Internet ‘Kill Switch’ Legislation Back in Play | Threat Level | Wired.com

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Retnan 3 weeks ago

How about a switch that shuts off the government instead?

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jamesknollwood and 234 more liked this Like ReplyReply

goldengaix 2 weeks ago in reply to Retnan

Hahahahaha. Perfect. How about a switch that shuts off Sen. Susan Collins?

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Jason Safoutin and 81 more liked this Like ReplyReply

Zhou Fang 2 weeks ago in reply to Retnan

Sigh. Wired truly are irresponsible idiots. Literally the first section of the link:

"Section 706 of the Communications Act of 1934 provides nearly unchecked authority to the President to “cause the closing of any facility or station for wire communication” and “authorize the use of control of any such facility or station” by the Federal government. Exercise of the authority requires no advance notification to Congress and can be authorized if the President proclaims that “a state or threat of war” exists. The authority can be exercised for up to six months after the “state or threat of war” has expired."

The intent of the law isn't to give the president sweeping powers, but to control sweeping powers he ALREADY HAS. (Whether it goes far enough is another question.) Why does Wired link that whilst obviously failing to read it? Why the fuck is Wired tolerating people making death threats against US senators, on the basis of its own misinformation?

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Nick Mihaleff 2 weeks ago in reply to Zhou Fang

That maybe the case that some shadow of legislation maybe laying there but this YES WE CAN PARTY is doing just that YES WE WILL. This is an overt grab for power to silence & kill free speech to quell discent at any cost. Tell me what form of government does that make the Obama camp?

This is a very dangerous Bill, true the people should fear their government but rather their government should fear the people but here is coming another part of the noose around the neck.

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DanielL and 13 more liked this Like ReplyReply

Mary Schade 2 weeks ago in reply to Zhou Fang

Yes it was by another Progressive. There are a lot of people who are studying to get their degrees on line at accredited colleges..
Seems contradictory to have a kill switch on information just when we need to be able to access information. Isn't this what Chavez did? Do you enjoy the idea that you will not only loose net, but radio, and tv? Maybe it is time for me to reinvest in a ham radio.. KBR0027.

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Jon and 7 more liked this Like ReplyReply

Von Ronson 2 weeks ago in reply to Zhou Fang

And you believe this won't lead to expanded powers at the first sign of a problem or false flag? You must be very familiar with government aggression. Study a little history.

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6 people liked this. Like ReplyReply

chiliboots 2 weeks ago in reply to Zhou Fang

Ms. 'Fang': you are transparent.

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1 person liked this. Like ReplyReply

Dimitri Sokolov 2 weeks ago in reply to Retnan

We need that switch ASAP.

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Lucian Armasu and 3 more liked this Like ReplyReply

chiliboots 2 weeks ago in reply to Dimitri Sokolov

Right Rev. Sokolov: troll elsewhere.

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3 people liked this. Like ReplyReply

Dimitri Sokolov 2 weeks ago in reply to Dimitri Sokolov

Who the fuck is Rev. Sokolov?

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Michael Capanelli 2 weeks ago in reply to Retnan

LMAO!!!!

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WhoCaresFU and 3 more liked this Like ReplyReply

rvierumaki 2 weeks ago in reply to Retnan

I liked your comment but it would be good to remember that you (pl.) ARE the government. Or are supposed to be, anyway.

Assuming you are American, of course.

(Edited by author 2 weeks ago)

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2 people liked this. Like ReplyReply

tao54nyc 2 weeks ago in reply to rvierumaki

That has been an illusion for literally decades. Elections exist only to keep the Mundanes in a state of comfortable ignorance and false security.

Governments are instituted among people to protect the fundamental rights and freedoms that all individuals are born with. When it becomes destructive of those rights, it is our duty as free individuals to rise up and end such government and erect new safeguards for our liberties.

I think I've read some of those words somewhere before...can't quite put my finger on it...

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Jon and 9 more liked this Like ReplyReply

iamwhite 3 weeks ago

--This comment has been edited for content by the United States Government--

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U Clown 3 weeks ago

It's only a matter of time before any government feels compelled to restrict it's citizens freedoms in order to protect itself from an perceived threat and to justify those restrictions as necessary to protect it's citizens. We are seeing the beginnings of the end of the United States and of our constitutional freedoms. It's time to wake up before we have our own Mubarak to deal with.

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Adrian Kaiser and 103 more liked this Like ReplyReply

Mister Chimp 3 weeks ago in reply to U Clown

Only a matter of time? Iran and Egypt are already guilty of this, now US wants the power to do the same. Nice club we are in. What ever happened to land of the free???

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WhoCaresFU and 60 more liked this Like ReplyReply

Paul 2 weeks ago in reply to Mister Chimp

This is how they always start out. They say we are doing this to protect you.

They always say that and then they start adding more and more so called protections for our own good.

It is like they try to control our guns by saying perverts shouldn't have guns or criminals shouldn't have guns and then they say we can only have certain guns. The Constitution says we are allowed to have guns. It doesn't say anything about perverts, felons, or what type of guns. They just keep inching in until they take away everything. I want everyone to have a gun, even criminals. If they break into a house, they don't know who has a gun and who doesn't have a gun. It keeps crime down.

Now, they got cameras all over the place even in little towns. Big Brother is definetely watching. They asked permission in our city to put up some traffic cameras at high accident spots. Nothing like this was mentioned. We gave them an inch and they took the whole yard stick.

Now, they want to shut down our Internet at their whim. Next what?

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plistna 2 weeks ago in reply to Paul

Please dont start trying to equate gun control with an Internet shutdown. And yes, perverts, felons, or what type of guns are all fair territory to be regulated. The constitution is clear about providing for the general welfare of citizens, and allowing ANYONE to have ANY weapon is clearly not in line with that.

What planet are you from with a statement like "I want everyone to have a gun, even criminals."?

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Will Pardon 2 weeks ago in reply to plistna

Please take a moment to ponder the fact that: when guns are outlawed for private citizens, only the criminal will have a gun,...because they dont give a damn about laws and then not only will our marxist govt have you by the gonads, the criminals will be emboldened to do what they want without opposition.
Bringing a flyswatter to a gun fight is about as smart as having a islamic prezedent/

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Dimitri Sokolov 2 weeks ago in reply to plistna

Does it say in the Constitution that a convicted felon can't have a weapon? No, it does not. If Britain had won the Revolutionary War, Washington & Jefferson would have been hanged and there wouldn't have been a Constitution.

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Will Pardon 2 weeks ago in reply to Dimitri Sokolov

Consider this: since the 2008 election, more americans have bought guns that in any other time block, the crime rate is now lower than it has been in years. Why? Because criminals have begun to realize that they are not the only ones who have power. The private citizen and the homeowner and the family are threats to the would be burglar, rapist, criminal. They know that they will more than likely be lookin down the business end of a 12ga or a .40 cal Glock when they go about doing thier mischief. Even the odds. it works.

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jdnc 2 weeks ago in reply to Will Pardon

Not that you probably care about facts but the crime rate has been going down since well before 2008

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A to the F 2 weeks ago in reply to Dimitri Sokolov

"If Britain had won the Revolutionary War, Washington & Jefferson would have been hanged and there wouldn't have been a Constitution."

And if my aunt had balls she would be my uncle, what is your point?

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Nick L. 2 weeks ago in reply to Paul

freedom is slavery

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rvierumaki 2 weeks ago in reply to Nick L.

war is peace
ignorance is strength

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3 people liked this. Like ReplyReply

D D Poage 2 weeks ago in reply to Mister Chimp

Land of the free? mere myth...
more like Land of the ignorant; home of the fool.
Our national anthem should be ACDC's Highway to Hell.

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zarg 2 weeks ago in reply to Mister Chimp

The club you refer to is only for the superrich elitists and we don't belong and never have. They control everything. The gov't only exist to give the impression that you have some control, but you don't.

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D D Poage and 8 more liked this Like ReplyReply

dan 2 weeks ago in reply to U Clown

The beginning of the end started about 9 years ago after 911.Then the middle of the beginning worsened sharply in Jan 2009 now we are near the end of the beginning. End is in sight unless we of all of us regardless of our politics stop it NOW!. Mr B in Egypt has showed us our future. As a 67 year old I may not live to see it--its up to you young folks to decide right now what kind of country you want to live in. Twitter on kids and ignore your freedoms--you won't miss them til they are gone

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goldengaix 2 weeks ago in reply to U Clown

F*a.

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DrEnter 2 weeks ago in reply to U Clown

We already have. His name was Dick Cheney.

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2 people liked this. Like ReplyReply

Mike Bell 3 weeks ago

America is one step away from being a dictatorship.

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DanielL and 69 more liked this Like ReplyReply

Michael Fortier 3 weeks ago in reply to Mike Bell

Not really dictatorship, more like authoritarian-centralized oligarchy reminiscent to what the Soviet Union and China just shed.

