Yesterday‚ a bipartisan collection of Senators introduced the Fans First Act‚ which would help address flaws in the current live event ticketing system by increasing transparency in ticket sales‚ and protecting consumers from fake or dramatically overpriced tickets. Today‚ the artists and Congressmen allege‚ buying a ticket to a concert or sporting event requires negotiating […] The post Fix The Tix: 300 Musicians Back New Senate Bill for Reforming Concert Ticket Sales in the ‘Fans First Act’ appeared first on Good News Network.

Book Recommendations Reading the Weird Everything an Omen: Stephen King’s Pet Sematary (Part 1) We’re celebrating the 50th anniversary of King’s debut by reading a different book entirely&;#33; By Ruthanna Emrys‚ Anne M. Pillsworth | Published on May 1‚ 2024 Comment 0 Share New Share Welcome back to Reading the Weird‚ in which we get girl cooties all over weird fiction‚ cosmic horror‚ and Lovecraftiana—from its historical roots through its most recent branches. This week‚ we kick off Stephen King’s Pet Sematary with Chapters 1-6. The novel was first published in 1983. Spoilers ahead&;#33; Summary “The old sleep poorly. Perhaps they stand watch.” The Creed family has finally arrived in Ludlow‚ Maine after a long drive from Chicago. Louis Creed has accepted a position at the University of Maine‚ directing the campus infirmary. His “three hostages to fortune” are his wife Rachel‚ young daughter Eileen‚ and baby son Gage. Add in Eileen’s tomcat Church. Everyone’s worn out. Teething Gage bites the nipple that feeds him‚ which makes already uncertain Rachel cry‚ which makes Eileen join her and Church pace restlessly. Louis indulges in a brief fantasy of offloading his passengers and hiding out as a medic at Disney World. The sight of their new house is cheering: a big New England Colonial surrounded by lush lawns and backed by a field for the kids to play in. Beyond the field are woods that go on “damn near forever‚” state land that should go undeveloped for the foreseeable future—it’s tied up in litigation with the Micmac. Rachel declares it beautiful. Eileen cheers. Gage caps the magic by echoing Rachel’s murmur of “Home‚” his first real word after ma and da. Good omens end when they leave the car. Louis can’t find the house keys in the glove compartment‚ and soon the moving van will arrive. Eileen promptly falls off a tire-swing‚ skinning a knee. She screams so loudly Louis worries the neighbors across the road will hear. No sooner has he gotten her bandaged than Gage screams even louder. A bee has stung his neck. Eileen‚ panicking at this new peril‚ trips and resumes yelling. Rachel calls on Louis to do something. Louis decides he’s going crazy. Into this chaos steps their over-the-road neighbor‚ an old man in bib-alls smoking an unfiltered cigarette and speaking in a Down East drawl. The usually reserved Louis warms to Judson Crandall at once. Before long he’ll look on Jud as the man who should have been his father‚ his own having died when Louis was three. With unexpected dexterity‚ given his gnarled hands‚ Jud plucks the stinger from Gage’s neck. When the moving van arrives with the house keys still AWOL‚ Jud fetches over the ones the previous tenant left with him. When Eileen points out a mown path behind their field‚ Jud says he’ll tell her about it sometime‚ then takes her‚ Gage and Rachel across the street to meet his wife and get Gage’s sting cooled down with baking soda. While Louis supervises the movers‚ he learns that 83-year-old Jud has lived all his life in Ludlow‚ except for his WWI service. Now he’s happily retired with his wife Norma. Jud invites Louis to join him on his porch later for a beer. Louis doubts he’ll be up for socializing. But when Eileen and Gage have collapsed‚ with Rachel following suit‚ he feels too “jived-up” to sleep. Rachel jokes that Jud will get free medical advice regarding Norma’s arthritis. The Crandalls’ screen porch features comfortable rattan furniture‚ a radio playing the Red Sox game‚ and a pail packed with ice and cans of Black Label. Louis has “the oddest feeling of coming home.” He and Jud sit drinking beer. Norma has already retired. Louis asks about her arthritis‚ giving Jud an opening to solicit advice‚ but Jud doesn’t bite. Out on the road‚ a massive tanker truck bearing the legend ORINCO rumbles past. Orinco’s a fertilizer factory whose trucks are always coming and going‚ along with oil tankers‚ dump trucks‚ and commuters to Bangor and Brewer. There’s no peace from the “frigging” road these days. Route 15’s a mean one. Does Louis remember the path Eileen asked about&;#63; Louis remembers. The path‚ Jud continues‚ is kept up by local kids. It climbs into the woods about a mile and a half‚ leading to a pet cemetery. The road “uses up a lot of animals.” Mostly dogs and cats‚ but the Ryder kids lost their pet raccoon. “When a good animal gets run down in the road‚ a kid never forgets.” Louis thinks of Church asleep with Eileen. Jud suggests they get Church fixed‚ so he won’t wander as much. Though Louis has been reluctant to neuter Church‚ and the “go-to-hell” look in the cat’s eyes‚ he says he’ll think about it. Now he better get to bed—he’s starting his new job tomorrow‚ with just a couple weeks to prepare for the September avalanche of students. Jud extends an “anytime” invitation to the porch.  