Google Latitude Spies on Americans' Exact Geographic Location in Real Time

Wednesday, February 04, 2009 by: Mike Adams, NaturalNews Editor
Key concepts: Google, Google Latitude and Mobile phone

(NaturalNews) Has the age of electronic stalking begun? Google has announced a new service called Latitude that triangulates the real-time position of any mobile phone user and displays their location online, in real time, for other people to see.

Google says it's a "100 percent opt in" service that only works if you sign up for it, but there's something fishy about all this they're not saying: How is it that Google has access to cell phone tower triangulation data in the first place?

A typical programmer (or even a company) can't simply announce they're creating an online mapping program and get access to cell phone tower triangulation data. This requires some sort of high-level data interchange between Google and telecommunications companies -- you know, the kind of data interchange normally reserved for the FBI or CIA. That Google now has this technology is downright spooky (and "spook" is the right word here...).

Technically, it means that Google engineers now have access to the physical location of virtually every mobile phone user in the country. Even if they're not making your location public, the point is they could if they wanted to.

There is a way to thwart this technology, of course: Remove the battery from your mobile phone if you don't want to be tracked. Turning it off isn't good enough, either: You actually have to physically remove the battery to be sure you're not being tracked.

A history of your geographic movements?
By the way, remember how the U.S. government once subpoenaed Google to turn over details of 100 million searches? There's no reason why the government couldn't one day subpoena Google's cell phone triangulation logs and request an archived history of the movements of one particular person.

Where were you on December 31, 2008? Google probably has a record of that somewhere. Every store you shopped at, every house you visited and every route you drove to work for the past year has potentially been logged and archived. This is all data that could one day be used against you in a court of law. The data could even reveal you were speeding down the interstate, ignoring speed limit laws.

With Latitude, Google has opened a can of worms into issues of personal privacy and automated surveillance. They've also given the public new surveillance tools that people can use to stalk each other online.

Note to husbands everywhere: Your days of "going bowling with the guys" are history. If your wife finds out about Latitude and signs you up, you're now on a new electronic leash. Forget about calling home every hour -- your wife knows where you are anyway! The same goes for wives who want to "hang out with the girls" to get away from a paranoid husband. The era of domestic stalking has been unleashed, and the implications are spooky.

About the author: Mike Adams is a consumer health advocate with a mission to teach personal and planetary health to the public He is a prolific writer and has published thousands of articles, interviews, reports and consumer guides, impacting the lives of millions of readers around the world who are experiencing phenomenal health benefits from reading his articles. Adams is an honest, independent journalist and accepts no money or commissions on the third-party products he writes about or the companies he promotes. In 2007, Adams launched EcoLEDs, a maker of energy efficient LED lights that greatly reduce CO2 emissions. He's also the CEO of a highly successful email newsletter software company that develops software used to send permission email campaigns to subscribers. Adams is currently the executive director of the Consumer Wellness Center, a 501(c)3 non-profit, and practices nature photography, Capoeira, Pilates and organic gardening. Known on the 'net as 'the Health Ranger,' Adams shares his ethics, mission statements and personal health statistics at www.HealthRanger.org

Crisis heightens danger of global social unrest

Emma Thomasson and Stella Dawson
Times of Malta
February 3, 2009

World leaders in Davos, well aware of recent riots and spreading political discontent, vowed to do more to prevent the financial crisis causing deeper economic damage and making global poverty worse.

French Economy Minister Christine Lagarde warned the World Economic Forum of a vicious cycle where the very remedies to the financial turmoil - bank bailouts and stimulus plans - can unleash a backlash that worsens the crisis.

"We’re facing two major risks: One is social unrest and second is protectionism," Mr Lagarde said. The catalysts for these risks are using taxpayer money in rescue plans, and slowing growth, she said.

Economic hardship and rising unemployment have already sparked riots in Greece, Bulgaria, Latvia, Lithuania and Madagascar, and weeks of demonstrations helped bring down the government in Iceland.

Last week, more than a million people took to the streets of French cities to protest, and thousands marched in Russia on Saturday. "Buy Local" campaigns have sprouted in the US, and thousands of British employees have staged walkouts against the use of foreign contract workers.

At Davos on Saturday, hundreds of protesters accused bankers, business leaders and politicians of creating the crisis and sending them the bill.

"It’s people like you and me who have to pay for it with their tax money," said Alex Heideger of the Davos Green Party.

A constant refrain from political leaders at their five-day gathering with business chiefs that wound up on Sunday was that protectionism could worsen and stoke instability.

