Tag Archive: U.S. Chamber of Commerce


800+ Major Corporations and U.S. Chamber of Commerce Support Internet Freedom-Crushing CISPA

Madison Ruppert
End the Lie
Tue, 17 Apr 2012 22:12 CDT
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It’s quite sad for me to say that over 3 million businesses in the United States represented by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, not to mention 800+ other major corporations (see below list), all have shown their support for the disturbing legislation known as CISPA, or the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act.

This long list includes corporations like Google, Facebook, AT&T, Verizon, Microsoft, IBM, Boeing, Intel, the Financial Services Roundtable, Lockheed Martin, Qualcomm, Northrop Grumman, VeriSign, Symantec, Oracle, the National Cable & Telecommunications Association, the Internet Security Alliance, the information Technology Industry Council, the Independent Telephone & Telecommunications Alliance, the Cyber, Space & Intelligence Association, CTIA – the Wireless Association, the Business Roundtable and more (all of which are listed below).

Please take a moment out of your day to either share this article or at least the list of corporations behind this legislation in order to help coordinate a boycott effort.

I believe it would also be beneficial to call them repeatedly (inundating their phone lines can be a major headache), shower them with emails, letters, etc. all in an attempt to get them to back away from CISPA.

Widespread protest efforts were quite successful in bringing down the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), but now we have to keep in mind that many of the corporations who were anti-SOPA are actually pro-CISPA.

This means that the public will have to be engaged to a much more significant degree in order to have an impact even remotely comparable to what we saw in opposition to SOPA and the Protect IP Act (PIPA).

The real reason that corporations who were against SOPA and PIPA but are now behind CISPA is because, unlike the previous legislation, it removes all liability from the corporations and shifts the regulatory pressure away from the company.

SOPA actually required private corporations to keep tabs on all of their user activity and made them liable for their users and their activities.

CISPA, on the other hand, shifts that responsibility away from the private corporations completely and hands that role over to a government entity.

This makes it so corporations are protected from lawsuits from a user who has their private information given to the government under CISPA.

Now I’m sure you can see why companies like Google (which protested SOPA in a quite visible manner) and Facebook (which also voiced opposition to SOPA) are champing at the bit to get behind CISPA.

“CISPA would allow ISPs, social networking sites and anyone else handling Internet communications to monitor users and pass information to the government without any judicial oversight,” according to the Activism Director for the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), Rainey Reitman. “The language of this bill is dangerously vague, so that personal online activity – from the mundane to the intimate – could be implicated.”

What exactly does “dangerously vague” mean, you ask? Well, the EFF has done a fantastic job of explaining exactly what they mean.

CISPA would allow “access to any information regarding a ‘cyber threat’ is granted to the government, privacy security agencies and private companies.”

CISPA’s definition of a “cyber threat” is as follows:

  • Efforts to disrupt or destroy government or private systems or networks.
  • Theft or misappropriation of private or government information, intellectual property, or personally identifiable information.

In this context, misappropriation means “wrongful borrowing” and intellectual property means anything protected by a copyright including programs like Photoshop and Microsoft Office, MP3s, television shows and movies, and absolutely anything in between.

The purposefully vague language of CISPA leaves room for abuse in the following ways (according to this informative infographic from the EFF):

The government, private security agencies (think HB Gary and many more), and private companies (which are already being brought into the fold) acting in “good faith” actually means maybe you did it (whatever it allegedly may be).

These entities can share “cyber threat information” which, in reality, is your personal information with other private companies, private security agencies and government entities.

They can do this all with total anonymity, meaning that they don’t have to tell you what they’re doing or if they’re sending your information to someone or even who they are sending it to.

It also gives these entities immunity to legal action, which means that you can’t take action against any of them, even if they made a mistake with your information.

The EFF graphic aptly sums it up by saying, “Privacy policy? LOL.”

“Any existing legal protections of user privacy will be usurped by CISPA. The bill clearly states that the information may be shared ‘notwithstanding any other provision of law,’” they add.

