Have you ever heard of CISPA, or the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act?
No, I didn’t really think so, and I think that’s the point. You see, this piece of legislation would allow sharing of internet traffic information between big businesses and the government.
Doesn’t sound so bad, huh? Well, consider that it’s really a front to invade your privacy by effectively taking away your Fourth Amendment right in the 21st century.
Let’s delve into this insidious thing, and figure out why Steve Daines would vote to take away our Constitutionally-granted freedoms and give them to the federal government.
No, I didn’t really think so, and I think that’s the point. You see, this piece of legislation would allow sharing of internet traffic information between big businesses and the government.
Doesn’t sound so bad, huh? Well, consider that it’s really a front to invade your privacy by effectively taking away your Fourth Amendment right in the 21st century.
Let’s delve into this insidious thing, and figure out why Steve Daines would vote to take away our Constitutionally-granted freedoms and give them to the federal government.
History of CISPA
The Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA) first reared its ugly head on November 30, 2011, when Michael Rogers, a Republican House member from Michigan, introduced it onto the U.S. House floor with 111 co-sponsors, one of whom was Steve Daines.
Now, Steve Daines knows something about internet traffic because that’s how he made his money, dealing with cloud computing and data storage and all kinds of other IT and New Economy mumbo-jumbo. I call it mumbo-jumbo because it’s hard to understand. And that’s why it’s so easy for Steve Daines to bamboozle Montana on this.
Thankfully the U.S. Senate blocked the bill in April 2012 after it’d passed the House, perhaps because Obama said he’d veto it anyways. Why? As the administration has said, CISPA:
Now, Steve Daines knows something about internet traffic because that’s how he made his money, dealing with cloud computing and data storage and all kinds of other IT and New Economy mumbo-jumbo. I call it mumbo-jumbo because it’s hard to understand. And that’s why it’s so easy for Steve Daines to bamboozle Montana on this.
Thankfully the U.S. Senate blocked the bill in April 2012 after it’d passed the House, perhaps because Obama said he’d veto it anyways. Why? As the administration has said, CISPA:
not only removes a strong incentive to improving cybersecurity, it also potentially undermines our Nation's economic, national security, and public safety interests…the American people expect their Government to enhance security without undermining their privacy and civil liberties."
So what does this bill do, and why is it so bad for you? Let’s take a look:
Really, the best way to think of CISPA is as a police officer coming to your home, knocking on the door, asking if they can come in, you saying no, and then them saying ‘well fuck you, get the hell out of my way because I don’t give a damn what you want or don’t want – this is America and your rights went away a long time ago, didn’t you get the memo?’
Don’t think for a second that this is meant to protect you, a regular citizen from cyber crimes, it’s meant to protect big companies from you, a citizen that might wonder why they get so much and you get so little. That’s how Steve Daines wants it, because he voted for it.
- CISPA will allow the government to monitor what you look at on the internet, or what we call your private browsing history;
- Allows the government to ask for the private browsing history of internet users without a court order, so long as it’s considered a “threat;”
- Effectively does away with the Fourth Amendment in the 21st-century, when unreasonable searches and seizures don’t just take place in a physical location like your home or car, but on your Facebook page and that Google search bar.
Really, the best way to think of CISPA is as a police officer coming to your home, knocking on the door, asking if they can come in, you saying no, and then them saying ‘well fuck you, get the hell out of my way because I don’t give a damn what you want or don’t want – this is America and your rights went away a long time ago, didn’t you get the memo?’
Don’t think for a second that this is meant to protect you, a regular citizen from cyber crimes, it’s meant to protect big companies from you, a citizen that might wonder why they get so much and you get so little. That’s how Steve Daines wants it, because he voted for it.
Who Does CISPA Really Target?
While the supporters of the bill say it’s so they can go after malicious hackers, really, what is a malicious hacker?
Could it be someone using the internet to steal millions of dollars from people’s bank accounts or company data sheets? You bet, and they need to be stopped.
But what if we also call anyone that’s digging up information on politicians, Wall Street banks, huge corporations, or environmental polluters? Couldn’t they too be called a malicious hacker if we wanted to?
Because gosh, if someone’s not saying what I like, then I’ll try to use everything in my power to stop them. Maybe a phone call, but if that doesn’t work, then I might need to get my lawyer. Sometimes lawyers can’t get past that pesky First Amendment or the accompanying Fourth Amendment, so now we bring things like CISPA into it, which allows them to just throw those rights right out the door.
And don’t think this CISPA bill is finished, either. Back when everyone was distracted by the Boston Marathon bombings in April of 2013, the House again brought this bill forward, at a time when the media was too busy. It passed on a vote of 227-193 with our good friend Steve Daines voting for it, or should I say against liberty and freedom for people that want to look at what they want and say what they want on the internet?
Could it be someone using the internet to steal millions of dollars from people’s bank accounts or company data sheets? You bet, and they need to be stopped.
But what if we also call anyone that’s digging up information on politicians, Wall Street banks, huge corporations, or environmental polluters? Couldn’t they too be called a malicious hacker if we wanted to?
Because gosh, if someone’s not saying what I like, then I’ll try to use everything in my power to stop them. Maybe a phone call, but if that doesn’t work, then I might need to get my lawyer. Sometimes lawyers can’t get past that pesky First Amendment or the accompanying Fourth Amendment, so now we bring things like CISPA into it, which allows them to just throw those rights right out the door.