The mechanism is two-fold. Any withdrawal from global trade ricochets quickly through developing countries whose growth has come from exports. Recent trade data from China, the US and the EU have already shown sharp declines.

This problem is compounded by international banks pulling back from foreign lending to fix problems at home. Taxpayer demands in the US and Britain that banks lend at home, as a price for government rescues, further heighten the risk of capital being withdrawn from emerging economies.

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said this could lead to deepening protectionism, a reversal of decades of globalisation, and rising poverty.

New data from the Institute of International Finance, which represents major international banks, show global lending is already shrinking. It estimates that private capital flows to emerging markets will plunge to €130 billion this year from almost €785 billion two years ago. Indonesian Trade Minister Mari Elka Pangestu on Saturday said the trend was deeply troubling. "These are real threats that will reverse development," she said.

Indonesia illustrates the problem emerging markets face. The growth of southeast Asia’s largest and most populous economy reduced its poverty level from 40 per cent in 1976 to about 18 per cent today, according to a World Bank Study. But during the economic 1997-98 crisis, poverty rose by 13 percentage points.

In an integrated global economy, shrinking demand in the developed world - most major economies are now in recession - feeds quickly through the supply chain, leading to job losses.

In India for example, Wipro Chairman Azim Premji said in Davos that if growth stalls in the information technology industry, "suddenly some two-and-a-half million in job creation disappears from the market." In China, he said the equivalent is about four million jobs.

The drop in trade and investment could have profound consequences for the global economy where a vicious cycle of credit contraction, bank failure, falling exports, investment drying up, further economic decline and job losses can have violent spill-over effects.

Bank lending to emerging economies may well fall further. The International Monetary Fund estimated that banks will need to raise at least another €393 billion in capital before the financial system is stabilised, on top of the massive recapitalisation already injected.

This in turn may mean more countries face payment crises. Already Hungary, Ukraine, Iceland and Pakistan have tapped the IMF for help, and more IMF lending to stressed economies is expected. Turkey was working vigorously this week at Davos to strike a new IMF standby agreement to stabilise its economy.

Bankers, leaders and policymakers at Davos saw no let-up. "The economic news is going to be bad news for a while," said IMF first deputy managing director John Lipsky. The IMF said it has enough money to cope with expected requests for help but as a safety measure, it is trying to double its war chest to €393 billion within the next six months.

Factbox

France

Hundreds of thousands of strikers marched in French cities on Thursday to demand pay rises and job protection. Some protesters clashed with police, but no major violence was reported.

The one-day strike failed to paralyse the country and support from private sector workers appeared limited. Labour leaders hailed the action, which marked the first time France’s eight union federations had joined forces against the government since President Nicolas Sarkozy took office in 2007.

Russia

Thousands of opposition supporters rallied in Moscow and the far east port of Vladivostok on Saturday in a national day of protests over hardships caused by the financial crisis.

Street rallies were held in almost every major city. The pro-Kremlin United Russia party also drew thousands to rallies in support of government anti-crisis measures.

About 100 protesters were arrested in Vladivostok last month during protests against hikes in second hand car import duties aimed at protecting jobs in the domestic car industry.

Madagascar

More than 100 people were killed in civil unrest in Madagascar last week, according to the US ambassador. Police previously confirmed 44 deaths, with most of those in a store burned during looting when an anti-government protest degenerated into violence.

The mayor of Antananarivo, Andry Rajoelina, galvanised popular frustrations to spearhead demonstrations and strikes against President Marc Ravalomanana’s government. The violence came amid an oil and minerals exploration boom in Madagascar.

Iceland

Parties forming a new coalition for the crisis-hit island decided on Sunday its new prime minister will be former Social Affairs Minister Johanna Sigurdardottir.

Prime Minister Geir Haarde resigned last week after a series of protests, some of which had turned violent. He was the first leader to fall as a direct result of the credit crunch.

The collapse of the country’s fast-expanding banks under a weight of debt forced the country to take a €7.8 billion IMF-led rescue package and sparked widespread anger.

Davos

Hundreds of people rallied in Geneva and Davos on Saturday to protest against the World Economic Forum, saying the elite gathered for its annual meeting are not qualified to fix the world’s problems.

In Geneva, where the WEF has its headquarters, police in riot gear fired teargas and water canon to disperse a crowd.

Britain

Thousands of energy workers staged walkouts on Friday in protest over the use of foreign labour, fearing for their jobs in what is set to be the worst recession in the world’s major economies.