Back across the road (where he’s had to wait out another truck and a line of cars)‚ Louis checks on Eileen‚ then Gage. Seeing Gage in his usual face-up sprawl‚ Louis feels a surge of love “so strong it seemed almost dangerous.” No one watching‚ he delivers a kiss to the boy’s cheek. From his and Rachel’s bedroom‚ Louis can see the Crandalls’ porch. Jud’s cigarette still burns‚ a red ember in the night. “The old sleep poorly‚” he thinks. “Perhaps they stand watch.” But against what&;#63; Finally asleep himself‚ Louis dreams of Disney World‚ where he’s driving a white van marked with a red cross. A ten-year-old Gage sits beside him‚ while Church lies on the dashboard. On Main Street‚ Mickey Mouse is “shaking hands with the children clustered around him‚ his big white cartoon gloves swallowing their small‚ trusting hands.” This week’s metrics The Degenerate Dutch: Ludlow is in longstanding litigation with the Micmac nation over the state lands behind Louis’s house. Three guesses where the titular cemetery is‚ and the first two don’t count. Libronomicon: Sesame Street books so rarely make an appearance in horror. What would Big Bird think of his cameo&;#63; Ruthanna’s Commentary We’ve just celebrated the 50th anniversary of Stephen King’s Carrie. His first novel opened a new era of trashy-in-the-best-way paperback horror; the anniversary edition has an intro by Margaret Atwood. The title alone brings me to the tiny beach by the pond where I took swimming lessons‚ sun on my back‚ used paperback perched on the edge of my towel—completely immersed in the delicious fantasy that school bullies were an inevitable precursor to terrifying psychic powers. I love my e-reader‚ but there’s something visceral about a fancily-textured cheap-paper cover on a book that costs precisely the total of your weekly allowance. But I’m not in middle school any more‚ and if anything about that book horrifies me it’s the idea of replacing my teenage adoration with 30-plus years’ worth of bad fairies. And Pet Sematary is Anne’s favorite King and I’ve never read it. So we’re celebrating the anniversary of King’s debut by reading a different book entirely&;#33; From the opening chapters‚ this feels like a good decision. My beloved Carrie and Firestarter focus on adult fear of teenage girls’ power‚ close enough to a power fantasy for an actual teenager. Pet Sematary centers a parent—not one of King’s vile abusers but an ordinary-for-1983 guy‚ imperfect but trying‚ dealing with adult loves and fears. From the introduction (thank you Steve for the content warnings)‚ parental fears are likely to loom large. It’s a good match for 48-year-old me‚ trying to support and protect a family‚ who’s been through grief over losing people and animals and places. Death‚ says the authors note‚ is a mystery—and burial a secret. That second isn’t precisely true—while all those interers of famous folk have indeed not written books‚ funerals aren’t hard to get into. But burial as profession and practice remains a locus of taboo. Modern people shy from cemetery keepers—and moreso in the 80s‚ before the recent crop of books pulling back that veil. Judaism requires participation in the burial by funeral attendees‚ but other practices may leave that to strangers and clerics. And even if you’ve contributed your shovel-ful of dirt‚ what happens below is a mystery for fungi and bacteria rather than humans. So far‚ the book has avoided most of what annoys me in King: the blue collar attitudes shorthanded via bigotry and sexism‚ the fear of women and girls (which may yet arise via Eileen)‚ the magical negros and Native Americans (I have a strong suspicion that this is coming up). Louis gets realistically frustrated with his kids after a long car trip—I’ve been there—but also loves them‚ and his wife‚ with all his trying-for-the-80s heart. Have I mentioned that I don’t miss the 80s&;#63; Lying on the beach reading a used paperback from the corner store‚ yes.  