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tao54nyc 2 weeks ago in reply to Michael Fortier

Agreed, but, unlike the USSR and China, we learn everything the hard way. We only do the rational thing when it's the last possible option on the table.

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Dumbkoff 2 weeks ago in reply to Michael Fortier

Actually, won't it be quite like the world of warring corporations in William Gibsons books? He was a bit off on the Internet but did see its significance.

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D D Poage and 3 more liked this Like ReplyReply

dajoe 3 weeks ago in reply to Mike Bell

No, no it's not.

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n and 8 more liked this Like ReplyReply

Kaleb Holten 3 weeks ago in reply to dajoe

Simple observation... Everything that Nixon was impeached for is now legal. Police now can arrest you for recording their actions on the job in three states (Massachusetts, Maryland, and Illinois). Not saying we're heading that way. But man do we have a weird way of making people feel free.

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D D Poage and 43 more liked this Like ReplyReply

barnyfife 3 weeks ago in reply to Kaleb Holten

Nixon was not impeached, you moron.

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Michael Capanelli 2 weeks ago in reply to barnyfife

While not impeached, he DID resign before it happened. That fact notwithstanding the comment is still correct.

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D D Poage and 19 more liked this Like ReplyReply

barnyfife 2 weeks ago in reply to Michael Capanelli

Either state facts, or stick with the lies. Democrats prefer the latter.

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Bannor99 2 weeks ago in reply to barnyfife

Pretty ironic statement to make considering Nixon is mentioned. So Republicans love the truth so much that they're willing to resort to espionage on their fellow politicians?

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D D Poage and 10 more liked this Like ReplyReply

Tomasz 2 weeks ago in reply to barnyfife

No, he resigned. Coincidentally, he resigned immediately before impeachment proceedings were to commence. Since the Plumbers were caught red-handed and their actions were traced back to Nixon, his conviction would have been a done deal. So you are technically correct while still managing to miss the point.

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barnyfife 2 weeks ago in reply to Tomasz

I didn't miss anything. I was just merely pointing out a blatant untruth.

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Bannor99 2 weeks ago in reply to barnyfife

All you had to do was clarify that Nixon resigned while facing near-certain impeachment. Instead you provoked an argument by unnecessarily calling the poster a moron. Please try that on your boss or a cop soon and let us know how that works out for you.

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subsider34 and 14 more liked this Like ReplyReply

No Name Ned 3 weeks ago in reply to dajoe

It's already there, effectively. Close enough to make no difference if you can see through the propaganda.

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Mister Chimp 3 weeks ago in reply to dajoe

Your right, the companies and banks that own the US Government would never allow it!

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hamb 3 weeks ago

"Liberty is meaningless where the right to utter one’s thoughts and opinions has ceased to exist. That, of all rights, is the dread of tyrants. It is the right which they first of all strike down."
-- Frederick Douglass

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D D Poage and 36 more liked this Like ReplyReply

Bill Blaney 3 weeks ago

Twenty years ago, it may have been possible to "shut down" the Internet. Today, the damage done to the economy would dwarf any potential cyberthreat.

Next up, legislation to shut down the US power grid in response to a possible electrical storm...

(Edited by author 3 weeks ago)

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Tomasz 2 weeks ago in reply to Bill Blaney

If you're saying that the US government would never take action that would put the economy at risk in order to protect the elite, then how would you explain the recent bank bailouts?

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D D Poage and 16 more liked this Like ReplyReply

Bannor99 2 weeks ago in reply to Tomasz

I think that a better example would be allowing financial entities to operate largely without oversight which was a terrible decision based on the disasters of the last 30 years, starting with the S&L crisis and extending through the Enron, WorldCom and other fiascos

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Simon Jester 3 weeks ago in reply to Bill Blaney

Unlike the damage done to our economy by Washington through other means. What's one more attack on the economy if it preserves the power of those in DC?

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Honyant and 10 more liked this Like ReplyReply

Ken 3 weeks ago

Damn Republicans and their Freedom!

Wait... this completely conflicts with my narrow-minded 2-party system polarized perception of the world.

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rrowleyarizona and 26 more liked this Like ReplyReply

No Name Ned 3 weeks ago in reply to Ken

There's only one party with two wings.

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tao54nyc and 41 more liked this Like ReplyReply

Celery General 3 weeks ago in reply to Ken

Finally someone said it.

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WhoCaresFU and 13 more liked this Like ReplyReply

acslater017 2 weeks ago in reply to Ken

I wonder what percentage of commenters on this article have actually read the article of the proposed legislation...? 5%?

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3 people liked this. Like ReplyReply

Sylvester 2 weeks ago in reply to acslater017

What did it say?

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1 person liked this. Like ReplyReply

subsider34 2 weeks ago in reply to acslater017

Wait, I thought it hadn't yet been re-introduced?

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Nattyspats 2 weeks ago

Welcome to America. The world's first fascist corpocracy.

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Jon and 25 more liked this Like ReplyReply

Scott 2 weeks ago in reply to Nattyspats

yes America has turned into an inverted totalitarianism

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WhoCaresFU and 7 more liked this Like ReplyReply

Deekoo 2 weeks ago in reply to Nattyspats

First? You might want to look up an obscure Italian totalitarian movement that was in power during WWII.

(Also, we aren't as free as we should be, but we aren't fascists yet. I regularly criticize government policy and have yet to have my door broken down as a result.)

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2 people liked this. Like ReplyReply

IDArgyll 3 weeks ago

Oh great! Now any President, not just the current occupant, will be able to do what Hosni Mubarak just did in Egypt to kill the message.

(Edited by author 3 weeks ago)

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Ken 3 weeks ago in reply to IDArgyll

That's the best part about politics; everyone wants power but they can't possibly envision anyone but themselves wielding it, ergo, they fail to see why nobody should have this power.

The one ring can't be used for good.

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Jon and 20 more liked this Like ReplyReply

No Name Ned 3 weeks ago in reply to IDArgyll

Because if it was, like, just the "current occupant" it would be okay. Or something.

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ExposeDEMLiars 2 weeks ago

So how can Obama simultaneously want a "kill" switch in the US, while publicaly condeming Egypt for having one?

The word "hypocrit" mean anythig?

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Lucian Armasu and 22 more liked this Like ReplyReply

Alex B 2 weeks ago in reply to ExposeDEMLiars

Actually "hypocrit" doesn't mean anything at all. Hypocrite on the other hand does have a definition. Thanks for playing.

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mn_woods 2 weeks ago in reply to ExposeDEMLiars

I'm just as pissed at Obama for pushing this bill, but you have to realize that the bill has bipartisan support from Republicans! Are you jumping on a grenade to support some of the same people who threw that grenade at you?

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Andrew Thomas Russo 2 weeks ago

Hey, why not turn off the electricity, phones, and water too. And do not forget to impose a draconian curfew and institute martial law while you are at it? Sounds like the first step to a totalitarian state masquerading as national security. Shut down the internet? So much for the Bill of Rights.

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Michael LaMacchia 3 weeks ago

And this is why Ron Paul needs to be president in '12. He isn't apart of this two-party sham that is American politics. He doesn't "play the party game", he actually has principles that he has stood behind for decades, principles of individual freedom. If America continues in this illusion of the two party system, and keeps on going back and forth between the "Bushs" and "Obamas", then it will be in for a rude awakening when it finds out that, in fact, democrats and republicans aren't so different after all, and that at the core of things, both parties as a whole are working not against each other, but towards the same goal: more power in the hands of the few. Ron Paul 2012

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Anemone999 3 weeks ago in reply to Michael LaMacchia

Puh-lease. Ron Paul isn't like the established political parties because he's so far out there he might as well be running for "King of the Martians." Haven't we had enough of Tea-Party type crazy to want more?

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Michael Capanelli 2 weeks ago in reply to Anemone999

And it's because of the short sightedness of people such as yourself that we find ourselves in this mess in the first place. There's nothing "out there" about what Dr Paul is saying. I'd wager you don't even know what he's saying and are just reacting, as so many do nowadays, on party line propaganda force fed to you by the self same people that seek to centralize power in Washington. Why not try and wake up and have a thought or two not brought to you by MSNBC or Fox news or the at least make informed statements instead of just vague ones based on little knowledge and much ignorance.

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srqiggy 2 weeks ago in reply to Anemone999

Ah, another idiot who has swallowed the media BS regarding Ron Paul. You've apparently lost your gag reflex. This "Ron Paul is crazy...blah blah blah" is all politically driven hogwash, based on half-truths, quotes out of context, and outright lies. But hey, if the media prints it, it must be true...right? LOL

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Dumbkoff 2 weeks ago in reply to srqiggy

Tea Party people are smart enough to know that something is wrong,
But way too stupid to know what it is!

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D D Poage and 4 more liked this Like ReplyReply

Anemone999 2 weeks ago in reply to srqiggy

No, I just read what he said...

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tao54nyc 2 weeks ago in reply to Anemone999

Then call me a Martian...