Contractors at a refinery owned by France’s Total began protests on Wednesday after Italian firm IREM won a contract to build a new unit. Unions say it has brought in workers from Italy and Portugal and deprived Britons of work.

Greece

Greek farmers removed roadblocks last week which caused 11 days of travel chaos across the country as they protested against low prices. They kept their blockade on Bulgaria’s border and central Greece.

High youth unemployment was a main driver for rioting in Greece in December, initially sparked by the police shooting of a youth in an Athens neighbourhood. The protests forced a government reshuffle.

Guadeloupe

France sent a minister to the Caribbean island on Sunday for talks aimed at ending a 13-day general strike over pay and prices that has paralysed the French territory.

An alliance of 47 unions and local bodies launched their protest on January 20 over the cost of living. They have drawn up a list of 146 demands including a €200 euro increase in the minimum salary, a freeze on rents and a cut in taxes and food prices. Island authorities have rejected the demands.

Bulgaria

Hundreds of Bulgarians demanded economic and social reforms in the face of a global slowdown in anti-government rallies last month, calling on the Socialist-led government to act or step down.

Earlier last month, hundreds of protesters clashed with police, smashed windows and damaged cars in Sofia when a rally against corruption and slow reforms in the face of the economic crisis turned into a riot.

Latvia

A 10,000-strong protest in Latvia on January 16 descended into a riot, with protesters trying to storm parliament before going on the rampage. Government steps to cut wages, as part of an austerity plan to win international aid, have angered people.

Lithuania

Also on January 16, police fired teargas to disperse demonstrators who pelted parliament with stones in protest at government cuts in social spending to offset an economic slowdown. Police said 80 people were detained and 20 injured.

Prime Minister Andrius Kubilius said the violence would not stop an austerity plan launched after a slide in output and revenues.

Research related articles:

1. Global financial crisis sparks unrest
2. Financial crisis could trigger social unrest, warns UN chief
3. Economic crisis has put the world “on the road to serious social instability”
4. Brown: Economic Crisis Represents Birth Pangs Of “New Global Order”
5. The global economy is at the point of maximum danger
6. Medvedev: US to blame for global financial crisis
7. U.S. cities seek federal help to ease economic crisis
8. Ariz. police say they are prepared as War College, IMF warn of economic riots, unrest
9. Biden: U.S. Economy in Danger of ‘Absolutely Tanking’
10. Banking crisis claims more U.S. victims
11. Arizona Police Trained for Economic Civil Unrest
12. Multinationals make billions in profit out of growing global food crisis

A VERY REAL NEW WORLD ORDER

By Chuck Baldwin
January 27, 2009
NewsWithViews.com

It is hard to believe, but a majority of Americans (including Christians and conservatives) seem oblivious to the fact that there is a very real, very legitimate New World Order (NWO) unfolding. In the face of overwhelming evidence, most Americans not only seem totally unaware of this reality, they seem unwilling to even remotely entertain the notion.

On one hand, it is understandable that so many Americans would be ignorant of the emerging New World Order. After all, the mainstream media refuses to report, or even acknowledge, the NWO. Even "conservative" commentators and talk show hosts such as Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Michael Savage, or Joe Scarborough refuse to discuss it. And when listeners call these respective programs, these "conservative" hosts usually resort to insulting the caller as being some kind of "conspiracy kook." One host even railed that if anyone questions the government line on 9/11, we should "lock them up and throw away the key." So much for freedom of speech!

This is an area--perhaps the central area--where liberals and conservatives agree: they both show no patience or tolerance for anyone who believes that global government (in any form) is evolving. One has to wonder how otherwise intelligent and thoughtful people can be so brain dead when it comes to this issue. It makes one wonder who is really pulling their strings, doesn't it?

The list of notable personalities who have openly referenced or called for some kind of global government or New World Order is extremely lengthy. Are all these people "kooks" or "conspiracy nuts"? Why would world leaders--including presidents, secretaries of state, and high government officials; including the media, financial, and political elite--constantly refer to something that doesn't exist? Why would they write about, talk about, or openly promote a New World Order, if there is no such thing?

Many of us recall President George Herbert Walker Bush talking much about an emerging New World Order. For example, in 1989, Bush told the students of Texas A&M University, "Perhaps the world order of the future will truly be a family of nations."

Later, Bush, Sr. said, "We have before us the opportunity to forge for ourselves and for future generations a new world order . . .. When we are successful, and we will be, we have a real chance at this new world order, an order in which a credible United Nations can use its peacekeeping role to fulfill the promise and vision of the U.N.'s founders."