Recently, Joel Kaplan, Facebook’s vice president for U.S. public policy, attemptedto reassure users. In my opinion, he failed miserably in attempting to say that it only would allow them to share information about possible cyber attacks while not forcing any new data sharing obligations, adding:

[W]e recognize that a number of privacy and civil liberties groups have raised concerns about the bill – in particular about provisions that enable private companies to voluntarily share cyber threat data with the government. The concern is that companies will share sensitive personal information with the government in the name of protecting cybersecurity. Facebook has no intention of doing this and it is unrelated to the things we liked about HR 3523 in the first place – the additional information it would provide us about specific cyber threats to our systems and users.

EFF shot back in a quite thorough blog post entitled, “What Facebook Wants in Cybersecurity Doesn’t Require Trampling On Our Privacy Rights.”

They note that the government can already share information about supposed cyber threats with corporations like Facebook without “any of the CISPA provisions that allow companies to routinely monitor private communications and share personal user data gleaned from those communications with the government.”

They also make it very clear that they do not trust Facebook’s claims in writing:

But let’s be clear: Internet users don’t want promises from companies not to intercept our private communications and share that data with one another and the government. We want strong laws that make such egregious privacy violations illegal, that require the government to follow legal process (judicial oversight in most case), and that allow us or the government to sue persons who break the law. Ironically, hard-won, long-standing privacy laws – like the Wiretap Act and the Electronic Communications Privacy Act – already exist, although they are by no means ideal. There are already too many exceptions that allow the government to gain access to sensitive user data. But CISPA would upend these existing legal protections and leave the door wide open to companies handing sensitive personal information to the government without so much as a subpoena, let alone a warrant.

Considered together, this information paints nothing short of a disturbing picture. With Silicon Valley’s data mining capabilities more sophisticated than ever before, and with many peoples’ information being captured without their knowledge or consent, the information that will be readily available is almost incomprehensible in its scope.

The house will be voting on CISPA on April 23 and I highly recommend that you make an effort to put this legislation down before we see even more of our rights trampled on by our tyrannical federal government.

The Long List:

