Using RFID tags in Drivers Licenses to track your movements unencrypted

“The introduction of enhanced driver’s licenses, which appears to be a central focus of Bill 85, will lay the groundwork for a new and more extensive identity regime, the effects of which are not fully known,”

So what are they not telling Ontario citizens? PIPEDA and your privacy will not matter if Bill 85 is passed, in its current form. In the long-term, it will be easier to be monitored by the Government, Businesses and other organizations.

RFID tags

So what is Bill 85? Yes, you are probably unaware that the Ontario government is quickly pushing through legislation on behalf of the U.S government (okay, that’s a stretch, but it has already pass 2nd reading). No, this is NOT a joke. But, you can ignore the picture; I just wanted to make a point. There has been little fan-fare or information to the public, however soon ALL drivers licenses will have a new RFID tag embedded within your card (not your hand, yet…). This means personal information about who you are will allow border agents to “quickly get you into the U.S”. However what you do not know is that these RFID tags will be UNENCRYPTED. Still lost? Let me put it to you this way.

Radio-frequency identification (RFID) is an automatic identification method, relying on storing and remotely retrieving data using devices called RFID tags or transponders. An RFID tag is an object that can be applied to or incorporated into a product, animal, or person for the purpose of identification and tracking using radio waves. Tags can be read from several meters away and beyond the line of sight of the reader.

Being that it is UNENCRYPTED “ANYONE” will be able to get information about you without you actually knowing by getting readily available scanners and devices to read RFID tags. The dangerous part of this legislation is that YOUR PRIVACY IS GOING TO BE VIOLATED by Dalton McGuintry and the Ontario Government. This has gotten little to no media press and has already passed second reading. Of course you could use tin foil or a shield to prevent people from scanning the card without you knowing, but the main issue is the UNENCRYPTED portion of this legislation. We can argue whether or not “Big Brother” should be able to monitor you, but UNENCRYPTED. In effect, there is NO OPT OUT part to this legislation. You must get the tag inserted into your Drivers license, if this bill passes. Might as well force us to get it inserted into our bodies? Sounds familiar? This is a win-fall for criminals and identity theft, however do you want everyone to be able to track your movements. Please contact your MPP and get this legislation stopped in its current form. It is TOO open ended and changes MUST be made.

By Andy MJ a.k.a The G.T.A Patriot

—– more information below —–

We need to draw attention on the development of ‘enhanced’ driver’s licences (EDLs) by many provinces in advance of new US border crossing requirements coming into effect June 1, 2009. Ontario in particular is proceeding with its EDL via Bill 85 – Photo Card Act, 2008, now before the legislature.

The high-tech system Ontario and other provinces are planning could result in a “privacy nightmare.” He adds that the new cards “are a waste of money and establish a de facto national ID card in Canada,” which tramples on citizens’ civil liberties. In June, The Ontario government introduced the Photo Card Act.

http://www.idforum.ischool.utoronto.ca/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RFID

http://www.todaystrucking.com/news.cfm?intDocID=20562

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Local Canadian Terrorist – B.C. pipeline bombings raise fears from public at community meeting

DAWSON CREEK, B.C. — As members of the RCMP’s national terrorism unit continued to gather evidence at the sites of two gas pipeline bombings in northeastern B.C. this weekend, other officers met with about 200 frightened citizens at a public gathering.

“There is an ongoing amount of concern and definitely a certain level of fear that has been expressed from the public,” said Sgt. Tim Shields.

“This event was an opportunity for the RCMP to explain what is going on with the investigation and to provide a forum for the community to ask questions of the police and EnCana.”

The pipeline operator and police officers met with residents in a hall at the tiny nearby community of Tomslake.

Eric Kuenzl of Tomslake, B.C., was at the meeting at the school in the hamlet near the Alberta boundary.

He says people in the area aren’t venturing out unless it’s absolutely necessary.

“People are on edge. They’re scared,” Kuenzl told The Canadian Press. “They want answers. The meeting was designed to give direction. They ironed out a few things . . . as far as flying over with choppers and looking with infra-red to make sure there’s no other bombs.”

“That makes me feel a little safer.”

Kuenzl was critical, however, of officials locking children in the Tomslake school when news of the bombing came out.

He says the community sits in a low-lying area and the heavy gas from the pipeline could have killed youngsters locked in a school.

“They put all the kids inside and then they closed all the ducts and everything. It’s like building a giant coffin,” Kuenzl said.

“Why wouldn’t you just load them up in the bus and get ’em the hell out of here. I think I’d be safer on the roof of my house than I would be inside my house.”

Meanwhile, members of the RCMP Explosive Disposal Unit and the RCMP National Post Blast Team continue their work at the blast sites.

“Personnel are continuing to conduct a thorough search of the blast area and the surrounding debris field,” said Shields.