Bush, Sr. also said, "What is at stake is more than one small country, it is a big idea--a new world order."

Bush, Sr. further said, "The world can therefore seize the opportunity to fulfill the long-held promise of a new world order . . ."

What was President G.H.W. Bush talking about, if there is no such thing as an emerging New World Order? Was he talking out of his mind? Was he hallucinating?

England's Prime Minister, Tony Blair, said, "We are all internationalists now, whether we like it or not." He continued saying, "On the eve of a new Millennium we are now in a new world. We need new rules for international co-operation and new ways of organizing our international institutions." He also said, "Today the impulse towards interdependence is immeasurably greater. We are witnessing the beginnings of a new doctrine of international community."

In 1999, Tony Blair said, "Globalization has transformed our economies and our working practices. But globalism is not just economic. It is also a political and security phenomenon."

What is Tony Blair talking about, if there is no emerging New World Order? What does he mean by "a new doctrine of international community"? What does he mean by "new world"? How can one have globalism, which includes "a political and security phenomenon," without creating a New World Order? Is Tony Blair hallucinating?

Likewise, former President George W. Bush penned his signature to the Declaration of Quebec back on April 22, 2001, in which he gave a "commitment to hemispheric integration and national and collective responsibility for improving the economic well-being and security of our people."

By "our people," Bush meant the people of the Western Hemisphere, not the people of the United States. Phyllis Schlafly rightly reminded us that G.W. Bush "pledged that the United States will 'build a hemispheric family on the basis of a more just and democratic international order.'"

Remember, too, that it was G.W. Bush who, back in 2005, committed the United States to the Security and Prosperity Partnership (SPP), which is nothing more than a precursor to the North American Community or Union, as outlined in CFR member Robert Pastor's manual, "Toward a North American Community."

If there is no such thing as an emerging New World Order, what was G.W. Bush talking about when he referred to "a hemispheric family" and an "international order"?

The public statements of notable world leaders regarding an emerging New World Order are copious. Consider the statements of former CBS newsman, Walter Cronkite.

In his book, "A Reporter's Life," Walter Cronkite said, "A system of world order--preferably a system of world government--is mandatory. The proud nations someday will see the light and, for the common good and their own survival, yield up their precious sovereignty . . ." Cronkite told BBC newsman Tim Sebastian, "I think we are realizing that we are going to have to have an international rule of law." He added, "We need not only an executive to make international law, but we need the military forces to enforce that law." Cronkite also said, "American people are going to begin to realize that perhaps they are going to have to yield some sovereignty to an international body to enforce world law."

If there is no emerging New World Order, what is Walter Cronkite talking about? Can there be any doubt that Cronkite is talking about global government? Absolutely not!

Now, when Bush, Sr. talks about fulfilling "the promise and vision of the U.N.'s founders," he was talking about the same thing former UN Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali was talking about when he said, "The time for absolute and exclusive sovereignty . . . has passed."

The United Nations has been on the forefront of promoting the New World Order agenda since its very inception. In 1995, the UN released a manual entitled, "Our Global Neighborhood." It states, "Population, consumption, technology, development, and the environment are linked in complex relationships that bear closely on human welfare in the global neighborhood. Their effective and equitable management calls for a systematic, long-term, global approach guided by the principle of sustainable development, which has been the central lesson from the mounting ecological dangers of recent times. Its universal application is a priority among the tasks of global governance."

If there is no emerging New World Order, what is "global governance" all about?

"Who are the movers and shakers promoting global government?" you ask. Obviously, it is the international bankers who are the heavyweights behind the push for global government. Remember, one cannot create a "global economy" without a global government to manage, oversee, and control it.

In a letter written to Colonel E. Mandell House, President Franklin D. Roosevelt said, "The real truth of the matter is, as you and I know, that a financial element in the large centers has owned the government of the U.S. since the days of Andrew Jackson."

"Old Hickory" did his best to rid the United States from the death grip that the international bankers were beginning to exert on this country. He may have been the last President to actually oppose the bankers. In discussing the Bank Renewal bill with a delegation of bankers in 1832, Jackson said, "Gentlemen, I have had men watching you for a long time, and I am convinced that you have used the funds of the bank to speculate in the breadstuffs of the country. When you won, you divided the profits amongst you, and when you lost, you charged it to the bank. You tell me that if I take the deposits from the bank and annul its charter, I shall ruin ten thousand families. That may be true, gentlemen, but that is your sin! Should I let you go on, you will ruin fifty thousand families, and that would be my sin! You are a den of vipers and thieves. I intend to rout you out, and by the eternal God, I will rout you out."