The acceptability of spanking‚ the rigid breastfeeding instructions‚ the weirdness around spaying pets‚ the merely-nascent idea of actually negotiating decisions with your spouse‚ not so much. And the smoking as a casual‚ homely character beat—I think Jud lights four or five during his introduction&;#63; I would list the universality of outdoor cats as an 80s thing‚ but our next door neighbors gave up on keeping theirs cats inside when the kids were little and kept opening the door. Yesterday I saw one of them running across the busy road where we live. At least Gage coos in the era of Back To Sleep‚ so kids will presumably… die of truck strikes rather than SIDS‚ maybe I’m not saving too much anxiety on that count. One of the things King does well‚ possibly not consciously‚ is to turn up the anxieties and flaws of everyday life to supernatural levels. The extremity of emotion around kids‚ moving to an unfamiliar area with unfamiliar hazards‚ the risks we can’t reasonably avoid. It works particularly well here‚ where the characters are worth caring about from the start‚ where their reactions and emotions are easily within the realm of reason and sympathy. It’s telling that King originally trunked this one‚ that it felt too close to home. Anne’s Commentary In a September 2000 introduction to Pet Sematary‚ Stephen King considers a question frequently asked of him: Which of his books does he consider the most frightening&;#63; He answers without hesitation. In PS‚ King feared he’d finally gone too far into darkness for the public to follow‚ and so he shelved the manuscript. He was wrong about at least his own public’s capacity for terror. His other concern was his personal reaction to the recently completed draft. “Put simply‚” he writes‚ “I was horrified by what I had written‚ and the conclusions I’d drawn.” PS was a beast that had to be buried‚ but what’s interred in a pet cemetery doesn’t necessarily stay in a pet cemetery. When King left Doubleday‚ he owed them one more novel. The sole candidate in hand was Pet Sematary. Luckily‚ Tabitha King convinced Stephen that PS was “awful‚ but too good not to be read.” I agree with Tabitha one-hundred percent. I also get Stephen’s qualms. The book squeaks past Salem’s Lot for my favorite King‚ but it leaves the Lot far behind in terms of how deeply it harrows me with each reread. Much fiction grows out of a writer wondering‚ “What if&;#63;” Some what-ifs are general: What if that late Cretaceous asteroid had missed‚ allowing the (nonbird) dinosaurs to prosper a geological while longer&;#63; Other what-ifs are personal: What if I never met my life partner—how elsewise might things have turned out&;#63; King’s Pet Sematary what-if is one of the personal ones. In the introduction mentioned above‚ he recounts his year as a writer in residence at his alma mater‚ the University of Maine. He and his family stayed in the rural town of Orrington‚ in a “wonderful” house the only drawback of which was the busy truck-frequented road fronting it. Their over-the-road neighbor warned them that the road “used up a lot of animals.” Proof lay in the woods beyond the Kings’ house: a makeshift graveyard with a sign rendered the more poignant by its misspelling‚ yes‚ “Pet Sematary.” The Kings’ daughter had a cat. The Kings had a toddler son. The Kings suffered that year a hit and a near-miss‚ roadwise. What if—the near-miss had been a hit‚ too&;#63; And what if‚ unlike in real life‚ there was a way to undo the hits&;#63; What if you couldn’t not try to undo them‚ for all the wisdom of the lines that close King’s extended PS epigraph: Death is a mystery‚ and burial is a secret. Barely into the second page of Chapter One‚ Louis Creed assures himself that the landmarks he’s following to their new house are right‚ but his tired brain adds that they’re as right as “the astrological signs the night before Caesar was assassinated.” Inside the car‚ the omens are downright discouraging‚ as his wife and daughter cry in tandem‚ his son fusses‚ and the damn cat won’t stop pacing. Louis even imagines ditching his family for a solo medical practice at Disney World. Then the new house comes into view‚ and all moods change. Well‚ maybe not Church’s‚ but Rachel and Eileen are thrilled‚ and Gage issues the ultimate good omen by saying for only his third word‚ Home. It’s a moment that will persist in Louis’s memory as magical. Omens follow omens. The next set isn’t great. Louis can’t find the house keys. Eileen scrapes a knee. Gage takes a bee sting. Rachel is losing it. Louis is losing it. Then the best omen of all arrives‚ one helluva good neighbor in the person of Jud Crandall. He pulls stingers‚ sends Rachel and the kids to chill with his wife‚ rescues Louis with a spare set of house keys‚ and even enables a cooler-headed Louis to find his own keys. Louis doesn’t take readily to strangers‚ yet he immediately likes Jud. By the time the movers leave and the other Creeds are asleep‚ Louis accepts the invite he’d meant to turn down; stepping onto the Crandalls’ porch‚ he feels he’s come