“Essentially, these individuals are combing the area looking for any item that is out of place and could provide a clue to investigators. This can include anything from a footprint to a piece of the explosive that was used.”

It’s not yet clear what motivated two attacks on pipelines near Dawson Creek, the first last weekend and the second Wednesday night.

Police believe they’re linked to a letter sent to local media last week calling oil and gas companies “terrorists” that are “endangering our families.”

People living in and around Dawson Creek are quick to condemn the explosions, but they also say the region’s burgeoning oilpatch has had a sometimes uneasy relationship with its neighbours.

In both cases, the pipelines were owned by EnCana (TSX:ECA). The first pipeline did not rupture but the second explosion caused a small leak, one the company said was quickly contained.

The RCMP explosives unit was also at the site Friday, trying to find out what happened, said Shields.

“They will be in the process of recreating the blast in order to determine what type of material was used, how it was used and to gather evidence,” he said.

Terrorism expert John Thompson said the fact the bombings weren’t preceded by other incidents of protest and vandalism suggests they’re likely the work of one or two people working alone rather than organized environmental groups mounting a broader campaign.

“This also suggests that this is a small, amateurish effort by community activists,” said Thompson, president of the Toronto-based Mackenzie Institute.

“It’s either somebody who is particularly torqued off by the oil and gas industry specifically, or someone who is self-actualized as a radical environmentalist with their own strange ideas about how to fight.”

The bombings have brought back memories of Wiebo Ludwig, an Alberta farmer who spent nearly two years in prison on charges related to oilpatch bombing and vandalism in the 1990s.

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Sales of Canada Savings Bonds put on hold market meltdown

Amid worldwide credit market turmoil, the federal government has postponed sales of one of the country’s favourite investments, Canada Savings Bonds.

A terse message posted on a government website says the 2008 bond campaign, scheduled to start Monday, has been put on hold. And a Department of Finance spokesperson confirmed the postponement.

“There are no bonds on sale at this time,” it says.

“The new sales date, interest rates and bond series will be announced shortly. Rates for outstanding issues of bonds will be announced at the same time.”

‘This is unprecedented as far as I know.’—Evelyn Jacks, Winnipeg-based tax expert

Federal officials would give no reason Tuesday for the delay, which presumably relates to the difficulty of setting interest rates under current conditions.

The bonds, a Canadian tradition since 1946, are backed by the government and promoted as a foolproof way for small investors to save. They are put on sale each fall.

David Gamble, public affairs director of the Department of Finance, which is responsible for CSBs, confirmed that the 2008 campaign has been delayed but would not say why.

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Is change in the air for Canada? Is it time for Prime Minister Jack Layton or a new voice for an opposition leader?

Prime Minister Jack Layton?

With Liberal leader Dion faltering and lagging behind Jack Layton in the polls, one has to wonder if change is in the air? We are already seeing old Liberal tactics; telling people not to split the vote, and cause a majority Conservative government. One has to ask, if this is the ONLY tactic they have to remain as the official opposition than maybe it is time for change? The Liberals are getting old and there is a sense amongst voters that it is “time for change” in Canada. Elizabeth May was seen as a possible alternative, however there is the feeling that they are in league with the Liberals, tainting the green image. Who knows what will happen on October the 14th, but one thing is clear, change is in the air. I am not sure if Canada is really ready to have an NDP government in Canada. The experience in Ontario maybe scaring individual voters, however I guess it does not matter since Bob Rae is now a Liberal? Maybe Bob Rae was never truly an NDP backer and we have never really seen what an NDP government can do. The question is, can Jack Layton deliver? Is it time for change? Is it time to for the new world of NDP Orange? Is it time for Prime Minister Jack Layton?

By: Andy MJ / a.k.a The G.T.A Patriot

Read more about the NDP Party of Canada below.

——–

Through three decades of public service, and as Leader of Canada’s New Democrats since 2003, Jack Layton is delivering the kind of change that can make life better for you and your family.

Months after taking his place in Parliament, Jack Layton successfully rewrote the 2005 federal budget. In place of $4.6-billion in corporate tax giveaways, Layton secured investments in better priorities—affordable housing, training, public transit, energy efficiency, development assistance and wage protection.

At last: this was policy from the kitchen table, not the boardroom table, and ordinary Canadians responded.

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CERN – The World Ends On Wednesday? Not likely? There is simply not enough energy to create a stable Earth threatening Black hole.

CERN - Will possibly be Humanity's Greatest Achievement or....?

The man behind the world’s biggest scientific experiment, which critics claim could cause the end of the world, is a Welsh miner’s son who has admitted blowing things up as a child.

Dr Lyn Evans, who has been dubbed Evans the Atom, will this week switch on a giant particle accelerator designed to unlock the secrets of the Big Bang.