Unfortunately, the international bankers proved themselves to be too formidable for President Jackson. And in 1913, with the collaboration of President Woodrow Wilson, the bankers were given charge over America's financial system by the creation of the Federal Reserve.

Ever since the CFR and Trilateral Commission were created, they have filled the key leadership positions of government, big media, and of course, the Federal Reserve.

In his book, "With No Apologies," former Republican Presidential nominee Barry Goldwater wrote, "The Trilateral Commission is intended to be the vehicle for multinational consolidation of the commercial and banking interests by seizing control of the political government of the United States. The Trilateral Commission represents a skillful, coordinated effort to seize control and consolidate the four centers of power-- political, monetary, intellectual and ecclesiastical. What the Trilateral Commission intends is to create a worldwide economic power superior to the political governments of the nation-states involved. As managers and creators of the system, they will rule the future." Was Goldwater a prophet or what?

And again, the goals of the global elite have been publicly stated. Back in 1991, the founder of the CFR, David Rockefeller praised the major media for their complicity in helping to facilitate the globalist agenda by saying, "We are grateful to the Washington Post, The New York Times, Time Magazine and other great publications whose directors have attended our meetings and respected their promises of discretion for almost forty years. . . . It would have been impossible for us to develop our plan for the world if we had been subjected to the lights of publicity during those years. But, the world is now more sophisticated and prepared to march towards a world government. The supranational sovereignty of an intellectual elite and world bankers is surely preferable to the national auto-determination practiced in past centuries."

How could Rockefeller be any plainer? He acknowledged the willful assistance of the major media in helping to keep the elitists' agenda of global government from the American people. To this day, the major media has not deviated from that collaboration. And this includes the aforementioned "conservative" talking heads. They know if they want to keep their jobs, they dare not reveal the New World Order. The NWO, more than anything else, is the "Third Rail" to the national media.

Is it any wonder that President Barack Obama has stacked his government with numerous members of the CFR? Among these are Robert Gates, Janet Napolitano, Eric Shinseki, Timothy Geithner, and Tom Daschle. Other CFR members include CFR President Richard Haass, CFR Director Richard Holbrooke, and founding member of the Trilateral Commission and CFR member Paul Volcker. Obama even asked a CFR member, Rick Warren, to deliver the inaugural prayer.

Still not convinced? Just a few days ago, when asked by a reporter what he thought the most important thing was that Barack Obama could accomplish, former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger said, "I think his task will be develop an overall strategy for America in this period when, really, a New World Order can be created. It's a great opportunity; it isn't just a crisis."

This is the same Henry Kissinger, you will recall, who said back in 1991, "Today, America would be outraged if UN troops entered Los Angeles to restore order. Tomorrow, they will be grateful! This is especially true if they were told that there were [sic] an outside threat from beyond, whether real or promulgated, that threatened our very existence. It is then that all peoples of the world will plead to deliver them from this evil. The one thing every man fears is the unknown. When presented with this scenario, individual rights will be willingly relinquished for the guarantee of their well-being granted to them by the World Government."

Even Gideon Rachman, the chief foreign affairs commentator for the Financial Times, wrote an editorial expressing his support for world government. In his column he said, "I have never believed that there is a secret United Nations plot to take over the US. . . . But, for the first time in my life, I think the formation of some sort of world government is plausible.

"A 'world government' would involve much more than co-operation between nations. It would be an entity with state-like characteristics, backed by a body of laws. The European Union has already set up a continental government for 27 countries, which could be a model. The EU has a supreme court, a currency, thousands of pages of law, a large civil service and the ability to deploy military force.

"So could the European model go global? There are three reasons for thinking that it might."

Rachman then goes on to explain the reasons why he believes world government is plausible.

Do you now see why it does not matter to a tinker's dam whether it is a Republican or Democrat who resides at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue? For the most part, both major parties in Washington, D.C., have been under the dominating influence of the international bankers who control the Federal Reserve, the CFR, and the Trilateral Commission. And this is also why it does not matter whether one calls himself conservative or liberal. For the most part, both conservatives and liberals in Washington, D.C., are facilitating the emerging New World Order. It is time we wake up to this reality.

Presidents Bush, Sr., Bill Clinton, and Bush, Jr. have thoroughly set the table for the implementation of the NWO, as surely as the sun rises in the east. All Obama has to do is put the food on the table--and you can count on this: Barack Obama will serve up a New World Order feast like you cannot believe!

