United States Among Worst Offenders in Surveilling Citizens
Posted on June 5, 2008
Filed Under Politics, civil liberties
WITH PRIVACY PROTECTIONS IN WORLDWIDE RETREAT, NATION FINDS ITSELF RANKED BESIDE CHINA AND RUSSIA
Privacy International, the oldest privacy advocacy group in the world, each year issues a comprehensive report on the state of surveillance and privacy protection in some 70 countries around the globe. The results are more than a bit disturbing and provide another painful example of the erosion of civil liberties in the post 9/11 America.
Accompanying the report is a color coded map of the world, which highlights the hostility with which a given country regards privacy protection. Teal colored countries - the highest rating - are those that consistently uphold human rights standards, while dark green offers significant protections and safeguards. There was not a country in the world that earned either of the top two ratings. The 3rd highest ranking, shown in a lighter shade of green, suggests a country has adequate protections against abuse. Only 1 country enjoyed this adequate rating - Greece.
Most disturbing about the report is the worldwide trend towards diminishing protection. In the previous year 5 countries - Germany, Canada, Greece, Belgium, and Austria - were rated either adequate or above. All but Greece have seen an erosion in privacy protections.
There is a array of disquieting information in the report, but one item stood out as being the most unsettling. The color black is reserved for the most endemic surveillance societies. Most of the countries that list are the usual collection of human rights rogues: China, Thailand, Russia, Singapore, and Taiwan. No major surprises there, but hold on to your hat for this next one - The United States. Despite the shifting political situation in the US Congress, surveillance initiatives in the United States are expanding at a fierce rate against foreigners and citizens alike. In terms of statutory protections and privacy protections, the US ranked dead last among democratic nations. Britain was also listed as a black nation - the only such European nation with the ugly designation, but scored higher than the US among individual privacy metrics, albeit modestly.
Granted, there are many mega-trends in place that are responsible for the rise in governmental surveillance, including the rise of private security firms, enhanced technologies such as GPS, internet, database linkages, and enhanced law enforcement systems. This would help explain the overall worldwide trend, but this dastardly environment in the US is tied no doubt to an administration that is openly hostile to anything that impedes it’s power, civil liberties and privacy be damned.
While it certainly doesn’t appear that the global trend will be reversing itself anytime soon, any US citizen the least bit concerned about preserving their rights needs to ask themself whether an Obama administration or McCain administration is more likely to arrest the trend. Their records and positions on these issues are quite clear. It was Barack Obama who voted to protect our rights under the Foreign Inteligence Surveliance Act, not John McCain.
Comments
One Response to “United States Among Worst Offenders in Surveilling Citizens”
Leave a Reply
Hey there,
Long time no … whatever. Anyway, loved (?) this post. That is, love the fact you’re addressing it, but hate the subject. You get it. Anyway, ref’d it on my blog today (link above, but here, too http://ashpolitics.wordpress.com/2008/06/08/neo-fascism-and-the-united-states/). Thought I’d let you know.
Take care,
~ash