But the 63-year-old physicist revealed yesterday that his passion for science was fuelled by the relatively small bangs he had created with his chemistry set at his council house in Aberdare in the Welsh valleys.

‘I was more interested in chemistry than physics when I was young,’ he said.

‘I had a number of chemistry sets. Like everybody, I used to make explosives. I even blew the fuses of the whole house a few times.’

His interest in physics grew at his boys-only grammar school, where lessons had an added attraction because they were attended by girls bussed in from a nearby school that lacked a physics teacher.

On Wednesday, Dr Evans will fire up the Large Hadron Collider, a 17-mile-long doughnut-shaped tunnel that will smash sub-atomic particles together at nearly the speed of light.

Built by the European Organisation for Nuclear Research (CERN), the collider lies beneath the French-Swiss border, near the institution’s headquarters in Geneva, at depths ranging from 170ft to 600ft.

The aim of the £4.4billion experiment is to recreate the conditions that existed a fraction of a second after the Big Bang – the birth of the universe – and provide vital clues to the building blocks of life.

It will track the spray of particles thrown out by collisions in a search for the elusive Higgs Boson, a theoretical entity that supposedly lends weight, or mass, to the elementary particles. So important is this mysterious substance that it has been called the ‘God Particle’.

Scientists also hope to shed some light on the invisible material that exists between particles – dubbed ‘dark matter’ as no one knows what it really is – which makes up most of the universe.

Relaxed: Dr Evans – in his shorts at the CERN control centre in Geneva – dismisses the fears of doom-mongers

But a handful of scientists believe that the experiment could create a shower of unstable black holes that could ‘eat’ the planet from within, and they are launching last-ditch efforts to halt it in the courts.

One of them, Professor Otto Rossler, a retired German chemist, said he feared the experiment may create a devastating quasar – a mass of energy fuelled by black holes – inside the Earth.

‘Nothing will happen for at least four years,’ he said. ‘Then someone will spot a light ray coming out of the Indian Ocean during the night and no one will be able to explain it.

‘A few weeks later, we will see a similar beam of particles coming out of the soil on the other side of the planet. Then we will know there is a little quasar inside the planet.’

Prof Rossler said that as the spinning-top-like quasar devoured the world from within, the two jets emanating from it would grow and catastrophes such as earthquakes and tsunamis would occur at the points they emerged from the Earth.

‘The weather will change completely, wiping out life, and very soon the whole planet will be eaten in a magnificent scenario – if you could watch it from the moon. A Biblical Armageddon. Even cloud and fire will form, as it says in the Bible.’

He said that attempts were still being made in the European Court of Human Rights to halt the experiment on the grounds that it violated the right to life. The court has, however, already rejected calls for a temporary delay in the project, and it is unlikely to come to a speedy decision about whether the CERN experiment should be halted for good.

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2008 + 4= 2012 The Mayans were right? Just kidding!

UPDATE – SEPTEMBER 10, 2008: For those who worry, we are still alive! Read information on the CERN test today.

World’s largest particle collider conducts successful test

Why the Conservatives and the PM need an election now to save themselves.

Elections for Canada - October 2008

Some high profile Conservatives are not seeking re-election. Do they see the title wave coming? Are they afraid? The real reason the federal Conservatives are calling for an election now is that they really do not have a choice. What do I mean by that? Let’s make just a few points.

1. The longer they wait, the better chance they will loose even more seats next year, pending the coming downturn in the economy. In case your head is stuck in the sand somewhere, the economy is not doing well.

2. The numbers for the Conservatives are still strong in Quebec and they have a chance to grab some seats in Ontario. The election may affect the Liberals more than the Conservatives.

3. The Honourable Stéphane Dion polling numbers are not strong. However, that is slowly changing and they need to go to the polls now, rather than later. The longer they wait, the more “sympathy” for Dion. I believe that the Conservatives will stay away from poking fun at Dion, because this stragedy does not help. They will will HAVE TO focus on making the PM more personal to win.

4. Prime Minister Stephen Harper is betting that their low-profile governance will help them at the polls. To be honest, there is not much news and “substance” to go on. People tend to figure, if it is not broken why fix it, to be frank.

5. The overall view is, when the economy is in a downturn, you need a “fiscally conservative” approach. That is a perception that has not changed much. This is probably what did in the government of Bob Rae in Ontario, leading to the extreme right in the Harris “common sense revolution. Again, I have already said it, but the PM does not want to have the stain of being the government that caused a ressession. Even though it would not be true, it does not really matter. Its all about perception.

6. The western provinces are doing well, so “milk it while we have a chance to”, because the Greens are coming!

7. The George Bush factor! Need I say more, as November approaches? If people believe that they have become a bit too “neo-conservative”, than the Conservatives are in trouble, especially in Ontario and Quebec. So go now while we are “a sleep at the wheel”.