  • AT&T
  • Boeing
  • BSA
  • Business Roundtable
    • A.O. Smith
    • ABB Inc. USA
    • Abbott
    • Accenture pic
    • ACE Limited
    • AES
    • Aetena, Inc.
    • AGCO
    • AK Steel
    • Alcoa Inc.
    • Allstate
    • Altec, Inc.
    • American Electric Power Company, Inc.
    • American Express
    • Amerigroup
    • Ameriprise Financial
    • Amgen, Inc.
    • Anadarko Petroleum
    • Apache Corp.
    • Arch Coal, Inc.
    • AT&T
    • Automatic Data Processing
    • Avery Dennison
    • Avis Budget Group
    • Ball Corp.
    • Bank of America
    • Barclays PLC
    • Bausch + Lomb
    • Bayer AG
    • Bechtel Group, Inc.
    • BlackRock, Inc.
    • Blackstone Group
    • BNSF Railway
    • Boeing
    • BorgWarner, Inc.
    • C.V. Starr & Co., Inc.
    • CA Technologies
    • Caesars Entertainment
    • Campbell Soup Company
    • Cardinal Health, Inc.
    • Case New Holland Inc.
    • Caterpillar Inc.
    • CBRE Group, Inc.
    • CF Industries
    • CH2M HILL Companies, Ltd.
    • Charles Shwab
    • Chesapeake Energy
    • Chevron
    • Chrysler Group LLC
    • CIGNA
    • Cisco Systems, Inc.
    • Citigroup, Inc.
    • Coca-Cola
    • Cognizant Technology Solutions
    • Comcast
    • Computer Sciences Corporation
    • ConocoPhillips
    • Convergys Corporation
    • Cooper Industries PLC
    • Corning Inc.
    • Covidien pic
    • Crane Co.
    • CSX
    • Cummins Inc.
    • CVS Caremark
    • Danaher Corp.
    • Darden Restaruants, Inc.
    • DaVita Inc.
    • Deere & Company
    • Dell
    • Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited
    • DIRECTV
    • Dominion Resources
    • Dow Chemical
    • Duke Energy
    • DuPont
    • Eastman Chemical
    • Eaton Corp.
    • Edison International
    • Eli Lilly and Company
    • EMC Corp.
    • Ernst & Young
    • Exelis Inc.
    • Express Scripts
    • Exxon Mobil
    • FedEx
    • First Solar, Inc.
    • Fluor Corp.
    • FMC Corp.
    • Ford Motor Company
    • Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc.
    • Frontier Communications
    • Gannet Co., Inc.
    • General Electric
    • General Mills
    • General Motors
    • Goldman Sachs Group
    • Goodrich
    • Grainger
    • Hanes Brands Inc.
    • Harman International Industries
    • Harris Corp.
    • Hartford Financial Services Group
    • Hasbro, Inc.
    • Hertz
    • Hess Corp.
    • Honeywell International, Inc.
    • HSBC – North America
    • Humana Inc.
    • INgersol-Rand PLC
    • Intel
    • IBM
    • International Paper Company
    • Interpublic Group
    • ITC Holdings
    • ITT Corp.
    • Johnson & Johnson
    • Johnson Controls, Inc.
    • JPMorgan Chase
    • Kelly Services, Inc.
    • Kindred Healthcare
    • KPMG LLP
    • Liberty Mutual
    • Liz Claiborne
    • Macy’s
    • Marathon Oil
    • MassMutual Financial
    • MasterCard
    • McDermott International
    • McGraw-Hill
    • McKesson Corp.
    • Medtronic, Inc.
    • Merck & Co., Inc.
    • Meredith Corp.
    • Meritor, Inc.
    • MetLife, Inc.
    • Microsoft
    • Motorola Mobility
    • Motorola Solutions
    • NASDAQ OMX
    • National Gypsum Company
    • Navistar
    • New York Life Insurance
    • NextEra Energy
    • Norfolk Southern Corp.
    • Northrop Grumman Corp.
    • Nucor Corp.
    • Ownes Corning
    • Peabody Energy Corp.
    • PepsiCo
    • Peter Kiewit Sons’, Inc.
    • Pfizer
    • Praxair, Inc.
    • PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
    • Principal Financial Group
    • Proctor & Gamble
    • Prudential Financial
    • Public Service Enterprise Group, Inc.
    • Qualcomm
    • R.R. Donnelley & Sons
    • Realogy Corp.
    • Rockwell Automation, Inc
    • Rockwell Collins, Inc.
    • Ryder Systems, Inc.
    • Sanofi-Aventis
    • SAP
    • SAS Institute Inc.
    • Sealed Air Corp.
    • Shell Oil Company
    • Siemens
    • Simon Property Group, Inc.
    • Southern Company
    • Stanley Black & Decker
    • State Farm
    • Suffolk Construction Company, Inc.
    • SunGuard
    • Target
    • Telephone and Data Systems
    • Tenet Healthcare Corp.
