Mission Accomplished? What a legacy by the rubber-stamp Republican Congress. What is equally interesting, if not depressing, is the similar ranking of the UK in this report. Both Bush and Blair have strongly promoted Big Brother societies, all while playing the fear card and distorting the truth. Looking at this report also makes me wonder what happened to those old line conservatives of another era who used to fight against such surveillance. After the election it's going to be interesting to see how the battle between the old guard and the theocrats plays out.
Privacy International ranked 36 nations around the globe, including all European Union nations and other major democracies, and determined that in categories such as enforcement of privacy laws, the U.S. is on par with countries like China, Russia and Malaysia.The world must be thrilled to have this new-style American democracy being promoted.
Overall, the U.S. was determined to be an "extensive surveillance society,Â? the second-lowest rating in the study.
The survey identified Malaysia, China and Russia as the worldÂ?s lowest-ranked countries in terms of privacy. It ranked Germany and Canada as those that best protect the privacy of their citizens.
"This is damning evidence that privacy is being destroyed by the very nations that proclaim to respect our rights," he said. "It is clear that there is a systemic failure of legal mechanisms to protect us against the emerging surveillance society. Those responsible for protecting our rights have failed to do so ... Australia, Britain and the United States have not only performed abysmally but they are embracing surveillance at an alarming speed."