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rrowleyarizona 2 weeks ago in reply to Michael LaMacchia

Tea SUCKS! NEVER drink or vote for TEA!

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3 people liked this. Like ReplyReply

jamesknollwood 2 weeks ago in reply to rrowleyarizona

So, you feel that you are not taxed enough? You must work for the government or be living off the governments teet. Which is it?

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Dazzza 2 weeks ago in reply to rrowleyarizona

Drink Beer! Vote Beer!

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1 person liked this. Like ReplyReply

davem21 3 weeks ago

imagine sarah palin in charge of the internet kill switch. nasty pictures of her daughter on the internet, turn it off.

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No Name Ned 3 weeks ago in reply to davem21

Imagine the current (illegitimate) occupant of the WH in charge of this, and his cronies Napolitano, Holder and their ilk.

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Mister Chimp 3 weeks ago in reply to No Name Ned

stop posting your moronic thoughts, its making me change my mind and now I support the kill switch!!!!

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barnyfife 3 weeks ago in reply to Mister Chimp

Mister Chimp, are you related to President Chimp?

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goldengaix 2 weeks ago in reply to Mister Chimp

How about a kill bill switch for republican comments?

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barnyfife 2 weeks ago in reply to goldengaix

That's what the so-called "Fairness Doctrine" is designed for. Good luck with that one!

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Andrew 2 weeks ago in reply to No Name Ned

Please explain the claim of Obama's illegitimacy. A mere statement of your belief will not suffice, as any such claim is pure speculation. Let's see the proof.

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Tony Inian 3 weeks ago in reply to davem21

Naw. She'd just brandish her high-powered rifle and upon seeing it all of the IT geeks would pass out with a case of "the vapours".

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Kevin O. McCann 3 weeks ago in reply to Tony Inian

The Left is far more dangerous, my children, check your history, but power corrupts all, SO GIVE IT TO NONE. The 2nd amendment has nothing to do with hunting or protecting yourself from burglars. I have no gun, but I understand the warning about government power it speaks to.
Don't fall for the stereotypes and propaganda. Do not let any of them gain power to stop our communication.

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Celery General 3 weeks ago in reply to Kevin O. McCann

just because we have a democratic president does not mean AT ALL that we are being steered by the left and that its "more dangerous" ... and what are you even comparing that to.. the right? you need to get educated... we don't even have a two-party government anymore.. thats the delusion given to us so it appears we have a CHOICE in the matter, but really, the social and fiscal points of view from either a Dem or a Rep are not confined to the parties they represent... OBVIOUSLY

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Michael Capanelli 2 weeks ago in reply to Celery General

I completely agree. We are in a one party system with only a slight variance between them. It's this variance we're led to believe is 'left" or "right". They use this to great effect to spin the masses around like tops. When they stop spinning and try and get their bearings their made to spin again over another "situation" created to just keep them spinning, never stopping to take in their surroundings and make informed decisions based on actions, observations, and history, not words and promises. All that's left to do is demonize the people, very few though they may be, that can't be made to spin. That's the easy part. Just call them crazy and make them stand out from the herd, tapping in to the primal need to fit in to a group, and people will stay away from them, even though what their saying may make perfect sense if they'd take the time to listen without prejudice.

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dajoe 3 weeks ago in reply to Kevin O. McCann

Show me these examples of the danger of the left, Joe.

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No Name Ned 3 weeks ago in reply to dajoe

Everything they've done since taking control of both houses and the executive branch in 2008.

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Dumbkoff 2 weeks ago in reply to No Name Ned

Good to know you are against the war, Ned. Wondered when people are going to turf those lefty republican reds out.

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Celery General 3 weeks ago in reply to dajoe

No. Don't fuel his uneducated bias.

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Kevin O. McCann 2 weeks ago in reply to dajoe

It should not be a contest, but: U.S.S.R, Communist China, Castro & Che, Weather Underground, Eco-raiders Most of the presidential assassinations, movies with Bush getting assassinated, posters to abort Palin, etc.
The Right is no angel, but the body count leans to the left, and the Left tends to romanticise efforts to give power to the peasants even though the opposite always happens. The Right takes no pride in their killers and crazies of the past.
The idea of America is to limit political power, not the individual. The giant corporations are most dangerous when they collude with a powerful government. Competition and a few regulations will keep the corporations limited. But it is up to us not to get suckered into thinking there is a free lunch. Those politicians will promise you the world to get that power. They want to have the power to kill the Internet, in an emergency, of course.

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Killercop 2 weeks ago in reply to dajoe

http://www.killercop.com/Pages...

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DemonDuck 3 weeks ago in reply to Kevin O. McCann

Yet another OMG the government takeover. Grow up.......

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srqiggy 2 weeks ago in reply to DemonDuck

You might try getting yourself a better education...in your case, history would be a great start. Then you wouldn't make such ignorant comments. :)

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DemonDuck 2 weeks ago in reply to srqiggy

Which history do you refer to? There seems to be so many.....

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Dumbkoff 2 weeks ago in reply to Kevin O. McCann

How can you say that? Isn't all progress the exclusive provenance of the Left? Righties only hold us back.

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What Ever 2 weeks ago in reply to davem21

She would get it mixed up with the light switch.

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Tomasz 2 weeks ago

"An example, the aide said, would require infrastructure connected to “the system that controls the floodgates to the Hoover dam” to cut its connection to the net if the government detected an imminent cyber attack."

If the system that controls the floodgates to Hoover dam is controlled over the Internet, the engineer who designed it should be made to sit in the corner of the room with a dunce cap for an extended period, then horsewhipped and subsequently sued. The best security for critical infrastructure is to not put it on the Internet in the first place. A distant second-best, if someone gets it into their heads that the Internet must be used, to allow access only via VPN. The fact that a Homeland Security aide said this is evidence that the people pushing this legislation are either lying or incompetent. Though I suppose they could well be both.

If the Internet has become a potential failure point for critical infrastructure, you're doing it wrong. That is the problem that needs to be fixed.

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Steve 2 weeks ago in reply to Tomasz

I seriously doubt they are controlled over the internet, but they are probably connected to a network that has an internet connection. Therefore, they could possibly be hacked.

However, I'm not really sure what this bill is proposing. Its quite easy to disconnect a valuable system from the internet. Grab the network cable in the back of your machine and pop it out. Its impossible to hack something that isn't connected to anything!

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Jeff Workman 3 weeks ago

Yeah we see how well this is working out for Egypt, don't we?

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rrowleyarizona 2 weeks ago in reply to Jeff Workman

Sorry to say but the fact of the matter is that sooner or later ALL, (U.S.) included , experience a civil war. We have already had one and with the way the politicians and government are going here it is only a matter of time before we have another.

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CrackerBoyX 2 weeks ago

This is no more than a fascist, central-government dictatorial move. Are we living in Egypt or yesterday's Soviet Union? SHAME ON OBAMA'S ADMINISTRATION! And I am no fan of either disgusting political party.

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Tony Inian 3 weeks ago

And I thought Doktor Diktator Bush wasn't Presidunce anymore.

Who knew?

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Keji Li 3 weeks ago

and they are still trying to do that after Egyptian shutdown? Are they aiming for political suicide?

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harumpf 2 weeks ago

The *only* uses for something like this are to protect the US Government and corporations from US citizens and censorship. Everything else is fear mongering bullshit.

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Swarming Bee Theory 3 weeks ago

Hannibal. I guess that is supposed to be a scary screen name? What a well trained duplicitous stooge you are, with your sanctimonious prattle about "protecting our freedoms". And then you close out your rant by pronouncing others seek therapy if they do not agree with your tin-horn oratory? You are offensive and antagonistic, and even worse than that, you don't have any idea what you are talking about. We don't need the Orwellian "Patriot Act", or an "internet switch" (that's assuming there is such a thing), any more than we need your sanctimonious "protection". The Chinese hackers with their Keystone cops attempt at DOS attacks and infiltration are more noteworthy for their clumsiness and laughable ineptitude. All they managed to do was embarass themselves, and piss off Google. If you are having trouble sleeping because you think the Russians are coming (really?), or somehow 100,000 "mallicious" Chinese hackers are going to suddenly overwhelm our nation, I suggest it is you that might be in need of some counseling, and medication. What you are totally missing, and as an American citizen (may I assume you are an American citizen?), is that Egypt is attempting, at this very moment in time, to shuttter all forms of communication in their country, in a desperate effort to quell the people's opposition. Why on earth, sir, would you want to offer an "internet switch"- such a perfect weapon of control and suppression, to the government? Our founding fathers intended, and explicitly encouraged, that we all maintain a healthy and active skepticism when it comes to self governance. Everything about our government, from the balance of powers, and even the 2nd amendment (not that I am big fan), are all expressions of self regulating checks and balances, intended to prevent anyone from ever gaining the kind of autonomous unchecked power that the King of England had over his citizens. Put that in your pipe and smoke it before you go rattling your sabre for more "patriot acts" and "interenet switches" to keep the boogeymen at bay.