home. By the time he leaves Jud‚ he’s found his never-before-had father. Yes‚ that very first day‚ as the very start of Chapter One foretold. Omens following omens. Omens‚ even good ones‚ can only exist when destiny does. From his bedroom‚ Louis notices that Jud’s still out on his porch. Louis might have taken comfort from the sight. Instead he thinks: The old sleep poorly. Perhaps they stand watch. Before Louis can decide what they watch against‚ he’s dreaming about Disney World. This time Church and a ten-year-old Gage are with him in the white medic’s van‚ and Mickey Himself is shaking hands with the kids on Main Street. If this is a good-omen dream‚ where are Rachel and Eileen&;#63; Why Disney World again‚ when Ludlow is looking up&;#63; And why does King write that Mickey’s cartoon hands “swallow” the children’s “trusting” ones&;#63; Am I weird to find Mickey Mouse and his freaky huge gloved paws nightmare fodder&;#63; What’s he hiding inside those gloves‚ anyway&;#63; What’s behind that perpetual grin&;#63; Never mind. I say Louis’s dream is another bad omen‚ and I say King’s brilliant to end the Creeds’ first Ludlow day. Next week‚ we follow up a Poetry Month comment with Sarah Pinsker’s “Where Oaken Hearts Do Gather.” Bring your guitars&;#33; [end-mark] The post Everything an Omen: Stephen King’s &;lt;i&;gt;Pet Sematary&;lt;/i&;gt; (Part 1) appeared first on Reactor.

In this issue we discover the connection between pro wrestling and comic books‚ learn the extent of Gambit’s mutant powers‚ dig into the hype of the short lived Travis Charest run on Wildcats‚ reveal the CONTINUE READING... The post WIZARDS The Podcast Guide To Comics | Episode 91 appeared first on The Retro Network.

The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday that the Biden administration will reschedule cannabis under the Controlled Substances Act. Attorney General Merrick Garland will reclassify it from Schedule I‚ the schedule used for drugs that cannot be prescribed for any medical purpose‚ to Schedule III‚ under which it could be prescribed by a physician. There will be an immediate hubbub over what this rescheduling decision means‚ for purposes of both drug policy and the November presidential election. Does rescheduling cannabis legalize its sale across the U.S.&;#63; No‚ it does not‚ for two reasons. First‚ unlike the drugs listed in Schedule I‚ drugs placed in Schedule III are not contraband. A physician may prescribe the latter. But your neighborhood “budtender‚” whose only training and experience in medicine comes from watching “House‚ M.D.” or “E.R.‚” isn’t a physician. Second‚ the Federal Food‚ Drug‚ and Cosmetic Act prohibits the distribution of any “new drug” in interstate commerce—cannabis qualifies—unless and until the Food and Drug Administration commissioner has found that it’s “safe‚” “effective‚” and “uniformly made.” The FDA has never made that finding‚ and it could not do so under current law. Hasn’t the FDA approved the use of cannabis&;#63; Nope. The FDA has never approved the raw or botanical form of cannabis. The FDA has approved the use of certain biologically active cannabis compounds (known as cannabinoids)‚ such as dronabinol (Marinol) and nabilone (Cesamet) for treatment of chemotherapy-induced nausea and emesis‚ as well as for appetite stimulation in cachexic patients suffering from cancer or HIV/AIDS wasting syndrome‚ along with Epidiolex‚ a purified form of cannabidiol (CBD)‚ for use in treating Dravet syndrome and Lennox–Gastaut syndrome‚ severely debilitating forms of childhood-onset epilepsy. But those drugs are manufactured by legitimate pharmaceutical companies under strict conditions to guarantee their safety‚ effectiveness‚ and purity. What your old college roommate grows out in the country or in his basement is not the same. Does rescheduling cannabis mean that it’s safe to use&;#63; Absolutely not. As Dr. Nora Volkow‚ the director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse‚ told Congress in 2020‚ “in general‚ adequate and well-controlled studies are lacking” to test the cannabis sold in states with legalized medical-use or recreational-use regimes. A result is that “individuals across the country are using cannabis strains and extracts that have not undergone the rigorous clinical trials required to show that they are safe and effective for medical use‚ and are not regulated for consistency or quality.” Much of the cannabis sold in states with medical or recreational cannabis laws has not undergone rigorous testing to ensure that it does not contain dangerous toxins. In fact‚ commercial cannabis can contain a “hodgepodge” of dangerous contaminants. Among them are microbials (e.g.‚ E.coli‚ fungi‚ mold); toxins (e.g.‚ aflatoxins); hazardous chemical solvents remaining from the extraction process (e.g.