That a New World Order is emerging is not in question. The only question is, What will freedom-loving Americans do about it? Of course, the first thing they have to do is admit that an emerging New World Order exists! Until conservatives, Christians, pastors, constitutionalists, and others who care about a sovereign, independent United States acknowledge the reality of an emerging New World Order, they will be incapable of opposing it. And right now, that is exactly what they are not doing.

*If you appreciate this column and want to help me distribute these editorial opinions to an ever-growing audience, donations may now be made by credit card, check, or Money Order. Use this link.

© 2009 Chuck Baldwin - All Rights Reserved

Chuck Baldwin is Founder-Pastor of Crossroads Baptist Church in Pensacola, Florida. In 1985 the church was recognized by President Ronald Reagan for its unusual growth and influence. 

Dr. Baldwin is the host of a lively, hard-hitting syndicated radio talk show on the Genesis Communications Network called, "Chuck Baldwin Live" This is a daily, one hour long call-in show in which Dr. Baldwin addresses current event topics from a conservative Christian point of view. Pastor Baldwin writes weekly articles on the internet http://www.ChuckBaldwinLive.com and newspapers.  

To learn more about his radio talk show please visit his web site at: www.chuckbaldwinlive.com. When responding, please include your name, city and state.

E-mail: chuck@chuckbaldwinlive.com

Dozens of secret Bush surveillance, executive power memos found

John Byrne
Raw Story
February 3, 2009

Details about more than three dozen secret memoranda written by Bush Administration officials now sit atop a chart created by a public interest reporting group. The memos track new details about dozens of secret Bush Administration legal positions on torture, detention and warrantless wiretapping.

Meanwhile, Obama’s freshly-confirmed Attorney General Eric Holder told senators that he was open to declassifying White House legal memos if no support for their original classification could be found, signaling a likely showdown with former President George W. Bush over executive privilege.

"The Bush administration’s controversial policies on detentions, interrogations and warrantless wiretapping were underpinned by legal memoranda," Pro Publica’s Dan Nguyen and Christopher Weaver write. "While some of those memos have been released (primarily as a result of ACLU lawsuits), the former administration kept far more memos secret than has been previously understood. At least three dozen by our count."

Nguyen and Weaver produced the chart. Propublica was founded in 2007 as a non-profit driven investigative news outlet and is run by a former managing editor from the Wall Street Journal.

The chart lists 40 memos that remain secret, along with identifying the 12 that have been made public.

Click image for more.

Given the chart, one can find the exact date a memo was written, its author and sometimes short details the authors have gleaned from other sources.

Among the memos’ titles: "Criminal Charges against U.S. terrorists"; "Options for Interpreting the Geneva Convention" and "Fourth Amendment doesn’t apply to military operations abroad or in U.S."

Little is known about the specifics or the resulting effect of the other clandestine briefs.

For example, the effects of the secret Fourth Amendment memo could be stunning. Former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales said in another memo that the White House’s lawyers had concluded that the Fourth Amendment’s protections against warrantless search and seizure don’t apply to the US military — even when the operations take place on U.S. soil.

Holder told senators in response to questions sent to him before his confirmation hearings that he’d take an aggressive stance with regard to releasing the White House legal opinions his predecessors’ had labeled as secret.

“Once the new Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Office of Legal Counsel is confirmed, I plan to instruct that official to review the OLC’s policies relating to publication of its opinions with the [objective] of making its opinions available to the maximum extent consistent with sound practice and competing concerns,” Holder wrote.

Holder’s comments were first noted by Secrecy News‘ Steven Aftergood.

Research related articles:

1. Yoo Memos Prove That The Fourth Reich Is Here
2. Secret DOJ Memo Says Fourth Amendment Has “No Application” After 9/11
3. Neocon Memo Says Fourth Amendment Does Not Apply To Military Operations Within U.S.
4. McCain embraces Bush’s radical views of executive power
5. Bush administration gave nod for CIA waterboarding: report
6. Bush Claims Executive Privilege on Subpoenas
7. ACLU Obtains Key Memos Authorizing CIA Torture Methods
8. White House asked DOJ how Bush could sidestep Fourth Amendment
9. Eric Holder is sworn in as attorney general
10. Senator introduces bill to ban practice allowing Bush to secretly change meaning of laws
11. Obama says legal team will review executive orders that ‘trample on liberty’
12. Telecom Companies in Cahoots with Illegal Bush Admin Surveillance Programs