Secret FBI Subpoenas

The NYTimes doesn't believe that the U.S. Justice Department is conducting an illegal investigation of WikiLeaks. Oh, really ?

Running contrary to the characterisation of Birgitta Jonsdottir, a former WikiLeaks activist who is also a member of Iceland’s Parliament, that U.S. prosecutors were using a court order to collect ''personal information from an elected official without having any case,'' The New York Times has reported that the scope of the court order was not unlawful.

''The news that federal prosecutors have demanded that the microblogging site Twitter provide the account details of people connected to the WikiLeaks case, including its founder, Julian Assange, isn’t noteworthy because the government’s request was unusual or intrusive. It is noteworthy because it became public.''

Let's examine just a couple of aspects of the court order :

(i) ''The order asks for subscriber names, user names, screen names, mailing addresses, residential addresses and connection records along with other information related to the accounts.''

(ii) ''Stating that information held by Twitter was "relevant and material" to the WikiLeaks investigation, the district court ordered the startup to hand over:

• session times and connection records
• telephone numbers
• credit card information
• e-mail and IP addresses
• correspondence and notes of record''

What would the U.S. government be gaining from conducting a court-sanctioned surveillance for this kind of social media account information? Not for nothing, by focusing on subscribers and connection records, among other things, the U.S. government is casting a wide, indiscriminate net into cyberspace, and it is hoping to pull in something -- legal or otherwise, relevant or otherwise, applicable or otherwise. There is no focus to the court order ; its only objectives are to spy and to collect surveillance over both foreigners, over which the U.S. may have no jurisdiction, and citizens, who are being denied due process.

On a blog of a WikiLeaks supporter, someone asked, ''Is this not the same type of action that you, DOJ, find reprehensible in other countries?''

(As an aside, I wonder if The Times even appreciates the fact that, after the U.S. government's secret investigation of WikiLeaks has become ''public,'' those being targeted by the court order can now reasonably fight the unreasonableness of the indiscriminate scope of the court order. The owners of the social media accounts, on Twitter, Facebook, and Google, have legal rights, according to the law. How would the owners of the social media accounts know to fight the government's court order, if the government doesn't even serve the court order on the account owners? Look at how wikipedia gives context to due process violation : ''When a government harms a person, without following the exact course of the law, then that is a due process violation which offends the rule of law.'')

Violence in American Politics

Will The Arizona Shooting Rampage Create A Period of Political Instability In The United States ?

The New York Times reported that the Arizona shooting rampage has exposed the fact that politics in the United States has been becoming more vitriolic -- and violent.

''The shooting of Representative Gabrielle Giffords and others at a neighborhood meeting in Arizona on Saturday set off what is likely to be a wrenching debate over anger and violence in American politics,'' reported The New York Times.

The impact that the alleged shooter, Jared Lee Loughner, wanted to have on the U.S. political system is unmistakable.

''Along with being accused of trying to kill Ms. Giffords, Mr. Loughner was charged with killing or attempting to kill four other United States government officials : United States District Judge John M. Roll and Gabriel Zimmerman, an aide to Ms. Giffords, who were killed, and two more Congressional aides, Pamela Simon and Ron Barber, who were wounded.''

The Times even went so far as to compare the Arizona shooting rampage with an act of domestic terrorism.

''Not since the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995 has an event generated as much attention as to whether extremism, antigovernment sentiment and even simple political passion at both ends of the ideological spectrum have created a climate promoting violence.''

WikiLeaks Twitter Subpoena Denies Subscribers Their Right To Due Process

The First item listed in the secret Order signed by the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia demands that Twitter turn over ''subscriber names'' of the five individuals associated with WikiLeaks.

On Saturday night, the WikiLeaks Twitter feed included this ominous message : ''Too late to unfollow; trick used is to demand the lists, dates and IPs of all who received our twitter messages.''