‚ butane‚ hexane‚ propane); pesticides (e.g.‚ organophosphates); heavy metals (e.g.‚ arsenic‚ cadmium‚ lead‚ mercury); and other harmful (e.g.‚ formaldehyde) or distasteful (e.g.‚ insects) substances. Moreover‚ unlike ordinary consumer goods‚ cannabis can lead to dependence or addiction. Like any other substance that produces an intoxicating effect (even if only during its initial use)—such as alcohol‚ tobacco‚ or heroin—cannabis generates a pleasurable “high” that people enjoy. Heavy or long-term use can lead someone to develop a tolerance to cannabis’s psychoactive ingredient‚ requiring ever greater quantities of that chemical to experience the same euphoria. That increasing-quantity user carries potential downsides. Among them are damage to a user’s mental or physical functioning; physical dependence on THC‚ which leads to the unpleasant experience of suffering withdrawal symptoms when use is discontinued; or to addiction‚ in which using cannabis becomes the fulcrum of one’s life. There’s a 10% risk of dependence for people who have ever used cannabis. That risk increases to between 20% and 33% for people who use the drug more often. The risk jumps to 50%—tantamount to a coin flip—for people who use cannabis daily. Given the labile nature of the adolescent brain‚ the risk is greater still for people who begin heavy or long-term use during their youth. As Volkow put it‚ “as compared with persons who begin to use marijuana in adulthood‚ those who begin to use in adolescence are approximately two to four times as likely to have symptoms of cannabis dependence within two years after first use.” Physical dependence is therefore a serious problem. Numerous states approved the sale of cannabis for medical or recreational use; so‚ doesn’t that mean cannabis is safe to use&;#63; Heck‚ no. A state can decide whether or not to legalize cannabis under its own criminal laws. The states that have adopted medical-use or recreational use cannabis programs have not conducted the studies that a legitimate drug sponsor would need to perform to persuade the FDA that cannabis is safe‚ effective‚ and uniform. The states’ legalization of medical-use and recreational-use cannabis without examining or reexamining the potential harms from high-potency forms of that drug should be seen as the scandal that it is. In the rush to obtain a new source of tax revenue and to satisfy a vocal constituency clamoring for a substance that has only the same painkilling properties as bourbon‚ those states have chosen to disregard the 80-plus-year judgment that American society has made to forbid large-scale commercialization of a potentially dangerous drug until after it has been proved safe and effective by its sponsors to the FDA. Maybe a few of those legislators thought that they were offering a respite from pain or other consequences of the maladies that the aged and ill can suffer. Caring might be kindness‚ but it’s not medicine. Why would Biden reclassify it from Schedule I to III&;#63;   Politics. President Joe Biden thinks that a president’s job is to satisfy as many disparate interest groups as is possible‚ regardless of whether any particular action is in the overall public interest. So‚ every now and then—more often as elections approach—he gives every leftist interest group something. Most recently‚ it was forgiving student loans to make recent graduates happy—even though the U.S.  Supreme Court told him that he lacks such authority. Now‚ it’s rescheduling cannabis to appease “stoners‚” because the Jeff Spicolis out there (and they know who they are) need to be pacified‚ too—even though the FDA has not approved agricultural cannabis and could not do so. Making everybody happy might be the task for a mayor or comedian‚ but a president is responsible for the interests of an entire nation. Follow the money: Is someone profiting&;#63; Should the Securities and Exchange Commission examine whether any Biden administration officials acted on the basis of inside information to profit off the decision to reschedule cannabis&;#63; You bet. If Donald Trump had rescheduled cannabis‚ you can bet your bottom dollar that every corporate media outlet from Eastport‚ Maine‚ to Adak‚ Alaska‚ would demand that the SEC investigate him‚ his wife‚ his children‚ every member of his extended family‚ every friend he has ever had‚ and everyone who has the letters T‚ R‚ U‚ M‚ or P in his or her name to see if someone profited from inside information. Sauce for the goose ought to be sauce for the gander. Will the SEC undertake such an investigation&;#63; To quote that New Jersey philosopher Tony Soprano: “Fuhgeddaboudit&;#33;” The post Biden Administration to ‘Reschedule’ Cannabis&;#63; Don’t Light Up Just Yet. appeared first on The Daily Signal.