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Hannibal_SW 3 weeks ago in reply to Swarming Bee Theory

Bees, I refrained from attacking anyone personally. You on the other hand resorted to ad hominem attacks. You laugh about the Chinese denial of service attacks which shut down Google, Microsoft, Yahoo and several other companies for three days. It was a trial run and it was succesful. Rant all you want to Bee, but when you are hit by the Netherlanders or the Russian cyber criminals, you will be ranting another tune.

As the country who invented the internet - it was a DARPA invention by the way, and I was one of the first on the internet before the Brit who came up with the Worldwide Web software and it was a very different place. Now pedophiles troll indiscriminately, every perversion is freely available, terrorists use it to communicate all over the world and leftist groups practice calumny on hundreds of websites. Collectively De Sade and Goebbels would be proud of our brave new world.

I don't object to Obama having that power, as much I as I personally detest that inept rookie who calls his political opposition "enemies". Shades of Richard Nixon and Bill Clinton! I wonder what you are so fearful of Bees? We've lost most of our collective rights in the last two years than we have in the last twenty. That is a fact. If I, a staunch fiscal conservative who sees the need for our rookie to have this power to protect us, what are you so fearful of? Or are you another leftist paranoic? You should get together with Ron Paul's Libertarians. You are all birds of a feather. By the way, Hannibal is my real middle name. Boo!

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Swarming Bee Theory 2 weeks ago in reply to Hannibal_SW

Hannibal, sir. I think I may be functioning as your analyst here, to some extent. You seem to be co-mingling some personal issues that you are struggling with in regards to how various individuals utilize their freedom and liberty. And by doing so you have accidentally highlighted the strength of my argument, and the fallacy of your own position. Let me explain; you are certainly not alone in being frustrated and angered by the hijacking of the internet by all sorts of con-men, thieves and dangerous wackos of all stripes.

Oh, if only you could, Mr. Hannibal sir, if only you could, clean out the scum, once and for all! Our once proud country could shine and prosper again! Mr. Hannibal, sir, if YOU were our president, and YOU had such a switch at your disposal, would you not be tempted to shut it down, to stop for once and for all, all those perverts and the would be terrorrists and wackos? You could clean it all up, in one fell swoop! Total control, in one switch. We are talking about legislation that is intended to empower the government to shut down the internet. This is not an evaluation of the success, or failure of the internet as a tool of self expression. This is about handing a tool of oppression and control to the government. To use your reference, back at you- Goebbels would be very proud. You see, Hannibal, it is a dangerous and slippery slope we are rocketing down.

You also characterized the president as an inept rookie. I think you may have a point here as well, one that also highlights the weakness of your position. It just so happens that while I do not agree that Obama is an "inept rookie" (more like a seasoned politician cloaked in liberal platitudes, he is really a Trojan horse centrist), I do not inherently trust our government to act in the best interest of its citizens. I believe it is up to ALL of US to maintain VIGILANCE of our own government. As they say, good crops require constant gardening. I am sure if you have been around as long as you claim, you know what that is in reference to. And so, for differing reasons, we both seem to have arrived at the same conclusion. The government is not to be trusted with such a dangerous weapon of control and oppression. An "internet switch" is one tool that is too sharp for the proverbial sandbox.

Oh and Crackerboy- why don't you try writing a coherent paragraph or two before you appoint yourself sheriff of the forum- you might actually contribute something to the conversation. Or not.

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Dumbkoff 2 weeks ago in reply to Swarming Bee Theory

Excellent post Sir! Except that I find Obama to be more republican than you give him credit for. But he sure does talk that liberal platitude hand jive real fine, now don't he? You'd swear he actually believed it, wouldn't you?

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CrackerBoyX 2 weeks ago in reply to Swarming Bee Theory

Try limiting yourself to 140 characters next time.

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srqiggy 2 weeks ago in reply to CrackerBoyX

Try limiting yourself to intelligent discourse next time....oops, that would mean you would never post again. Ever.

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12ozmouse 2 weeks ago in reply to CrackerBoyX

Translation: "I don't like to read! Stop it, with the words!"

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captmoore 3 weeks ago

Anything that says Homeland Security will have the power is quite ominous. I honestly believe that even if this legislation passed they would ever be able to shut down the whole of the internet at once and certainly lawsuits would be thrown at the government if passed as unconstitutional. with that said i would never ever want the government in control of the internet, whoever is in office.

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Michael Fortier 3 weeks ago

Nothing good could come from this. It just shows how BOTH parties are completely messed up. Bush started these travesties DHS, Patriot Act, Gitmo and el. However, Obama and the Democrats have done nothing to reverse or back away from Bush's policies. It just keeps getting worse and it is hard to find anyone on the Left willing to admit it is messed up. We are really stuck between Suck and Suckless. What ever happened to, "Power to the people"?

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Kevin O. McCann 2 weeks ago in reply to Michael Fortier

Accelerating Technology;
power to the robots.
0011101101111000111

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Allen Williams 2 weeks ago

anyone that votes for this WILL NOT GET MY VOTE EVER!!!!!!!

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srqiggy 2 weeks ago in reply to Allen Williams

It's funny that you "think" your vote really matters, or makes a difference, any more.

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Deekoo 2 weeks ago in reply to srqiggy

If our votes don't matter, why do the state parties spend so much money on propaganda that seems aimed mostly at getting you to vote for them?

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Scott 2 weeks ago

WOW can you tell a difference between Bush and Obama? Both are expanding the federal gov way beyond its means.

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Deekoo 2 weeks ago in reply to Scott

How shocking. Who would have expected that a senator who voted for most of Bush's expansions of government power would then want to keep all this lovely power for himself once he became President?

(Though, to be fair, the kill switch seems to be more Lieberman's baby than Obama's.)

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Jason Simonds 2 weeks ago

This is a Freedom of Press issue.

Given that a very large number of people get their news from the Internet, would not having a kill switch be the modern equivalent of shutting down the newspapers a hundred years ago?

To propose this "Switch" law takes some serious ignorance about the Constitution in my mind.

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kamikrazee 2 weeks ago

In the tradition of the Patriot Act, and in the wake of the tragedy in Tuscon, all manner of ideas come to the surface from those who would protect us from ourselves, while preserving their own positions of power and privilege.

What I fear most, today, is the disproportionate responses that these notions might provoke.

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CrackerBoyX 2 weeks ago in reply to kamikrazee

Good opening, terrible close to your comment. "What I fear most, today, is the disproportionate responses that these notions might provoke."

Bull

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What Ever 2 weeks ago

It's like they are using the same template over and over for every assault on our liberties.It's always for our own good just like the National Socialists of the 1940s. The propaganda ministry over at Homeland seems to be running things more and more these days. Government by and for the people, yea right.

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Jared Hay 3 weeks ago

What I would like to know is why; “the system that controls the floodgates to the Hoover dam”; is on the 'Internet'. Some geek thought it would be 'cool' to be able to control the dam functions from his XBox at home?

Someone else in this post said it best.. "SkyNet"

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Marco 2 weeks ago in reply to Jared Hay

This is exactly what I was thinking. Why would anyone connect critical systems controlling dams, nuclear plants or factory machines to the Internet? I mean seriously, you want decent security just don't put in a physical net connection in the first place.

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Mike Laursen 2 weeks ago in reply to Marco

It probably isn't. The reporter probably just made it up.

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Joe Jacobs 3 weeks ago

I call shenanigans!

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Natalie from Thunder 3 weeks ago

Seriously. This is ridiculous.

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Thiago Militao 2 weeks ago

now, what exactly is the definition of "significant" cyber threat? Wikileaks? Copyright infringement? Anti-Obama twitter postings?

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Dewdle 2 weeks ago

Fear the Government that fears your Linux-based Server. You can have my outlaw website when you pry my cold dead fingers from the keyboard. When outlaw websites are outlawed, only outlaws will have websites. Internet control is hitting what you're aiming and flaming at. ( Sorry...I live in Wyoming and I'm in a blizzard of these kinds of bumper stickers on any given day ).

The First Amendment is only half what we need. We need a Zero Amendment. All digital information is made up of zeros and ones, isn't it ? Where's that zero..Net Neutrality as a constitutional right ? We should all thank the government and DARPA for inventing the internet, but that was 40 years ago. It's time they got out of the way and the entirety of the Web became as 'public domain' as the Earth's atmosphere.

Between the government wanting censorship and master access , and the likes of Verizon, ComCast, AT&T, et al wanting to control content, bandwidth , and speed for a hefty price on their terms 24/7/366 , we have the equivalent of a whole new Civil Rights Movement here.

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Kevin O. McCann 2 weeks ago in reply to Dewdle

Check the name "net neutrality". The proposed laws with that name on it will do the opposite.

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davem21 3 weeks ago

time to have more than 1 internet. just in cane the us loonies decide to turn theirs off.

