At least four Latin countries have requested, and received, U.S. help in setting up eavesdropping programs of their own, ostensibly designed to fight organized crime. But the programs are easily diverted to political ends, and with weak rule of law in parts of the region, wiretapping scandals erupt every few months.And read this earlier Boing Boing feature on one such program in Venezuela for more.
/
/
9:34 am Fri
Jul 12, 2013
Latin American governments' outrage over US spying ignores their own
Some of the same Latin American nations whose presidents are shocked and outraged over newly-revealed details of America's electronic surveillance programs are conducting versions of the same within their own borders. And in some cases, the US helped them create their domestic spying infrastructure. Tim Johnson at McClatchy reports:
An update on Chelsea Manning's health, from her legal team
Today, Chelsea Manning spoke with her attorneys for the first time since her hospitalization last week. Attorneys Chase Strangio, Vincent Ward and Nancy Hollander released the following statement on the imprisoned whistleblower’s behalf.
READ THE REST
Donald Trump spied on Mar-a-Lago guest phone calls, former staff says
Wonder what kind of NSA commander-in-chief Donald Trump would be? Well, he had a phone console near his bed that could connect to every phone in his Mar-a-Lago estate, reports Aram Roston at Buzzfeed. Several workers told Buzzfeed that Trump used the equipment to secretly listen in on phone calls in the mid-2000s.
READ THE REST
NSA dumps docs about its Snowden response, reveals that Snowden repeatedly raised alarms about spying
Since the earliest days of the Snowden revelations, apologists for the NSA’s criminal spying program have said that Snowden should have gone “through channels” to report his concerns, rather than giving evidence to journalists and going public.
READ THE REST
If the Trumpocalypse actually hits, you’ll need this disaster preparedness bundle
Everything short of a ticket to Canada is here. Read on for the top 3 things you need to do to survive if ‘President Trump’ becomes real life.Start Your Own Business—Not Brought to You By Trump University This legitimate course bundle (they’ll even show you their tax returns) will teach you to make major cash without answering to […]
READ THE REST
A teeny, tiny Raspberry Pi computer
This tiny computer isn’t just cutest thing we ever did see, it’s actually incredibly powerful too. If you play your cards right, you can program Raspberry Pi (no relation to actual, delicious pie) to control physical objects on your command.You’ll just need a Raspberry Pi (duh) and a few courses to learn how to use […]
READ THE REST
Check yourself with the ultimate party wingman: BACtrack Trace Pro Breathalyzer
Sometimes a round of drinks ends in late night karaoke, body shots, and waking up to a tiger in your hotel room. We get it. It happens. The important thing is that we never put ourselves in danger of a dreaded DUI or worse, put others in danger too. Take the guesswork out of it […]