Not only have U.S. Justice Department prosecutors cast the data mining aspect of their court order on Twitter to include foreigners, but now prosecutors are trying to ensnare mere subscribers (or, in Twitter jargon, ''followers'') of the five individuals associated with WikiLeaks.

Whereas, the three foreigners, who are targets of the prosecutors' surveillance, have the option to object to the court order served on Twitter, the fact that followers have no say in fighting the reasonableness of the U.S. government's court order call into question the true scope of the legal witch hunt.

Since there appears to be a weak legal underpinning to the court orders, then, more and more, the investigations by U.S. prosecutors appear to be mere acts of retaliation against foreign political dissidents and WikiLeaks.

And caught in the middle are the followers on Twitter. If the followers are foreigners, then a U.S. court may have no jurisdiction over the free speech activities of those foreigners. And if the followers are Americans, then the Americans should be given due process, namely, an opportunity to challenge the court order. Except for harassment or retaliation, what is the purpose for the U.S. government to know who are the Twitter followers ? Certainly, there is no legal reasoning for the U.S. government to know who are the Twitter followers.

WikiLeaks Twitter Subpoena Targets Foreigners

A U.S. Court in Virginia issues Order for Production of Information that Ensnares Citizens of Australia, Iceland, and The Netherlands.

The issuance of a court order to Twitter confirms that prosecutors working for the United States Department of Justice are investigating WikiLeaks over the publications of thousands of classified U.S. embassy cables.

The court order specifically names three foreigners. It is unknown if a domestic U.S. court may extend its jurisdiction to cover the internet accounts of foreigners.

According to an analysis published by The New York Times on the subject of the application or validity of the U.S. court order on foreign individuals, Justice Department prosecutors might be violating the right of free speech of the foreign individuals. The three foreign individuals, who are the target of the Twitter court order, are : Julian Assange, the spokesperson and editor-in-chief for WikiLeaks; Birgitta Jonsdottir, a former WikiLeaks activist who is also a member of Iceland’s Parliament; and Rop Gonggrijp, a computer programmer.

''This raised the possibility of a diplomatic quarrel between the United States and allied nations whose citizens were among those covered by the subpoena. They could argue that American laws were being used to stifle free communications between individuals who were not American citizens, and who were not in the United States at the time of the messages.''

It is unclear whether court orders pursued by Justice Department prosecutors in their retaliatory persecution of WikiLeaks can apply U.S. law to foreigners. Indeed, according to The Times, in the case of Ms. Jonsdottir, ''Iceland’s foreign minister ... has requested a meeting with the American ambassador to Iceland to ask, among other things, whether a grand jury inquiry prompted the subpoena.''

If the legal underpinning of the court orders can be called into question, then do the investigations by U.S. prosecutors constitute acts of retaliation against foreign political dissidents and WikiLeaks ?

WikiLeaks Twitter Subpoena Scandal

UPDATE : The Guardian newspaper : WikiLeaks Demands That Google And Facebook Unseal U.S. Subpoenas

WikiLeaks is reportedly demanding that Google and Facebook unseal any secret court orders that the websites received in connection with the U.S. government's retaliation against WikiLeaks.

WikiLeaks' demand followed news that was reported that a court in Virginia had issued a secret order to Twitter to produce personal information belonging to accounts of five individuals associated with WikiLeaks.

All of the secret court orders are providing ''strong evidence'' that the U.S. government has empaneled a grand jury to begin a broad, large-scale data mining operation that seeks to collect surveillance in a retaliatory act against WikiLeaks. In late November, WikiLeaks began a coördinated reporting collaboration with several respected journalism outlets, including The New York Times, to publish thousands of United States embassy cables.

In A Clear First Amendment Violation, The U.S. Government Has Issued A Judicial Order To Twitter In An Effort To Collect Information About WikiLeaks And Its Supporters.

Officials from the United States Department of Justice have applied for, and received, a judicial order that has been issued to the social media website, Twitter, in an effort to collect information about political dissidents. In some countries, activists are under constant harassment from their governments.