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Mister Chimp 3 weeks ago in reply to davem21

lets all have our own private internets, every person! There, fixed! ( I thinks the innernit between yer brain and yer mouth might be experiencing sum dropped packets)

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Honyant 2 weeks ago in reply to Mister Chimp

ROFLMAO

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davem21 2 weeks ago in reply to Mister Chimp

well thought out response monkey. no not that many, but from a few alternative governments, like, china, russia, india, and europe. to balance things a bit. too much power corrupts. can u imagine sarah palin in charge of the internet off button? you post a dumb reply, like the one you just did, sarah doesnt like it, and boom, the internet gets shut down. not too good, thats why we had the balance of power in the cold war. balanced a lot of american imperialism.

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Kevin O. McCann 2 weeks ago in reply to davem21

davem21: you have been fooled to say such a thing about Palin. The Tea Party is about limited government, period.
Check your premise.

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harumpf 2 weeks ago in reply to davem21

That is pretty close to how it is actually constructed.

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Hannibal_SW 3 weeks ago

None of you get it. This gives the President the power to cutoff China if they launch another attack like they did eight years ago. The Chinese government trains over a hundred thousand crackers who are preparing to shut our country down when those communists finally decide to attack Taiwan. That will happen soon enough.
Or how about the Netherlands whose government refuses to discipline their malicious crackers who constantly attack the DoD, the FBI, our financial sector etc. They openly tout their websites where they share techniques for cracking, trade hacked passwords and other information. This is tantamount to the same state sponsored criminal actions we see in North Korea. That country should be the first one turned off and maybe we can be treated to a song about being shunned by Anouk, the Dutch songstress.
What about the Russian cyber criminals who crack millions of identities and steal billions of every currency on the planet every week?
Any one of them should be cutoff right now. The U.S. who is presumptively the most powerful nation on the Earth right now faces many wanna be emperors who'd like nothing more than reducing us to a second class nation. Preventing that is the intent of the bill. I think its hilariously ironic that the proposed wording is an exact copy of the restrictions in the Patriot Act. Many of you who voiced your outrage in here about this new Act also voiced your outrage over the Patriot Act. I would suggest you take a course in logic, or perhaps seek out a good analyst.

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Elliott jansen 2 weeks ago in reply to Hannibal_SW

Last time I checked we didn't shut down large parts of our infrastructure over petty cyber criminals. To be frank I'd love to see your information from unbiased sources, and I'd love to get your understanding of how cyber crime works.

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Dumbkoff 2 weeks ago in reply to Hannibal_SW

Don't forget about all those dangerous radicals in the US. We must immediately shut the whole thing down forever. Quick! You don't have to wait for the rest of us. You can sever your connection immediately and you will be safe. If we had only stuck to your version of the net, we wouldn't have any problems. Would it stop Bradley though? Anyway, we can't shut North Korea down or they would immediately attack us with nukes. Never should have had the cold war. Turing was right!

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harumpf 2 weeks ago in reply to Hannibal_SW

Yawn. Go hide your head in the sand.

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Mike Laursen 2 weeks ago in reply to Hannibal_SW

And the sys admins at the DOD, etc. need some kind of global authorization from the POTUS before they can defend against hackers because???. The explanation being given doesn't add up.

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goldengaix 2 weeks ago in reply to Hannibal_SW

Yada yada yada. The Fnord is loose in the cannon of DoDFBIDEACIAFEMA pluto.

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brokendisciple 3 weeks ago

Does it matter what excuse they are going to use, they will find some way to give our government the power to shut down internet. I am surprised he doesnt have it already :(

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Fairnessfreak 3 weeks ago in reply to brokendisciple

love that freedom of speech - since it comes with absolutely no responsibility for intelligent thought, reasonable discussion, or benefit of the doubt focus. Just immediately think the absolute worst about those that serve in public office while in the same breath demand every possible benefit and consideration for YOUR individual plight.

Your post belongs on TWIT... (and I don't mean TWITTER.

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Simon Jester 3 weeks ago in reply to Fairnessfreak

Any power available to the FedGov WILL be abused. Always.

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Adam Haskin 3 weeks ago in reply to Fairnessfreak

"The will of the people is the only legitimate foundation of any government, and to protect its free expression should be our first object." -Thomas Jefferson

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oomu 3 weeks ago in reply to Fairnessfreak

I don't CARE ! No one should have that power. Neither Jesus Christ, Bouddha or ME the nicest person on Earth neither Obama, the greatest super-hero to have been elected (or whatever.. )

Sooner or later, someone worse will use it or he/she will be corrupted.

it's not fantasy, it's History. History of humanity.

-
to protect right of citizens every powers need a counter power. Every kill switch need a counter kill switch. Every route of internet need another routes.

We need more private internet networks interconnected to ever more private and public network and ever more countries interconnected by ever more routes.

-
Very soon, we will start to see easy program to create a virtual network upon wifi interconnexion in cities (mesh). It would be enough to interconnect people by their own devices in a city, even if the cable/gsm network is shutdown.

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Kevin O. McCann 2 weeks ago in reply to oomu

Get a shortwave radio

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raisinkajinj 3 weeks ago in reply to Fairnessfreak

We'll see about that "Fairnessfreak", when we see if this is passed or not.

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willyD200 2 weeks ago

For all of you that are still young ...get ready for the new american dictatorship!
Everything that has been passed in the last 10 years has geared this Country towards this happening.
Corporations will own you and your supposed Government will be holding their hands!
I'm too old to live long enough to see it completed ,but from what I've seen in the last few years it's not "if" but when. This Corporate run government will never allow you to protest for any real changes...if you still believe you have this chance your dreaming! Everything they do now is geared towards total control ....and when they try and spin it off as for your safety....well...if you believe that you deserve all that's happening!
Good luck as a new and better "slave"

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Kevin O. McCann 2 weeks ago in reply to willyD200

Are we on a bridge of glass?
Where does it lead? Where do we fall if it breaks?
Our technologies are on the verge of solving most every energy or food problem for the world. However; This economic transition and the human scramble for power makes it all very precarious.

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billring99 2 weeks ago

The state is inevitably the largest gang of thugs with guns. (If there were a larger gang, they would become the government.) It doesn't matter who is in power. Preservation of civil rights is a constant struggle.

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Nattyspats 2 weeks ago

Welcome to America. The world's first fascist corpocracy. . .

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Rúnar Björn 3 weeks ago

But the guns are untouchable

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davem21 3 weeks ago

and they want us to connect our medial equipment to the internet. amazing. time for russia and china and india and europe to have their own internets. hey there arnt enough addresses on this one anyway.

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smurfyman 2 weeks ago

Senator Collins is an embarrassment to the state of Maine.

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ejames429 2 weeks ago

An Internet "Kill Switch" is a really bad and dangerous idea! That would be like having (law abiding) people who own weapons rounded up and jailed during times of public unrest. It sounds great on paper but is fundamentally against the intent of the Constitution (the founding fathers didn't envision the Internet). It would be like shutting down all news outlets in order to control all the news during a crisis. We get more and more of our information from the Internet and having a kill switch is against freedom of the press and free speech! If businesses and the government are vulnerable to attack via the Internet then those companies and agencies of the government should have better security and an private off switch that takes their systems off of the Internet in times of crisis and unrest or hostile attack.

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repar 2 weeks ago

I don't think so, missy! Yeah, we're going to give kill switch power to the powerful who like to run things. Like anyone trusts anyone else to do the right thing if things hit the fan. What a bunch of baloney Ms. Collins is spouting. If you want to protect the internet then there are other ways of cutting off a cyberattack besides a kill switch that is controlled by God knows who. Does anyone trust the government not to misuse something like a kill switch in the case of Wikileaks downloading more incriminating and embarrassing documents about the government, or maybe Goldman Sacks (which, to some, may be the same thing!). This bad idea needs to be nipped in the bud. We are not giving up any more of our civil rights, thank you very much. If the Internet goes down, so be it. We'll have to learn to get along the old fashioned way--face to face! What a preposterous and dangerous and stupid idea!! Did Collins think of it herself or is she a straw woman for some other entity??

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Jason Safoutin 2 weeks ago

Maine has the slogan: "The way life should be." I think my state senators have lost touch with that slogan. Life should not be killing the internet. This is not Egypt or China. I think Collins needs to focus more on jobs and the economy. Or how about getting the bridge from Kittery, ME to Portsmouth, NH rebuilt. There are a lot more problems going on that are far more important that this legislation.

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HemiTemi 2 weeks ago

LOL< downright scary when you think about it. Maybe its time others start thinking about whats going on in Egypt!

www.privacy-tools.au.tc

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Glenn Ferrell 2 weeks ago

I thought the internet was originally designed (by DARPA) to survive any threat -- including the threat of technologically under-educated politicians.

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Semellyecoli2 2 weeks ago

Gee!! Did I fight the wrong dictators in WW II ??? Down the line will there be fighting USA dictators??

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thomasvesely 2 weeks ago

march on washington.whilst you still can.

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Zeus 2 weeks ago

If they pass it, they should be voted OUT just for this. This is a treasonous assault on civil liberties and freedom in general.

