Government Internet control viewed as necessary by Feds, Dictators

[Travis]

http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-2684-Law-Enforcement-Examiner~y2010m7d22-Government-Internet-control-viewed-as-necessary-by-Feds



Government Internet control viewed as necessary by Feds

July 22, 6:32 AM[image: http://image.examiner.com/img/greydot.gif]Law
Enforcement 
Examiner<http://www.examiner.com/x-2684-Law-Enforcement-Examiner>[image:
http://image.examiner.com/img/greydot.gif]Jim Kouri

Senate Bill 773, as written by West Virginia Sen. Jay Rockefeller, Democrat,
would create new “emergency” powers for the President to have power over any
“non-governmental” computer networks, whether public or private, that are
declared by the President to be “critical.”

Before the Summer recess, the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs Committee unanimously approved Protecting Cyberspace As a National
Asset Act of 2010.

The bill, co-sponsored by Senators Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.), Susan Collins
(R-Maine) and Thomas Carper (D-Del.), gives the President the authority
to order independent operators of "critical infrastructure" to completely
shutdown the Internet.

During an interview, Sen. Lieberman used the cybersecurity system utlized by
the People's Republic of China, a decidely totalitarian government, as an
example of his own bill's applications.

In the House of Representatives, Congresswoman Jane Harman (D-Calif.)
introduced similar legislation on June 16, which was sent to the appropriate
committees for debate.

The Senate bill if passed would give the President of the United States the
authority to declare a “cyber emergency” and close down the Internet by
disconnecting users.

In addition, it will require professional IT people to be certified by the
federal government, something that angers many IT technicians and those who
believe in the First Amendment. Americans are being deceived by the news
media and their elected officials in Washington, DC and it’s Americans who
will suffer from that deception, according to information technology
experts.

This stealth legislation is being sponsored by the powerful and highly
partisan Senator Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) and the liberal Senator Olympia Snow
(R-ME), claim critics.

“The fact that a man [Rockefeller] who visited other nations to give them a
heads up about our intentions [to invade Iraq] would now suddenly care about
security is laughable,” said political strategist Mike Baker.
“But there is no laughing about a government that wants to control cyber
space, the last bastion of freedom of speech in our crumbling democracy,”
said Baker.

“What irks President Obama and the other liberal-left politicians is that
fact that while they’re pampered by the mainstream news media, talk radio
and the Internet are not in the tank for them,” he added.

During a White House announcement televised on Fox News, CNN and other news
networks, Obama said he will appoint a cyber security coordinator—or Cyber
Czar—for the critical infrastructure that all Americans depend on.

“We will ensure that these networks are secure, trustworthy and resilient,”
he said. “We will deter, prevent, detect and defend against attacks, and
recover quickly from any disruptions or damage.”

The cyber security office will orchestrate and integrate all cyber security
policies for the government, the president said. It will work closely with
the Office of Management and Budget to ensure agency budgets reflect those
priorities, and, in the event of major cyber incident or attack, it will
coordinate government response. This will be in addition to the U.S. Cyber
Command person who reports to the Defense Secretary.

The cyber security coordinator will be a member of the national security
staff and will serve on the president’s national economic council.

But Critics point out that any high-tech program that entails government
intrusion should be carefully monitored by not only the US Congress but also
private sector experts in cyber security and computer-based espionage.

“People went ballistic when they discovered the Bush White House authorized
the interception of telephone and other electronic communications by
intelligence and law enforcement agencies, and rightly so. Yet, I haven’t
heard a peep from these same people who claim they are concerned with
‘privacy rights,’” said security expert and former NYPD cop Mike Fitzgerald.

“This may come back to haunt us as the first step down a truly slippery
slope,” said former the Police detective and director of security.

“The technology involved is so complicated that it may take computer
scientists to discover whether the government is protecting Americans on the
worldwide web or spying on them. And what are businesses that rely on the
Internet supposed to do if the President closes down the Internet?” asks Sam
McCarthy a former police commander now a computer security expert..

The cyber infrastructure is not limited to the federal government. The
office will work with state and local governments and international partners
to combat cyber attacks, and also will work with the private sector to
ensure an organized and unified response to future cyber incidents, Obama
stated.

Experts agree that America’s economic prosperity in the 21st century will
depend on cyber security, which also affects public safety and national
security. However, most experts contacted said that cyber security should be
the responsibility of the private sector not government officials.

“We count on computer networks to deliver our oil and gas, our power and our
water,” said McCarthy.

“Computers help run public transportation networks from the skies to
subways, he noted, and hackers have launched attacks on electrical grids,”
he said.

Part of the Obama program is a national campaign to promote cyber security
awareness and digital literacy. The effort also will be part of the
president’s initiative to build a digital work force for the 21st century.
However, according to security experts, Obama is seeking powers never before
given to a President even during the height of the Cold War.

“Once Americans realize what’s happening it may be too late thanks to
Obama’s supporters in the news media. Do a search and you won’t see stories
about this power grab in the major media,” warns Baker.

U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates announced Army General Keith B.
Alexander's appointment as the first U.S. Cyber Command commander,
officially establishing the initial operating capability for the new
command.  The announcement comes immediately following Alexander's promotion
to receive his fourth star during a ceremony at Fort Meade, Maryland.

"Given our increasing dependency on cyberspace, this new command will bring
together the resources of the department to address vulnerabilities and meet
the ever-growing array of cyber threats to our military systems," said
Gates.

U.S. Cyber Command possesses the required technical capability and focuses
on the integration of military cyberspace operations.  The command is
charged with pulling together existing cyberspace resources, creating
synergy that does not currently exist and synchronizing war-fighting effects
to defend the DoD information security environment.

This is not an expansion of DoD's mission.  It is in keeping with the
department's mission to protect and defend U.S. national security and
protect the lives of men and women in uniform.

U.S. Cyber Command is a sub-unified command, subordinate to U.S. Strategic
Command.  Its headquarters is currently located at Fort Meade, Maryland. The
U.S. Senate  confirmed Alexander's promotion to become commander of the new
sub-unified command, U.S. Cyber Command on May 7.

Deputy Defense Secretary William J. Lynn III called the establishment of
U.S. Cyber Command at Fort Meade yesterday a milestone in the United States
being able to conduct full-spectrum operations in a new domain.


*Jim Kouri, CPP is currently fifth vice-president of the National
Association of Chiefs of Police and he's a staff writer for the New Media
Alliance (thenma.org).  In addition, he's the former editor for the House
Conservatives Fund's weblog. Kouri also serves as political advisor for Emmy
and Golden Globe winning actor Michael Moriarty.

He's former chief at a New York City housing project in Washington Heights
nicknamed "Crack City" by reporters covering the drug war in the 1980s. In
addition, he served as director of public safety at a New Jersey university
and director of security for several major organizations.  He's also served
on the National Drug Task Force and trained police and security officers
throughout the country.   Kouri writes for many police and security
magazines including Chief of Police, Police Times, The Narc Officer and
others. He's a news writer for TheConservativeVoice.Com and PHXnews.com.
He's also a columnist for AmericanDaily.Com, MensNewsDaily.Com,
MichNews.Com, and he's syndicated by AXcessNews.Com.   He's appeared as
on-air commentator for over 100 TV and radio news and talk shows including
Oprah, McLaughlin Report, CNN Headline News, MTV, Fox News, etc.  *

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