In growing numbers of mainstream media reports, the news has been reporting that the U.S. government has served Twitter with what are being described as ''subpoenas'' for the private messages, contact information, and other personal forms of information belonging to Julian Assange, who is the spokesperson and editor in chief for WikiLeaks. Other targets of the subpoenas include Pfc. Bradley Manning, who is a U.S. Army intelligence analyst, and Birgitta Jonsdottir, who is a member of parliament in Iceland. Ms. Jonsdottir was also a former WikiLeaks volunteer. Also mentioned in the judicial order are other individuals currently or formerly associated with WikiLeaks, including Jacob Appelbaum and Rop Gonggrijp.

According to Salon.com, the information demanded by the WikiLeaks subpoenas issued by the U.S. Department of Justice is ''sweeping in scope.'' Salon.com has posted online the Department of Justice order for the Twitter information.

Reporter Is Found Castrated ; Male Model Wanted For Questioning

Portuguese Journalist Carlos Antonio De Castro Found Dead In Times Square Hotel.

Carlos Antonio De Castro's dead body was discovered naked and lying face up in a room on the 34th floor of the Intercontinental New York Times Square about 7 p.m., sources told The New York Daily News.

The corpse was found in a pool of blood ; there were signs of massive trauma to the head. Sources said that Mr. De Castro's scrotum was cut off.

Mr. De Castro had checked into the hotel on Dec. 29 with the male model, Renato Seabra. Before Mr. De Castro's body was found, it was reported that the two men had been arguing. It is believed that Mr. Seabra fled the hotel room ; he is now being sought for questioning.

Mr. De Castro was 65 years old, whilst Mr. Seabra was in his 20's, The Daily News reported.

NY Senate Democrats Outraged by Bloomberg's Disgraceful Comment

Senate Democrats Didn't Take Kindly To Mayor Bloomberg Calling Their Time In The Majority "A Disgrace," Reported Celeste Katz.

Earlier today, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg was in Albany for Gov. Andrew Cuomo's State of the State address, after which the mayor insulted the Democrat Senators.

"I thought, if you take a look, it was a disgrace what happened in the last couple of years in the Senate. Most people, regardless of party, think that," said Mayor Bloomberg.

Upon hearing the mayor's insult, Senate Democrats reacted with anger.

"The actual disgrace is failing to manage a fatal blizzard because you and all of your top aides were on vacation and nobody was left in charge," a Senate Democratic source told Ken Lovett of The New York Daily News.

For the past two years, Democrats in the New York State Senate carried out Mayor Bloomberg's Republican agenda, and now Mayor Bloomberg has expressed a lack of gratitude by calling the Democrats a ''disgrace.'' Where have we heard the word ''disgrace'' come from the mayor before ? Oh, that's right. When the mayor was confronted with his ''rationale'' for extending term limits, Mayor Bloomberg called the brave reporter a ''disgrace.'' Here is that famous video :

Mayor Bloomberg where were u Blizzard 2010 people died! Call for Feds to investigate MTA as well as Sanitation Dept.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTw3x2bSX90

Assassination of Salman Taseer

Militants Set The Agenda

Salman Taseer, the governor of Punjab Province in Pakistan, was murdered earlier today by one of his police guards. The New York Times reported that today's killing has exposed that Pakistan is experiencing a political crisis.

In a past article, The Times reported that, ''officially,'' the U.S. did not want to be seen ''taking sides in Pakistan’s already chaotic internal politics.'' Yet, in the time leading up to Governor Taseer's assassination, The Times reported that the U.S. was having a greater public role in the affairs of Pakistan.

''Obama administration officials worry that even if Pakistan’s government survives the upheaval — which they believe it might, for a while — the turmoil could kill any chance for political and economic reforms. The assassination, one official said, leaves not only the repeal of the blasphemy laws in doubt, but also possible reforms to increase tax collection. Under pressure from Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and other American officials, the Pakistani government submitted a new tax law in Parliament. But it may abandon the push as a way to lure back coalition partners.''