If you're tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties‚ subscribe to Reclaim The Net. Sign Up To Keep Reading This post is for Reclaim The Net supporters. Gain access to the entire archive of features and supporters-only content. Help protect free speech‚ freedom from surveillance‚ and digital civil liberties. Join Already a supporter&;#63; Login here The post Recommended Open-Source Password Managers appeared first on Reclaim The Net.

If you're tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties‚ subscribe to Reclaim The Net. The Arizona Secretary of State’s Office and the Maricopa County Recorder’s Office have been exposed as doing their best to team up with social media companies‚ non-profits‚ as well as the US government to advance online censorship. This‚ yet another case of “cooperation” (aka‚ collusion) between government and private entities to stifle speech disapproved of by federal and some state authorities has emerged from several public records‚ brought to the public’s attention by the Gavel Project. The official purpose of several initiatives was to counter “misinformation” using monitoring and reporting whatever the two offices decided qualified; another was to censor content on social platforms‚ while plans also included restricting discourse to the point of banning users from county-run accounts. “Online harassment” was another target‚ and Maricopa County took it upon itself to “identify” – and then report to law enforcement. One striking example of the mindset behind all this is a draft of a speech County Recorder Stephen Richer delivered to Maricopa Community Colleges. As reports note‚ Richer is hoping to be reelected this year‚ while back in September 2021‚ he complained that “lies and disinformation” are undermining “the entire election system.” “And it is in this respect‚ that the Constitution today is in some ways a thorn in the side of my office. Specifically the First Amendment‚” Richer said – before declaring himself “a huge fan of the Constitution.” When his office was earlier in the month asked to‚ essentially‚ “make it make sense” – they didn’t‚ stating only that Richer “stands by his speech (…) especially the part where he says he’s ‘a huge fan of the Constitution’.” And while there was no denying the fact that the official expressed these sentiments‚ more revelations from the documents – including the banning of users from official social media accounts – are now described by Maricopa County as drafts that were “never implemented.” Even those willing to take the county’s word at face value might be surprised to learn what some of those “never implemented” plans included. One was‚ opponents might say‚ to spread their own propaganda. Like so: “(Partnering) with influencers in our community and across the country who share our desire to spread accurate information about elections and combat disinformation.” This document‚ titled‚ “Building a Partnership of Election Fact Ambassadors‚” is believed to have been drafted around the 2022 midterm elections. Earlier‚ now former Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs‚ a Democrat‚ “worked with social media companies and censorship nonprofits to track election information online and combat it when they deemed necessary‚” say reports citing the public records. “We’ve heard feedback from elections authorities that they need better tools to track potential voter interference content on Facebook‚” Facebook told her office in a September 2019 email‚ adding: “In response to this feedback‚ we are building a dashboard that will track this content in each state – and we’d like to share those dashboards with the respective elections authorities. These Dashboards will allow for keyword searches of public content on Facebook in each state – and will be able to be customized to each state’s needs.” Hobbs welcomed this development as “great news.” The post Maricopa County and Arizona State Collaborate To Surveil Social Media and Censor “Misinformation” appeared first on Reclaim The Net.