8. The PM needs an election fast, before the historic election in the U.S. It is a fact the a huge amount of Canadian’s are watching the American election. No matter what you think the Conservatives “DO NOT” want to be caught in the “change title wave” that is approaching. If they do, they will basically drown in the possible Obama factor, no matter what side of the fence you are on.

The fact is the only point the Conservatives are riding is the fact that they can say “the Green Shift is not a prudent policy for the coming economic downturn”. While, offering no option of their own, they are “fear mongering” people into thinking that this is all about raising taxes. This is a dangerous gamble, seeing that people list the environment as an important factor, despite economics. Now make no assumption, I am not a Liberal member. To be honest, if there was a viable Libertarian Party I would go down that route (albeit I do like the Greens a bit). But that is besides the fact! There is a burning ship in parliament, and the Conservatives are doing what ANY party would attempt to do. Get a few more years and hope, you can ride the possible recession out. Maybe even a possible Liberal, NDP leadership review and like magic call another election. We will probably see another Conservative minority. Who really knows? This election may end up hurting the Liberals, more than the Conservatives and the NDP or Green Party may make substantial strides in politics this time around. The question is, at who’s expense? What will happen if Canadian’s want change? Can any leader capitalize on this? Or is this a bit of Russian roulette? I welcome your comments!

By Andy MJ
a.k.a the G.T.A Patriot

Dion says Harper about to break his promise on fixed elections

TORONTO — Liberal Leader Stephane Dion says he is perfectly prepared to meet with what he calls a “panicking” prime minister before Parliament is scheduled to resume on Sept. 15.

But Dion says Stephen Harper has no intention of holding serious talks with the opposition parties about the minority Conservative government’s fall agenda.

Dion says Harper’s officials did not indicate any urgency when he was contacted about a meeting with the prime minister eight days ago.

Now the prime minister is saying Dion’s refusal to meet immediately shows that Parliament is dysfunctional and reason enough for a fall election.

Dion says Harper is simply trying to force an election before the slowing economy shows Conservative policy shortcomings, and before parliamentary committees can explore the Tories’ “ethical” problems.

The Liberal leader says Harper’s complaints about scheduling talks with opposition leaders are a way of masking that he’s about to break the Conservatives’ legislated promise on fixed election dates.

But Dion says Stephen Harper has no intention of holding serious talks with the opposition parties about the minority Conservative government’s fall agenda.

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Jamaican clean sweep in Women’s 100m

Shelly-Ann Fraser and a clean sweep for Jamaica

Jamaican Shelly-Ann Fraser won the gold medal in the Women’s 100m with a personal best time of 10.78 seconds at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.

Fraser led from the start to finish, well clear of her compatriots Sherone Simpson and Kerron Stewart, who won silver together in identical times of 10.98s.

Silver medalist Sherone Simpson commented on the Jamaican clean sweep of the medals, “We made history. Just like yesterday Bolt [Usain Bolt, Jamaica] set a new world record. We are all great athletes and I’m very excited about the tremendous achievement we’ve made for our country.”

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NBA Toronto Raptor Jose Calderon defends photo of Spanish players

“We felt it was something appropriate, and that it would be interpreted as an affectionate gesture,” Calderon, who plays for NBA’s Toronto Raptors, wrote on his El Mundo.es blog. “Without a doubt, some … press didn’t see it that way.”

It’s not the first time Spanish sports has encountered questions over racist attitudes, and the photo comes at a time when Madrid is vying to host the Olympics. Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton was subjected to abuse at a Barcelona circuit in February, while former Spain coach Luis Aragones also used a racist remark about France striker Thierry Henry to motivate one of his players. Monkey chants rained down on England’s black players during an international friendly against Spain in a match played in Madrid in 2004, soon after Aragones’ outburst.

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The case for a Downtown Relief Line

In the last 100 years, there have been many subway proposals that have come and gone. One of the first serious proposals, in 1911, would have seen streetcar subways built under Yonge, Queen and Bloor streets to feed city and interurban cars downtown. Later proposals called for a Queen Street subway for streetcars or heavy rail, which remained on the books until about 1980. The Eglinton West subway even started construction, until filled in by order of the Harris Conservatives in 1995. Another serious subway proposal that never got anywhere was something called the Downtown Relief Line.

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Cloverfield Marketing gets weirder – What is Slusho?

“Don’t get me wrong…this Cloverfield marketing is a little too odd. Bunch of kids running around Manhattan, trying to escape from a monster? Okay, I get that. This whole Slusho thing? No idea!”

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New 2008 Mandriva Flash 4GB released

A new, Mandriva Linux 2008-based version of the Mandriva Flash bootable USB key was released. Flash boots a complete Mandriva desktop on almost any PC, letting you take your desktop with your own data anywhere. The new version can also run Windows versions of Firefox and Thunderbird, with your bookmarks and email, when plugged into a Windows PC.

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