    • Tenneco, Inc.
    • Texas Instruments
    • Textron Inc.
    • The Brink’s Company
    • Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc.
    • Time Warner Cable
    • Tishman Speyer Properties, L.P.
    • Travelers Companies
    • Tyco International
    • Union Pacific Corp.
    • UPS
    • United Technologies Corp.
    • UnitedHealth Group, Inc.
    • Universal Health Services, Inc.
    • Verizon
    • Viacom
    • Visa
    • Wal-Mart
    • WellCare Health Plans, Inc.
    • WellPoint, Inc.
    • WESCO International, Inc.
    • Western & Southern Financial Group
    • Weyerhaeuser Company
    • Whirlpool Corp.
    • Williams Companies
    • Windstream Corp.
    • WL Ross & Co. LLC
    • World Fuel Services Corp.
    • Wyndham Worldwide Corp.
    • Xerox
    • Yahoo!
  • CSC
  • COMPTEL
  • CTIA – The Wireless Association
    • Allied Wireless Communications Corporation
    • Aloha Partners II, L.P.
    • AT&T
    • Barat Wireless, L.P.
    • Bluegrass Cellular, Inc.
    • Carolina West Wireless
    • Cavalier Wireless, LLC
    • Cellcom
    • Cellular Properties Inc, dba Cellular One
    • Clearwire Corporation
    • Cox Communications, Inc
    • DoCoMo Pacific, Inc.
    • East Kentucky Network LLC dba Appalachian Wireless
    • GCI Communication Corp.
    • GreatCall, Inc.
    • Leap Wireless
    • LightSquared
    • Mohave Wireless
    • MTA Wireless
    • MTS Communications, Inc.
    • Nex-Tech Wireless
    • NTELOS, Inc.
    • Pioneer/Enid Cellular
    • Smith Bagley, Inc. DBA Cellular One of N.E. AZ
    • SouthernLINC Wireless
    • SpectrumCo, LLC
    • Sprint Nextel Corporation
    • Stelera Wireless, L.L.C.
    • TerreStar Network Services, Inc
    • T-Mobile USA
    • TracFone Wireless, Inc
    • U.S. Cellular
    • Union Telephone Company
    • Verizon Wireless
    • Vitelcom Cellular, Inc. d/b/a Innovative Wireless
    • Westlink Communications, Inc.
    • 3Cinteractive
    • Access Telecom, Inc.
    • AirCell, Inc.
    • Alcatel-Lucent
    • AMGOO
    • Anritsu Company
    • AnyDATA, Inc
    • Apple Inc
    • Assurant Solutions
    • Asurion
    • BilltoMobile
    • BlueAnt Wireless
    • Bluetest AB
    • Bravo Tech Inc.
    • Brightstar Corporation
    • Bytemobile, Inc.
    • CBS Interactive
    • Cequint, Inc.
    • Cibernet
    • Cisco, Inc.
    • ClearSky Technologies, Inc.
    • CNN Mobile
    • DBSD North America, Inc.
    • Disney Mobile
    • EMC Test Systems, L.P., (ETS-Lindgren)
    • Ericsson, Inc.
    • eSecuritel Holdings, LLC
    • FiberTower Corporation
    • Finsphere Corporation
    • Frontline Test Equipment
    • Garmin
    • GOGII, Inc.
    • Good Technology
    • Google Inc
    • GroupMe, Inc.
    • Harris Information Technology Services
    • HEAD acoustics GmbH
    • HTC America, Inc.
    • Huawei Technologies USA Inc
    • HyperCube LLC
    • IDI Billing Solutions
    • Inmar
    • Inteliquent
    • Interop Technologies
    • Intrado, Inc
    • Intuit
    • kgb
    • Kore Telematics Inc.
    • LG Electronics MobileComm USA, Inc.
    • LOC-AID Technologies, Inc
    • M Seven System
    • Major League Baseball, Advanced Media, L.P.
    • MapInfo Corporation
    • Medio Systems, Inc
    • MI Technologies
    • Microsemi Corporation
    • Microsoft Corporation
    • Mobile Messenger
    • Mobile Posse, Inc.
    • Motorola Mobility, Inc.
    • Motricity
    • Movius Interactive Corporation
    • National Analysis Center, Inc
    • NBCUniversal Digital Networks
    • NeuStar, Inc.
    • NextG Networks, Inc
    • Nokia, Inc.
    • Numerex Corp
    • OnStar
    • OpenMarket
    • Openwave Systems
    • Opticon, Inc.
    • Panasonic Solutions Company
    • Paratek Microwave, Inc.
    • PaymentOne Corporation
    • PCTest Engineering
    • Personal Communications Devices, LLC (PCD)
    • Petra Industries, Inc.
    • Plantronics Inc
    • Plum Mobile
    • PPC
    • Qualcomm, Inc.
    • Quality One Wireless, LLC
    • QuickPlay Media Inc.
    • RealNetworks
    • Recellular, Inc.
    • RemoteMDx Inc.
    • Research In Motion
    • Samsung Telecommunications America, L.P.