If you're tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties‚ subscribe to Reclaim The Net. Yet another leaked document has emerged revealing details from the European Union policy regarding the implementation of the Child Sexual Abuse Regulation. (That’s “chat control” – ultimately designed to allow for bulk scanning of all private communications under the guise of looking for illegal content.) The latest leak‚ again first published by the Contexte website‚ is a working document from the current (Belgian) EU Presidency that concerns draft methodology and criteria for the risk categorization of services. Things are moving fast over in Brussels‚ at least on this issue – the draft was published on April 10 to member delegations and was to be discussed as soon as five days later by the Law Enforcement Working Party. But the direction things are moving‚ according to long-time “chat control” opponent and member of the European Parliament (MEP) Patrick Breyer‚ is towards “doubling down” on‚ by various means‚ control and/or suppress what he calls “services that allow people to protect themselves.” Read the document here. Those would be privacy-focused encrypted services‚ and messaging apps‚ which‚ under the methodology presented in the document‚ would receive lower risk scale scores if people can use them without an account‚ or with pseudonyms‚ VPNs‚ TOR‚ encryption‚ cryptocurrencies – in other words‚ in ways that make surveillance and tracking difficult or impossible. That’s not something the EU likes at all‚ and so the plan is to be able (and even likely) to slap those with low scores with orders to scan all content. However‚ those who are not focused on private chats but “predominantly engage in public communication” (i.e.‚ are already open to surveillance and data collection‚ so that detection orders leading to full scanning are not really necessary) will receive better scores. The EU’s logic here is consistent since those who do not harvest user data are automatically slated to have lower scores. Another thing the EU dislikes is decentralized content sharing (such as P2P-based platforms). That’s because‚ as Breyer‚ a German lawyer and member of the Pirate Party remarks‚ P2P renders attempts at server-site scanning useless. Such a methodology demonizes services like torrenting (P2P) platforms‚ TOR‚ ProtonMail‚ and the like‚ he said. “This leaked paper reveals most EU government’s push to mass surveillance and undermining encryption on services essential to citizens‚ NGOs‚ lawyers‚ etc.‚” the MEP stated. “In contrast‚ the European Parliament’s approach would only permit the interception of conversations by people connected to child sexual abuse‚ while mandating many more safety-by-design measures than the Council only mentions in this paper without making them mandatory‚” Breyer added and concluded: “We Pirates will not stop fighting for our fundamental right to digital privacy of correspondence and secure encryption.” The post Leak: EU Governments Impose Bulk Scanning Orders on Encrypted Messaging Services appeared first on Reclaim The Net.

If you're tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties‚ subscribe to Reclaim The Net. Worldcoin‚ a digital ID project based on biometrics‚ namely‚ eyeball scanning‚ co-founded by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman‚ is eying (no pun) partnerships not only with OpenAI‚ but also PayPal‚ reports say. However‚ these movements are not accompanied by any clarity for now‚ an example of this being another Worldcoin co-founder and its CEO Alex Blania refusing to make a direct announcement regarding the deal with OpenAI. Blania at the same time confirmed that the company (specifically‚ Tools for Humanity‚ the main Worldcoin developer) is talking to PayPal – but the payments transactions giant is currently not commenting on any of this. The general trend‚ albeit on a much smaller scale (despite the grandiose ambitions) seems to be the tried-and-tested Big Tech path of acquisitions or collaborations in a particular space in order to consolidate the grip on a market. Reports note that Tools for Humanity previously started working with Okta‚ an identity and access management company‚ while just this April‚ it bought Ottr Finance‚ a startup developing digital wallets. This is happening as Worldcoin is facing pushback from regulators in multiple countries around the world‚ who are mostly concerned about the enrollment standards (such as age verification) and data storage policies the controversial company has in place. Worldcoin’s stated effort is to have “every person in the world” in its ID service‚ where the transactional nature of the thing is users giving up the sensitive biometric data contained in the irises of their eyes in exchange for what some might call “cryptocurrency change.” The ultimate goal is to create the biggest “human identity and financial network” in the world‚ and the promise is‚ no surprise there – that this can and will be done while at the same time “preserving privacy.” But it is precisely privacy fears that are underpinning the scrutiny over Worldcoin’s operations‚ and so its plans have been hitting some snags in places as far apart as Hong Kong and Spain‚ Malaysia‚ and Portugal. However‚ Blania has shared that Worldcoin is taking a “proactive” approach in dealing with regulators‚ that is – it is hoping that compromising on some features will render the operation as a whole sustainable. The post OpenAI CEO’s Eyeball-Scanning Digital ID Project‚ Worldcoin‚ Hopes To Partner With OpenAI and Has Had Conversations With PayPal appeared first on Reclaim The Net.

AP Shocked‚ Shocked to Discover American Catholics Increasingly ... Catholic

Is Germany Still a 'Reliable NATO Ally&;#63;'