CivicActions

U.S. District Judge Victor Marrero in New York struck down controversial portions of the USA Patriot Act in a ruling that declared them unconstitutional yesterday, ordering the FBI to stop its wide use of a warrantless tactic for obtaining e-mail and telephone data from private companies for counterterrorism investigations.

The secrecy provisions are "the legislative equivalent of breaking and entering, with an ominous free pass to the hijacking of constitutional values," Marrero wrote in his 103 page opinion.

Richard Stallman was visiting my home this week, and he picked up a new book I had on my coffee table. The next morning, he mentioned that he had read The END of AMERICA, Letter of Warning to a Young Patriot, by Naomi Wolf, just published by Chelsea Green Publishing. RMS told me that he couldn't put the book down. He read the entire book that night. He also mentioned that he had blogged it as URGENT. "Really?" I asked.