At the end of the day, it's hard to tell if the U.S. is ''officially'' involved or uninvolved in the direction of Pakistan's government. And for the second time, since the spectacular security failure that lead to Benazir Bhutto's assassination, an investigation needs to be made to review those ''officially'' or ''unofficially'' responsible for providing security to key government leaders in Pakistan.

John Liu Exposes Another Technology Contract

NYC's Emergency Telephone System Contract Draws New Scrutiny

The CityTime technology contract scandal has cast many doubts on Mayor Michael Bloomberg's other expensive IT programs. The Gothamist has reported that suspicion has grown in connection with the out-of-control costs associated with a technology upgrade to New York City's 911 emergency telephone system.

''The City Time scandal had already been a point of contention between the Bloomberg administration and City Comptroller John Liu, and now their fight has spread to the City's emergency services. Yesterday Liu's office rejected a $286 million contract request for the city's Emergency Communications Transformation Program, (ECTP), an effort to update the city's 911 system—a project that, incidentally, was initially budged at $380 million and has since ballooned to $666 million.''

Now that the Comptroller Liu has finally started showing up to the office as Comptroller and not a candidate for mayor, maybe he will expose other black holes in the city budget ?

Mayor Bloomberg Was Biggest Obstacle To Snow Removal

Inaction and Delays by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg as Deadly Blizzard Bore Down

The post-Christmas blizzard of 2010 stranded EMS, ambulances, and other rescue services in unplowed streets all across New York City, resulting in fire-related deaths and even the death of at least one baby.

Now comes The New York Times, which has reported that the Bloomberg administration did nothing to prepare for the deadly blizzard :

''At 3:58 a.m. on Christmas Day, the National Weather Service upgraded its alert about the snow headed to New York City, issuing a winter storm watch. By 3:55 p.m., it had declared a formal blizzard warning, a rare degree of alarm. But city officials opted not to declare a snow emergency — a significant mobilization that would have, among other things, aided initial snow plowing efforts.''

Finally, after a barrage of criticism, Mayor Bloomberg ''conceded that the city’s response to the blizzard had been inadequate,'' reported The New York Times.

What is the mayor going to do about all of the deaths that resulted from his gross neglect ?

Bloomberg Finds Himself Stuck In A Snowstorm of Criticism

''Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg admitted on Wednesday that his administration’s response to the blizzard that buried New York this week had been inadequate....''

Speaking at a hardware depot in Hunts Point, the Bronx, the mayor said he was “extremely dissatisfied” with the performance of the city’s emergency management system. He said the reaction to the snow as it accumulated was “a lot worse” than after other recent snowstorms and was not as efficient as “the city has a right to expect.”

Read the full article on The New York Times : Bloomberg Takes Blame for Response to Snowstorm.

Here are some critics of the Mayor's ''snow job'' in the aftermath of the post-Christmas blizzard :

• ''Lucky for King Mike Bloomberg, the press does not treat him the way they treated mayor John Lindsay,'' wrote Suzannah B. Troy.
• ''This is a SNOW JOB and there is no accountability, only excuses,'' wrote Bob Friedrich, President of the Glen Oaks Village, on the Queens Crap blog.
• ''40 Years Ago It Was The Lindsay Snow Storm, Today the Media Kid Gloves Shields Bloomberg From Blame,'' was the headline on True News From Change blog.

Blizzard Destroys NYC Ambulance Readiness

With Ambulances Stuck in Snow, New York City Abandons Emergency Response ; Leaves Residents Open To Harm And Injury ; With No Ambulance, Baby Died In Crown Heights Following Delivery.

Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg defended the city’s response to the storm on Tuesday, and called the digging out of ambulances the city’s first priority. He said nearly 170 stranded ambulances had been dug out by emergency crews, with 40 more still stuck Tuesday morning. Still, the impassibility of many streets made routine ambulance runs into odysseys, sometimes with life-threatening or fatal consequences.