    • Sasken Communication Technologies Limited
    • SEQUANS Communication
    • SGS US Testing Company, Inc.
    • Single Touch Interactive, Inc.
    • Smartcomm LLC
    • SMC Networks Inc.
    • Smith Micro Software, Inc.
    • Snackable Media
    • Southwire Company
    • StreamWIDE, Inc.
    • Sybase, Inc
    • Syniverse Technologies
    • Taqua, LLC
    • TARGUSinfo
    • TeleCommunication Systems, Inc
    • Telefonica Internacional USA, Inc.
    • The Howland Company, Inc
    • The NPD Group
    • The Weather Channel
    • Transaction Network Services
    • Tri-L Solutions, Inc.
    • TSB PLUS DEAL, Corp d/b/a EYO AMERICA
    • Vibes Media
    • WMC Global
    • Zipwhip, Inc.
    • Zong, Inc
    • Zoove Corp.
    • 7 layers
    • AccuWeather, Inc.
    • Agilent Technologies
    • Alaska Communications Systems
    • American Roamer Company, Inc.
    • AT4 Wireless
    • ATC Logistics & Electronics
    • Audience, Inc.
    • Azimuth Systems, Inc
    • Bechtel Telecommunications
    • BeQuick Software
    • Bloomberg Government
    • Bluetooth SIG
    • Boingo Wireless, Inc.
    • Boku, Inc.
    • BOX
    • Bragg Communications DBA Eastlink Wireless
    • Brightpoint, Inc.
    • Broadcom Corporation
    • Bureau Veritas ADT
    • Capital Telecom, LLC
    • Caterpillar
    • CDMA Development Group
    • Cellairis.com
    • Cenoplex, Inc.
    • CETECOM
    • CExchange, LLC
    • China Telecommunication Technology Labs (CTTL)
    • Ciena Corporation
    • Cloudmark, Inc.
    • Commscope
    • Compliance Certification Services
    • comScore
    • ComSource, Inc
    • Corning Cable Systems
    • CT Miami LLC
    • CWG LLC (Communications Wireless Group)
    • Dell Inc.
    • Deloitte & Touche, LLP.
    • Dolby
    • Elektrobit System Test Ltd.
    • ETAK Systems, Inc.
    • Fibrebond Corporation
    • Ford Motor Company
    • GENERAC Power Systems, Inc.
    • GetJar
    • Hyper Taiwan Technology, Inc.
    • Incipio
    • Ingram Micro
    • Intec Billing Inc.
    • Intel Corporation
    • Intertek
    • iQmetrix
    • Jumptap, Inc.
    • Juniper Networks
    • Kathrein Inc. Scala Division
    • KGP Logistics
    • Kyocera Communications, Inc.
    • Lenco Mobile Inc.
    • Lenovo Inc.
    • Malsha LLC
    • Marvell Semiconductor, Inc.
    • mBlox, Inc.
    • Metrico Wireless
    • Millennial Media
    • Mobileistic
    • MobiTV, Inc
    • Multi-Tech Systems, Inc.
    • National Electronics
    • NEC Corporation of America
    • New Retail Solutions
    • NEXPRO International, LLC
    • Novatel Wireless
    • NTT DoCoMo USA, Inc.
    • Offwire
    • Omnilert, LLC
    • Oracle Corporation
    • Palm, Inc
    • Plateau Telecommunications
    • Powermat
    • Protect Cell
    • Qmadix
    • Qualcomm Q-Lab
    • Radio Frequency Systems
    • RBC Capital Markets, LLC
    • Rohde & Schwarz
    • Sabre Industries, Inc.
    • SATIMO
    • SETAR-Servicio Di Telecomunicacion
    • Sierra Wireless
    • Simplexity LLC
    • Smart Synch
    • Sony Corporation of America
    • SPEAG (Schmid & Partner Eng. AG)
    • Spirent Communications
    • Sporton International Inc.
    • Stargreetz
    • Strategy Analytics, Inc.
    • Superior Communications
    • Symantec Corporation
    • Synchronoss Technologies
    • Talley, Inc
    • TCT Mobile Inc.
    • TECORE, Inc.
    • TEKELEC
    • Telecom Expert Group, LLC
    • Telecom. Metrology Center/Ministry of Information
    • Telecommunications Technology Association (TTA)
    • TELUS Communications Company
    • Texas Instruments, Inc.
    • The Management Network Group, Inc. (TMNG)
    • The Washington Post
    • TUV Rheinland Group
    • Twilio, Inc.
    • Unnecto/Parktel USA
    • Valor Communication Inc.
    • Ventus
    • VoltDelta/LSSi
    • W.L. Gore & Associates, Inc.
    • Wiley Rein LLP
    • Wilkinson Barker Knauer, LLP
    • Wireless One, Inc.
    • Xentris, LLC
    • ZAGG Inc.
    • ZTE Corporation
  • Cyber, Space & Intelligence AssociationEd. Note: There is no information about this organization, what it is, what it does, or who its members are. We are looking into the matter further.