And don’t think this CISPA bill is finished, either. Back when everyone was distracted by the Boston Marathon bombings in April of 2013, the House again brought this bill forward, at a time when the media was too busy. It passed on a vote of 227-193 with our good friend Steve Daines voting for it, or should I say against liberty and freedom for people that want to look at what they want and say what they want on the internet?
What’s the Difference Between CISPA and SOPA?
Perhaps you remember another bill, this one called SOPA, or the Stop Online Piracy Act. It garnered a lot of media attention, mainly because big companies like IBM, Intel, and Oracle all opposed it and made sure the media knew it. But they were pretty quiet a year later when CISPA passed, probably because they were supporting it.
So why did the big internet and technology companies support CISPA but not SOPA?
It’s simple – CISPA allowed American companies to absolve themselves of all responsibility, accountability and liability and SOPA didn’t. So if it’s not costing Google or Facebook anything, shit – who gives a fuck?
We both know those companies care for nothing more than their bottom line, or were you still under the impression that they didn’t? When the feds come knocking, do you think they’ll bat an eyelash to keep from handing over your photos, your list of friends, and your entire history of sent messages and sites visited? Don’t be naïve.
Steve Daines wants it that way. Why? Probably because Oracle was a big supporter of CISPA, and they’re the main reason he’s so filthy rich.
So why did the big internet and technology companies support CISPA but not SOPA?
It’s simple – CISPA allowed American companies to absolve themselves of all responsibility, accountability and liability and SOPA didn’t. So if it’s not costing Google or Facebook anything, shit – who gives a fuck?
We both know those companies care for nothing more than their bottom line, or were you still under the impression that they didn’t? When the feds come knocking, do you think they’ll bat an eyelash to keep from handing over your photos, your list of friends, and your entire history of sent messages and sites visited? Don’t be naïve.
Steve Daines wants it that way. Why? Probably because Oracle was a big supporter of CISPA, and they’re the main reason he’s so filthy rich.
The Government Access Loophole
An important thing to remember here is that this bill gives the government monumental new powers, and Steve Daines supports that.
Let me say that again – Steve Daines supports giving more power to the federal government over your daily life.
He supports CISPA, which will allow the Government Access Loophole, something that allows the federal government to call itself a “self-protected entity,” which means the government can collect information on you that it otherwise shouldn’t be able to, all because of the bill’s language, something the government will use against anyone that speaks out against it.
This is especially dire now that we’re entering a time of war with ISIS in the Middle East, a new phase in our generational conflict. There can be no dissent against that, or the millionaires and billionaires trying to take over the government even more than they already have. If you speak against that, CISPA will be used against you just like the Alien-Sedition laws were used against Montanans in 1917. Lawrence VanDyke on the Montana Supreme Court could probably help with stealing our liberties.
Steve Daines supports this government overreach, this taking of your rights…don’t be fooled for a second. He knows what search traffic is and how that knowledge can allow him to get a leg-up on competition and stifle your rights so his profits increase.
Watchdog Wire reported last year that Daines had come to support the bill because he was assured our liberty would not be quashed. What’s more, the site offers a lame attempt to justify the bill:
Let me say that again – Steve Daines supports giving more power to the federal government over your daily life.
He supports CISPA, which will allow the Government Access Loophole, something that allows the federal government to call itself a “self-protected entity,” which means the government can collect information on you that it otherwise shouldn’t be able to, all because of the bill’s language, something the government will use against anyone that speaks out against it.
This is especially dire now that we’re entering a time of war with ISIS in the Middle East, a new phase in our generational conflict. There can be no dissent against that, or the millionaires and billionaires trying to take over the government even more than they already have. If you speak against that, CISPA will be used against you just like the Alien-Sedition laws were used against Montanans in 1917. Lawrence VanDyke on the Montana Supreme Court could probably help with stealing our liberties.
Steve Daines supports this government overreach, this taking of your rights…don’t be fooled for a second. He knows what search traffic is and how that knowledge can allow him to get a leg-up on competition and stifle your rights so his profits increase.
Watchdog Wire reported last year that Daines had come to support the bill because he was assured our liberty would not be quashed. What’s more, the site offers a lame attempt to justify the bill:
Data collected under CISPA doesn’t go to the NSA. It goes to DHS. While that may seem small consolation to angry Americans, it does allow the question of cyber security to be addressed without granting the legal authority to a single branch of the federal government. The need for the separation of powers cannot be made more clear than it has been by the IRS, the DOJ, and now the NSA.
I thought this site had a modicum of sense, but I was wrong. Don’t think for a second that once the government gets its hands on what it wants that it’ll be shared freely around the table. Just think of the feds as a giant Chinese restaurant table where everyone eats from everything – there sure ain’t no protections and safeguards, no matter how much they want to assure you there are.
It’s just Republican politics as usual, folks, and I really think you might want to look into Steve Daines and CISPA further, especially if you think Daines believes in less government. He doesn’t, he wants CISPA, and that’s more government, and more government abuse…which you pay for.
Just look at Steve Daines’ voting record in Congress – it’s all there. He doesn’t care about you or liberty or freedom, just taking all those things away so he can profit at your expense. Don’t vote for this joker.
It’s just Republican politics as usual, folks, and I really think you might want to look into Steve Daines and CISPA further, especially if you think Daines believes in less government. He doesn’t, he wants CISPA, and that’s more government, and more government abuse…which you pay for.
Just look at Steve Daines’ voting record in Congress – it’s all there. He doesn’t care about you or liberty or freedom, just taking all those things away so he can profit at your expense. Don’t vote for this joker.
