school, I ran into people I knew.  The attacks had put the entire school in a buzz of talk and activity.  I arrived at the lecture room and everyone was talking about it.  Of course, some of the reports were still varying widely as to what was going on.  The prof came in. His name escapes me as I write this... Dan something or other.  He was a young professor, barely in his 30s.  He was visibly upset too.  He quickly dealt with the class business and sent us on our way so we could continue to see the coverage.  On a positive note that day, I did get into his course.

I returned home quickly.  During the ride home, the situation had become even worse.  Another plan had crashed in Pennsylvania and by this time, the two WTC towers had collapsed.  The images on the TV were frightening and disturbing.  Video was surfacing of people who had thrown themselves from the building, the debris and ash covered streets of New York, the bewilderment and horror on people's faces.

I had considered packing up the car and driving to the border to see if help was needed in New York.  Maybe there were survivors and others who needed help.  However the media was advising that the border to the US was closed.  I had felt a strong need to help and now felt more than a little helpless.  US airspace had been closed as well.  I remember how eerie the silent skies were.  Many flights flew over Peterborough, and for a couple of days after, the skies were silent.

In the days and weeks that followed, we learned of the insidious nature of the attacks and people mourned.  I remember attending another class at Trent, US History, and despite the current events, the professor, Dan Azoulay (great lecturer, but horrible prof) made it absolutely clear that the attacks were not going to derail the lecture schedule he had laid out and that we were not going to spend much time talking about it.  He turned out to be a real ass in our tutorial groups and by the end of the course, he was widely despised and was not rehired the next semester thanks to our student evaluations of him.

I remember that November 11th was particularly poignant that year and it was unusual in the sense that most November 11ths in this part of the world tend to be gray and rainy.  Not in 2011.  It was another sunny day.  I attended the main service in downtown Peterborough and it was very well attended.

In the years since there have been other terrorist attacks, and the mastermind behind them, Osama Bin Laden, is now dead, buried somewhere at sea after a US Navy SEAL raid earlier this year.  It is perhaps poetic that Bin Laden was killed in the 10th Anniversary year of the attacks.

The world too has changed.  I watched the documentary 102 Minutes That Changed America, and the memories of that day came flooding back.  I was unable to stop my tears for some time during the broadcast.  I read a National Post article, and the closing paragraphs resonated with me (read it HERE):

"During the four decades of struggle against Russia, the Cold War was the frame in which the West saw itself. Our shared consciousness had a purpose — though not one that we would have chosen.

With the crumbling of communism after 1989, the West lost that frame and lost a sense of its own meaning. In his perverse way, bin Laden had something right: He saw the signs of decadence and corruption.

Today, as it continues to fight a resourceful enemy, the West finds itself in an uncommonly weak position. It took success for granted too long and borrowed too much against it. Most of the democracies now suffer from disastrously wrong-headed national budgeting, a persistent economic slump and politicians driven to distraction by partisanship.

For the first time since 1945, the way of life invented by the Enlightenment shows serious signs of cracking. Incredibly, its future as the intellectual engine of mankind is in doubt. With the help of the external threat from radical Islam, we may have reached one of those places where a civilization finds a way to revive itself or quietly accepts that it has permanently lost its way."

The world certainly has changed since September 11, 2001, and not necessarily in good ways.  The Western world needs to take a long hard look at itself and decide what is going to happen next... will we, as Fulford suggests, revive ourselves, or will the decades of decadence and corruption finally seal our fate?

 Please say a prayer or whatever it is you do to remember those who died, not only in the attacks, but also the brave service men and women of many nationalities who have given the ultimate sacrifice to combat terror.

PS - I welcome anyone reading this post to respond with comments, particularly how you remember September 11 and how it has impacted your life.