Reading the Constitution didn't seem to help this Congress. Were they asleep, drunk or did they just do it for show? They seem more like the Supreme Soviet of the USSR than the Congress of the United States. If Jefferson or Washington would come back today, they would be in the street screaming over this. This disgusting Senate wants to control the sheeple, not defend the ideals on which the nation was founded.

I suppose if they shut off the internet, they will also blackout the windows of the steeple in the Old North Church.

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goldengaix 2 weeks ago

This comment has been edited for Christian political correctness by the Supreme Homeland Security Kill Switch Intra Committee. The HSKSC employees Great Firewall of China technical commie gumbo hacker specialists in advance of the establishment of the New World Order United Greater China North American States of Pyongyang. All Hail the DISQUS Moderator!!! ;>).

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AnarchyJim 3 weeks ago

Who the hell still says 'cyber'? Ah, right... those 60-somethings in congress who are told by their staff to stop saying 'interweb' and telling people they are on the Facebook. Sigh.

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Geek_News 3 weeks ago

This was originally introduced by Rockefeller a dem and Snowe a rep then was reintroduced by Lieberman another dem. The two parties are working together on what can only be called a ridiculous piece of legislation that would be thrown out on grounds of being unconstitutional before it could even be put into place. But it does show how bad our own government has gotten that they think something like this is anywhere close to being appropriate.

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seamonkey420 3 weeks ago

and this is why we need an alternative internet that is NOT govt regulated or controlled. those blimps are sounding better and better each day. ;)

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Stephanie Cummings 3 weeks ago

Sadly, I see this eventually happening as well since it's already taking place in multiple countries. Either that or they will end up passing the whole internet neutrality proposal...

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floyd_dabarber 2 weeks ago

Not sure which of these is more scary: The Internet Kill Switch described in this article, or the plan to require that all citizens have a single Cyber Identity that can be tracked back to their real name (search on "National Strategy for Trusted Identities in Cyberspace" ). Both plans sound like something right out of Mussolini's playbook. Either way, if you don't trust Obama and Napolitano, you will likely have much to worry about. Similarly, after Obama and the Dems go out of power (and they will of course like all cycles), and Romney or Huckabee or Jeb Bush or (god-forbid) Palin come into power, then the rest of you can worry.

Me? I'm just trying to figure out how much porn I should stockpile before this all hits.

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Dave 2 weeks ago

As a security expert in Fortune 10 companies for years, I can tell you this is a power grab and does nothing to protect US citizens. Think about it - If the people operating the flood gates of the Hoover Dam have connected their controlling systems directly to the internet, how can you trust them in the first place ?

You can't.

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Dylan Hanning 2 weeks ago

Yeah, I can see that. National security is such a beautifully vague reason to do anything.

Shh, dissent is dangerous. You are a danger to yourself.

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Dave 2 weeks ago

How could an internet switch possibly do any good to anyone but a government under attack by it's fed up citizens? This is a load of horse shit.

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dustinlarimer 2 weeks ago

Ok quick question: why are the Hoover dam's floodgate controls even connected to the web? Facebookin?

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greengestalt 2 weeks ago

We are seeing in Egypt the true purpose of the "Internet Kill Switch"... to bypass the people's right to assemble to protest and express grievances and to help outright to suppress dissent.

Thank you, you pathetic puppet of the USA, Egypt.

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Gil Colgate 2 weeks ago

It is not unreasonable to expect that someone in the year 2105 uses this legislation to impede his political enemies.
The legislation is not needed now, since it solves a hypothetical and unlikely case where the government wants to shut down servers and routers because of cyberattacks, but the server administrators refuse to shut them off and the government requires additional legal powers. It seems to me purely and simply a power grab where the incidental powers are the ones that are really lusted over.

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Mike Laursen 2 weeks ago

I used to get all bent out of shape over every story like this, then realized that most of these egregious bills never make it out of committee. Good idea to keep an eye on it and any politician who has voiced support for it, but realize it ain't even a bill on Capitol Hill yet.

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Benji 3 weeks ago

It's not just the looming possibility of censorship, but from the sounds of it, the impending doom of robot assassins. Automated dam shut off, from perceived cyber attacks, sounds like Skynet to me.

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David Verdugo 3 weeks ago

I wonder if the politicians would approach this legislation differently if instead of granting the president power to shut down internet, it gave him the power to shut down internet *and phone* usage.

These politicians are so ridiculously out of date.

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12ozmouse 2 weeks ago in reply to David Verdugo

They don't need to shut down phone usage because they can just (and probably have) tap your phones and or use their GPS to track you, or both.

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raisinkajinj 3 weeks ago

Susan Collins thinks our government needs to kill our connections to protect against an attack online? Is she trying to make herself into public enemy #1?

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qqqqqq 2 weeks ago

I can't trust people to make security decisions when they put the floodgates to a huge dam under internet control. The correct time to cut these things off of the internet is the day they're found to be ON the internet. Hospitals should not put their IV drip rates under internet control either. There has to be some common sense and its lacking in our government.

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jltnol 2 weeks ago

Hmmmmmm even after Egypt, those idiots still haven't learned their lesson... who's got a can of gas....

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tao54nyc 2 weeks ago

All I can say is...it didn't stop Egypt. Just sayin'.

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dwright5_godsend 2 weeks ago

Yes, let's deny our citizens the freedom of speech by eliminating the Internet. Just another example of the idiots in Washington controlling everything they possibly can, unconstitutional or not. This is not democracy.

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Dan 2 weeks ago

More power to the government equates to less freedom for the people.

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Dan 2 weeks ago

Nearly, the only difference between Egypt and the United States is language.

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rvierumaki 2 weeks ago

"The bill is designed to protect against “significant” cyber threats before they cause damage, Collins said"

-Read: We need a good excuse to silently wrest more liberty from the sleeping hands of democracy.

"An example, the aide said, would require infrastructure connected to “the system that controls the floodgates to the Hoover dam” to cut its connection to the net if the government detected an imminent cyber attack"

- Why on God's green earth are critical infrastructures and controlling devices even connected to the public internet, and in some cases, coded to run on insecure and unstable platforms? Either someone is really stupid or an evil genius, both of which are disturbing.

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Bobbi Snow 2 weeks ago

Will someone in our government PLEASE PROMISE US that our internet will NOT be interrupted, regardless...? In cases of natural or political emergencies, in many cases cell phones and the internet are THE ONLY WAYS we can connect with family members who are now scattered across our great country. To be DEPRIVED of this would be a violation of OUR civil rights - the ones we pay our taxes to keep in force.

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EyemNotFree 2 weeks ago

Most Americans are scared swine and hate freedom.

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Cyber Slammer 2 weeks ago in reply to EyemNotFree

Exactly, most Americans are fat inert masses who are more in tune with American Idol and tabloid journalism than what their government is doing to them. Give them a welfare check and free food and they will give up anything.

(Edited by author 2 weeks ago)

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EyemNotFree 2 weeks ago in reply to Cyber Slammer

Provided they have proper food and good monitored care so their organs can be harvested for real Jim Beam Americans.

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Dean Cook 2 weeks ago

what are we Egypt

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EyemNotFree 2 weeks ago in reply to Dean Cook

Worse. We are the puppeteers of egypt. The FBI is the enemy

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Nick Mihaleff 2 weeks ago

Oh thats really rich of the Obama YES WE CAN PARTY, Mr Obama was critical of the Egyptians shutting down the internet & mobile phone system yet he is chasing that same power on a grander scale.

Classic do as I say don't do as I do!

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Daniel Cattell 2 weeks ago

Free speech and access to info cannot be compromised.

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Shaun 2 weeks ago

Could have used a better picture to illustrate "Internet Kill Switch" then a Cisco SAN switch (MDS 9509).

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Paul Lucero 2 weeks ago

Amazon and Every on line service will and should fight this BS NECON bill!!!

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Riquin 2 weeks ago

Oh Oh Obama is talking to Mubarak ..

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Brill Pappin 2 weeks ago

Sounds more like they want to be able to shut down something like WikiLeaks instead.
I'm glad I live in Canada, to bad half our trunks run down through the US.

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thomasvesely 2 weeks ago in reply to Brill Pappin

they will use these powers to stay in power forever,silence all criticism.to believe otherwise is political naiveity.

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A|ice 2 weeks ago

Yeah, right...cut us off.
Exactly what the Egyptian government is doing to its people right now for rebelling.

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WhoCaresFU 2 weeks ago

If this "lady" had any clue of reality, which she can't because she is a stupid US woman, she would just be quiet. But she will not be, because like most American sheep (men & women), she lives in la-de-da clueless land. Don't forget that this woman was voted in by the US sheep. Which says it all....

(Edited by author 2 weeks ago)

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smurfyman 2 weeks ago in reply to WhoCaresFU

Ive got some bad news for you. She's served so many terms, she's basically senator for life. Collins has been in congress since the 80s and has won in a landslide every time.