In East Midwood, volunteer ambulances managed to complete nine calls on Monday between getting stuck in drifts and between abandoned cars. One was to a 74-year-old woman on Lawrence Avenue who appeared to be having a stroke. Her home-health aide had called 911 at 9 a.m. on Monday, said Yakov Kornitzer, the chief of operations for the East Midwood Volunteer Ambulance company, and in the early afternoon, she finally ran to the local precinct station for help.

When the ambulance arrived at 3 p.m., it was unable to get closer than several blocks away. Two emergency workers, two paramedics and six police officers carried her on a stretcher through knee-deep snow, but by then she was unresponsive and her limbs were already flexed, indicating serious damage to her brain tissue.

“We did the best we could,” Mr. Kornitzer said. “If small cars wouldn’t have gotten stuck, we would have been able to get through.”

Source : The New York Times : Read the article, to learn about the outrageous story about the baby who died following delivery in Crown Heights : it took almost 9 hours from the time that the 911 emergency call was made until paramedics could show up to treat a woman in labor -- by the time they arrived, paramedics found that the baby had been delivered, but it was not breathing : Snow Blocks Hundreds of Ambulances From Patients

Danny Dromm's Reaction To Lack Of NYC Snow Removal Plan

City Councilman Daniel Dromm, standing in front of his office on unplowed 75th Street (in front of stuck cab) in Jackson Heights.

From 1010 WINS Radio: By Juliet Papa

City Councilman Daniel Dromm shook his head and came short of stamping his feet on two feet of unplowed snow on 75th Street in Jackson Heights, Queens.

“The fact that there has been no plow in this neighborhood at all is a disaster,” Dromm said. “It’s hard to understand why the city was so unprepared for this storm because we knew for a long time that it was coming.”

“This is going on day three and usually what we see is a plow coming down the street on the day when the storm starts, then you see something coming the day after and basically the third day you expect it to be clear but that’s not what happened here,” he added.

Many are putting the blame on Bloomberg. “He is not doing what he is supposed to do,” one woman said. ”He’s not running the city, we’re wondering what is happening.”

“I think the Mayor must be living in another world if he thinks that the response to this has been satisfactory,” Dromm said.

Click here to hear Danny on Juliet Papa's report on 1010 WINS.

Please feel free to contact Council Member Dromm's Community Office at: 718-803-6373 if you need any assistance.

NYC Lacks Snow Removal Plan

Almost 2 days after Blizzard, Most of New York City Still in Need of Snow Removal.

New Yorkers are criticising New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Sanitation Commissioner John J. Doherty for failing to have a swift plan to help remove the snow following the Blizzard of December 26-27, 2010. Here are two examples of what commuting was like in New York City in the aftermath of the post-Christmas Blizzard of 2010 :

Subway commuters crawl up the unsafe stairs of a subway station.

Photo credit : Hiroko Masuike for The New York Times

A photographer for The New York Times documented an ambulance, which had become stuck in the snow on 98th Street near Fifth Avenue in Manhattan. East 98th Street definitely looks like it could have needed snow removal trucks to create safer driving conditions.

Photo credit : James Estrin/The New York Times

The Times reported added that critics of the snow removal are making charges that some neighborhoods are being favoured over others, whilst some of the unsafe conditions being created as a result of the slow snow removal could be a result of the mayor's draconian budget cuts.

On Monday, Peter F. Vallone Jr., a City Council member who represents Astoria, Queens, said his neighborhood was being treated poorly.

“The only plow I saw all day was the one that crashed into the corner near my house,” said Mr. Vallone, who added that the Council’s public safety committee, which he leads, would hold a hearing on the city’s handling of the storm.

“We need an explanation,” Mr. Vallone said. “Is it budget cuts? Is it a lack of planning? What caused this storm to be different from every other one we’ve lived through?”