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TrollOUT 2 weeks ago in reply to WhoCaresFU

misogynistic bigotry much?

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Edward Norton 2 weeks ago

It's not the Obama Administration, you morons who think this, it's our beloved Congress. Vote out all incumbents or more of this will come. Welcome to the "New Democracy" of the USA.

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pumabydesign001 2 weeks ago in reply to Edward Norton

Actually, it is the Obama administration. Obama had this planned LONG before he got into the White House. I have been warning people for years that Obama wants a kill switch or little red button to control the internet in the Oval Office. It is the PROGRESSIVES, i.e.,members of Congress and the Senate who want to silence free speech and the voice of Americans who can see through and do not approve of their agenda.

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kinnison 2 weeks ago

Wolvernes!

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double mewa 3 weeks ago

> An example, the aide said, would require infrastructure connected to “the system that controls the floodgates to the Hoover dam” to cut its connection to the net if the government detected an imminent cyber attack.

Are you kidding me with that crap? Yeah, that's a totally plausible scenario: the system which controls the Hoover Dam's floodgates is connected to the Internet. This idiot has watched too many movies.

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Anemone999 3 weeks ago

Any Internet "kill switch" is the stuff of urban legend. First, lawmakers aren't technologically savvy enough to come up with anything effective. Secondly, anything that even remotely had the chance to interfere with any sort of online commerce would have the corporations up in arms over the government interfering with them doing business.

(Edited by author 3 weeks ago)

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12ozmouse 2 weeks ago in reply to Anemone999

Sorry to burst your bubble, but the "corporations" more likely than not the ones who came up with this legislation in those annual meetings with lawmakers and politicians...shit, I can't remember the name for those meetings...but yeah...Corporations care a shit-ton about money, and the best way to ensure that flow doesn't end is to allow the government a tighter grip on everything. Gradual change can be a wolf in sheep's clothing sometimes.

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linbegone 2 weeks ago in reply to 12ozmouse

Let's not forget that most of the internet is handled through..gasp.. corporations that provide internet service via their servers. A kill switch not need to shut of the individual as much as corporations stopping it. Really, if you look at it, it wouldn't require legislation but more a mutual agreement between companies.

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Mister Chimp 3 weeks ago in reply to Anemone999

really, and you don't believe the reports in Egypt then I guess, eh? I for a fact know they can't just shut down the inter....[BOINK]

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12ozmouse 3 weeks ago

Oh hell fucking no. Thank god I'm in Canada. Not that Harper isn't likely eyeing similar legislation.

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blitherer 3 weeks ago in reply to 12ozmouse

Canada has censored all news sources at least 4 times that I can remember in the last 40 years.

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No Name Ned 3 weeks ago in reply to 12ozmouse

Canada is even worse when it comes to violations of free speech.

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Velcro Forty-Two 2 weeks ago in reply to No Name Ned

"Canada is even worse when it comes to violations of free speech."

Not really, the tea-bag set just likes to blow things wildly out of proportion to prove how Canada's an EvvilE SOshaliSTe NaSHUn.

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12ozmouse 3 weeks ago in reply to No Name Ned

You guys are both correct for the most part, but we, at least, are not YET stifling the internet as a whole, or giving those in power the means to do so.

Don't get me wrong, Canada is a shithole sitting on top of a shithole.

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Kevin O. McCann 2 weeks ago in reply to 12ozmouse

Freedom of speech is the 1st amendment in America. Then the 2nd amendment was designed to protect the 1st. Does any other country put free speech that high on the list?

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Brian Burwell 3 weeks ago

Let's assume there is a cyber-"threat" on American soil, are we also to assume that ISPs will not will not apply to a request to shut off the internet to "prevent" "damage?"

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Celery General 3 weeks ago in reply to Brian Burwell

What even defines a "cyber threat," tell me that... this goes right along with "terrorism" ...anything can be deemed a threat and everyone is subject to being called a "terrorist" if they challenge the american govt in any way... loopholes loopholes loopholes

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Honyant 2 weeks ago in reply to Celery General

Probably weapons of mass destruction in Iraque. It seemed to work last time.

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DemonDuck 3 weeks ago in reply to Celery General

In cyber warfare -- seems to me -- that there is never a threat -- only the results of an attack. I mean, can you hear a worm or a trojan coming? Or see it on radar? They can come from anywhere, anytime, undetected until the attack.

So, if the attack is successful and begins spreading it would be a good thing to be able to shut down it's propagation channels to keep it from spreading once it's existence is known. Why would that be dumb?

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Curtis 3 weeks ago in reply to DemonDuck

The problem is, that by the time you detect a cyber attack, chances you are already too late to to stop its propagation; once a cyber attack begins in earnest, a targeted cyber attack will have already silently propagated to all the intended targets and it will have been far too late for intervention.

A cyber attack is not like a virus or trojan, it is targeted and specific.The only instance where shutting down the internet would help against such an attack is if the internet was shut down while the attack was being planned--hardly an effective solution.

The best defense against such an attack, vigilance. Teach you operators to watch their systems, and maintain their process-trees. Keep your firewall active, and for gods' sake screen your employees clearance levels thoroughly.

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DemonDuck 2 weeks ago in reply to Curtis

You're right. I didn't make the differentiation between the methods of attack -- worms, virus, trojan, and a whole bunch of other ways -- and the overall attack strategy. And the human operator is the weakest link as you say.

Still, since it is impossible to figure out all possible attacks, having a way to isolate small and large sections of the CONUS internet and maybe the whole CONUS internet might not be a bad thing. For one thing, thinking about how it would be implemented might give some unexpected insights. I'm sure people have already put some thought into the idea.

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Michael Hogan 3 weeks ago

The Thomas Guide link timed out. Please post the title or number of the legislation so we can search for it.

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Dumky 3 weeks ago

Irony.
Of course they will not say that such power could be used for really bad things. Maybe they even honestly believe it. But it is a fact and there are numerous precedents of slippery slope.

In any case, government should maybe focus on its primary task (protecting the citizens from murder, rape, fraud or theft), rather than itself being an aggressor on various private owners of network infrastructure, under some paternalistic pretense.

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Str3amer 9 hours ago

You only need a kill switch when you are doing something evil and you are scared people will use it to protest against you. We all saw what they did to the Egyptian people, now they ask for a way to do the same to us if we ever disagree with them.

-That is what they keep telling us right? If you have done nothing wrong you have nothing to fear...

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ct01 1 week ago

If the government is worried about their systems, why don't they isolate them and manage them separately? If there's a problem, why worry about managing non-critical systems and also the entire infrastructure? Just shut down the managed isolated systems themselves and you don't have to worry about anything else. Seems like a complete kill-all solution is too big a scope and too much to manage, not to mention completely unnecessary.

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Marlon Valencia 1 week ago

dude if this happened many people would start buying some black market internet and go insane like that one southpark episode

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netwrok 1 week ago

pass a kill switch and get your face kick through

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Keith Birmingham 2 weeks ago

Maybe we should shut down the phone lines of Sen. Collins' home and office to see if she likes the idea of being shut up and shut down. Dang, I hate to think about how many idiots "we the people" have sent to Washington, D. C. But, at least they are congregated into one area. I worry about the state who's i.q. soars to new heights when there politicians leave their home state.

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Steve Studdart 2 weeks ago

Turning off the Internet, if it was indeed possible would do more financial harm than any perceived act of cyber-terrorism could ever achieve. So now instead of an actual attack you simply let it be know you are about to make such an attack. The US shuts down the net and does the terrorists jobs for them.

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Mike Farrace 2 weeks ago

Y'know, I just read the bill. To me, it seems to be 99% about protecting the infrastructure. Isn't that what we need government to do?

Most of the bill outlines the creation of an agency and how it operates. It provides for sharing best practices between private sector and government and between the various government agencies. Although it does give the President power to respond to a national cyber emergency, it is overwhelmingly angled towards avoiding disruption rather than shutting anything down.

It directs the agency to work cooperatively with the private sector to secure infrastructure and communications networks in advance of trouble. It goes out of its way to establish mechanisms for assisting owners of critical infrastructure and specifies education of the public and State and local governments of ways to mitigate and remediate vulnerabilities.

It also specifically prohibits censorship of information, interception of information, control of infrastructure, the ability to compel the disclosure of information or any act which prohibits communications unless there is no other way to avoid a disruption. I agree that these are just words, but how do you construct policy without them?

Here is the "Prohibited Actions" section:

(6) PROHIBITED ACTIONS- The authority to direct compliance with an emergency measure or action under this section shall not authorize the Director, the Center, the Department, or any other Federal entity to--


‘(A) restrict or prohibit communications carried by, or over, covered critical infrastructure and not specifically directed to or from the covered critical infrastructure unless the Director determines that no other emergency measure or action will preserve the reliable operation, and mitigate or remediate the consequences of the potential disruption, of the covered critical infrastructure or the national information infrastructure;

(B) control covered critical infrastructure;

‘

(C) compel the disclosure of information unless specifically authorized by law; or

‘

(D) intercept a wire, oral, or electronic communication (as those terms are defined insection 2510 of title 18, United States Code), access a stored electronic or wire communication, install or use a pen register or trap and trace device, or conduct electronic surveillance (as defined in section 101 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (50 U.S.C.1801)) relating to an incident unless otherwise authorized under chapter 119, chapter 121, or chapter 206 of title 18, United States Code, the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (50 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.).


(7) PRIVACY- In carrying out this section, the Director shall ensure that the privacy and civil liberties of United States persons are protected.

I'm a liberal who supports this administration vigorously. I am also a supporter of moderate Republicans like Susan Collins. I am also glad the ACLU and others are on the case because there is absolutely the need to monitor the method by which the goal of this legislation is achieved.

But this "kill-switch" issue is standard readership-generating hyperbole. And I'm not even saying that's a bad thing. But these trolls who leap to the extremes, screaming ridiculous accusations every time the government (OK -- this government) tries to do its job are either working for corporate interests or are stupid.

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stevecalkins 2 weeks ago

Internet "kill switch" legislation: Do we wnat this much power in one person's hands? What does Egypt tell us about the possibilities?

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wirelessphil 2 weeks ago

Why is it that every time a reporter enters a telephone, cell phone or internet building they always photo the back of the equipment with all the wires?
If anyone ever worked in one of those places, they know all the wires are numbered so it is NOT as confusing as the reporter makes it out to be!

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miledave 2 weeks ago

I love it. If they kill the Internet, than Homeland Security can no longer spy on me through my Microsoft Xbox360 Kinect! Ha!

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Rene Remington 2 weeks ago

Ultimately the people will rule with one heart.

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David Turcotte 2 weeks ago

This bill will either A. not pass or B. be shot down immediately by the courts. Fact is, something like this is unconstitutional due to the reliance that the press has on the internet. Most, if not all forms of news media use direct internet feeds to get their information in the first place and in this day and age where news is close to instant, something like this could be crippling. Freedom of the press is the answer to this.

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ThinkMn 2 weeks ago

Why would the gates of the Hoover dam or any other critical system be on an open network like the internet? Secure systems are never connected to the internet. They are physically disconnected from other networks.

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greggebhardt 2 weeks ago

If you give them the ability to shut down the Internet today, it will be Free Press and Nation News next. We are right on the edge of losing the only thing that is keeping the government in check! It is up to YOU, people!

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Judith Frazier 2 weeks ago

Over our dead bodies. Far too dangerous a precedent to set.
The "best tools available" are the anonymous hackers who's skills are light years beyond those of any US enemy & who would step in on their own to assist.
We're learning a lot from the Egyptian Revolution regarding electronic comm tools and the ways around them. Techs have banded together to make this happen.
Congress needs to *catch up.*
I'm 56, yet feel like I'm dealing with a bunch of clueless fogies from another era. Smh.

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Joe Lloyd 2 weeks ago

Scary, the first step into a dangerous world of censorship and government control. What's happening in Egypt is an unprecedented violation of the rights of Egyptian Nationals. Here's hoping we don't allow the same thing to happen to us in the States!!

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Jon 2 weeks ago

"The bill is designed to protect against “significant” cyber threats before they cause damage, Collins said"

in other words, designed to "officially" excuse themselves of any wrongdoing in shutting down the net during one of their manufactured False Flag Cyber Operation which comes JUST IN THE NICK OF TIME to stifle any form of an organized grassroots protest.

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csmallfield 2 weeks ago

Why the he'll is the Hoover dam connected to the Internet? Why is any critical infrastructure connected to the Internet? Manage that stuff locally, why create vulnerabilities? Leave the Internet alone, it belongs to everyone.

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Nem Inis 2 weeks ago in reply to csmallfield

Critical infrastructures are NOT connected to our Internet. Do the research.

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floyd_dabarber 2 weeks ago

Not sure which of these is more scary: The Internet Kill Switch described in this article, or the plan to require that all citizens have a single Cyber Identity that can be tracked back to their real name (search on "National Strategy for Trusted Identities in Cyberspace" ). Both plans sound like something right out of Mussolini's playbook. Either way, if you don't trust Obama and Napolitano, you will likely much to worry about. Similarly, after Obama and the Dems go out of power (and they will of course like all cycles), and Romney or Huckabee or Jeb Buch or (god-forbid) Palin come into power, then the rest of you can worry.

Me? I'm just trying to figure out how much porn I should stockpile before this all hits.

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Gary Powell 2 weeks ago

Instead of a a kill switch maybe a seperate internet should be used for critical operations like the electric grid water systems. Plus the idea of having an non internet based way of controling these systems. So if a kill switch needed to be used then it can be an focused and should be easier to ID an attacker on a restricted Internet.

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chiliboots 2 weeks ago

If they start a 'war' in this regard, they will lose.

They will forfeit everything they think they now
can screw with, and then some: EVERYTHING.

Perhaps this is that Last Straw. It probably is.

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Hugh Guiney 2 weeks ago

“My legislation would provide a mechanism for the government to work with the private sector in the event of a true cyber emergency.”

These are weasel words—intentionally vague and meant to scare people into supporting the bill. The example he gives is about the government intercepting a remote attack on the Hoover dam, which apart from being extremely far-fetched, really has nothing to do with the Internet at large, and more to do with their internal network security.

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Kyle Framin 2 weeks ago

This is preparation by out pentagon/AIPAC elite to control the sheeple.

There is never enough control, it's like money, never enough money, never enough control

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Leif Burrow 2 weeks ago

Why, Why and Why would the computers controlling the floodgates of the Hoover Dam ever be connected to the Internet in the first place. That is unimaginably irresponsible! Things like that should never be exposed to the Internet and legislation such as this should be entirely unnecessary.

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Leif Burrow 2 weeks ago

Why, Why and Why would the computers controlling the floodgates of the Hoover Dam ever be connected to the Internet in the first place. That is unimaginably irresponsible! Things like that should never be exposed to the Internet and legislation such as this should be entirely unnecessary.

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Wayne Eveland 2 weeks ago

That's a nice cisco 9509 :-) That's quite a bit of money right there, especially with the dual supervisor cards.

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CUforlife1 2 weeks ago in reply to Wayne Eveland

Funny that the author would post a picture of a 9509 instead of a 6509. No internet traffic on that thing!

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Will Pardon 2 weeks ago

the preceeding post was sarcasm. did you read it? did you agree with it? Then you need to get our of the USA!

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Will Pardon 2 weeks ago

I hope our communist govt seizes the internet, shuts down talk radio, shuts up conservative opinion and gets on with our plan to take over this turd bucket we call a democracy. Its time for total govt control of the insane masses and control thier miserable trailer trash lives. The govt needs lackies, sock puppets and slaves for its marxist take over of north america. power to the browns, blacks, immigrants and islam. Time to stop democracy.

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Will Pardon 2 weeks ago

Considering the fact that our govt is now in the death grip of communists, marxist labour unions, homos, dissetants, saboteurs, and islamic sponsored subversives and a muslim president, we are lucky to be alive.

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smurfyman 2 weeks ago in reply to Will Pardon

Your wrong. It's the corporate lobbyists that are destroying the USA and the world.

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thomasvesely 2 weeks ago

it will go like this perhaps,elevated threat alert,specifically to airport control,we must shut down the internet.

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Anemone999 2 weeks ago

There isn't going to be a kill switch to the Internet. Even those who cite Egypt as an example should read the recent article in "Computer World" which states that residents are already finding their way around the shut down. Quote: "Egyptians with dial-up modems get no Internet connection when they call into their local ISP, but calling an international number to reach a modem in another country gives them a connection to the outside world."

A total Internet shutdown will never happen in this country as there are so many more ISPs and options. More importantly, the corporations that run this country (if you don't think that's true, look at the "Citizens United" ruling) will never allow the disruption of online monies their way. Now, if you want to discuss net neutrality and the corporations' ability to manipulate access so that they eliminate competition or negative press for them, etc.--sure, that's totally believable.

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Terry 2 weeks ago

"Any state, any entity, any ideology that fails to recognize the worth, the dignity, the rights of man, that state is obsolete."- Excerpt from "The Obsolete Man" by Rod Serling. Twilight Zone episode.

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mog 2 weeks ago

NO, NO, NO!

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Sarah 2 weeks ago

What is this I don't even.

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BR549 2 weeks ago

-----CENSORED_____

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David Hanover 2 weeks ago

This is abhorrent. the idea that a Republican could be stupid or disingenuous enough to SPONSOR anything like this....well, the tea party needs to purify the GOP even more, obviously.

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Deekoo 2 weeks ago in reply to David Hanover

It's a liberalism-vs-authoritarianism issue, not a GOP-vs-Tea Party issue. There are Tea Party speakers who staunchly support free speech, and there are also Tea Party speakers who call for the assassination of people whose speech they disapprove of.

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