  • Edison Electric
  • EMC
  • Exelon
  • Facebook
  • The Financial Services Roundtable
    • AEGON USA, Inc
    • Affiliated Managers Group, Inc.
    • Allianz Life Insurance Co. of North America
    • Allstate
    • Ally Financial, Inc.
    • American Honda Finance Corp.
    • Ameriprise Financial, Inc.
    • Ares Capital Corp.
    • Associated Banc-Corp
    • Assurant, Inc.
    • Aviva USA
    • AXA Financial, Inc.
    • BankcorpSouth, Inc.
    • BancWest Corp.
    • Bank of America
    • Bank of Hawaii
    • The BNY Mellon Corp.
    • Barclays Capital, Inc.
    • BB&T Corp.
    • BBVA Compass
    • BlackRock, Inc.
    • BMO Financial Corp.
    • Brown & Brown Insurance
    • Capital One
    • Caterpillar Financial Services Corp.
    • Charles Schwab
    • The Chubb Corp.
    • CIT group, Inc.
    • Citigroup, Inc.
    • City National Corporation
    • Comerica Incorporated
    • Commerce Bancshares, Inc.
    • Discover Financial Services
    • Edward Jones
    • E*Trade
    • Fidelity Investments
    • Fifth Third Bankcorp
    • First Horizon National Corp.
    • First Niagara Financial Group, Inc.
    • Ford Motor Credit Company
    • Fulton Financial Corp.
    • General Electric
    • Genworth Financial
    • Hancock Holding Company
    • The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc.
    • The Hartford
    • HSBC North America
    • Huntington Bancshares, Inc.
    • ING
    • John Deere Financial Serivces
    • Jon Hancock Financial Services
    • JPMorgan Chase & Co.
    • KeyCorp
    • Liberty Mutual
    • Lincoln National Corp.
    • LPL Financial
    • M&T Bank
    • MasterCard
    • Mutual of Omaha Insurance Co.
    • Nationwide
    • New York Life Insurance Co.
    • People’s United Bank
    • The PMI Group, Inc.
    • The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc.
    • Popular, Inc.
    • Principal Financial Group
    • The Private Bank
    • Protective Life Corp.
    • Prudential Financial Inc.
    • Putnam Investments
    • Raymond James Financial, Inc.
    • RBC Bank, USA
    • RBS Americas
    • Regions Financial Corporation
    • RenaissanceRe Holdings Ltd.
    • Sallie Mae, Inc
    • Sovereign
    • State Farm Insurance
    • State Street Corp.
    • SunTrust Banks, Inc.
    • Swiss Reinsurance America Corp.
    • Synovus
    • TD Bank
    • Toyota Motor Credit Corp.
    • Trustmark Corp.
    • TSYS
    • UnionBanCal Corp.
    • United Bankshares, Inc.
    • Unum
    • U.S. Bancorp
    • Visa
    • Webster Financial Corp.
    • Wells Fargo & Copmany
    • Western & Southern Financial Group
    • Zions Bancorporation
  • IBM
  • Independent Telephone & Telecommunications Alliance
    • CenturyLink
    • Cincinnati Bell
    • Comporium Communications
    • Consolidated Communications
    • FairPoint Communications
    • Hargray Communications
    • HickoryTech Communications
    • SureWest Communications
    • TDS Telecom
  • Information Technology Industry Council
    • Accenture
    • Adobe
    • Agilent Technologies
    • Alcatel Lucent
    • Altera
    • AMD
    • Aol
    • APC
    • Apple
    • Applied Materials
    • Autodesk
    • Broadcom
    • CA Technologies
    • Canon
    • Cisco
    • Cognizant
    • Corning
    • Dell
    • Kodak
    • eBay
    • EMC2
    • Ericsson
    • Fujitsu
    • Google
    • HP
    • IBM
    • Intel
    • Intuit
    • Lenovo
    • Lexmark
    • Micron
    • Microsoft
    • Monster.com
    • Motorola
    • NCR
    • Nokia
    • Oracle
    • Panasonic
    • Qualcomm
    • Ricoh
    • RIM
    • SAP
    • Sony
    • Symantec
    • Synopsys
    • Teradata
    • Texas Instruments
    • VeriSign
    • VMWare
  • Intel
  • Internet Security Alliance
    • AVG
    • BNY Mellon
    • Boeing
    • Carnegie Mellon University-CyLab
    • Dell
    • Direct Computer Resources
    • Lockheed Martin
    • National Association of Manufacturers
    • NJVC
    • Northrop Grumman
    • Raytheon
    • SAIC
    • Symantec
    • VeriSign
    • Verizon
    • USAA
    • Zurich North America
    • Computer Sciences Corps. (CSC)
    • GovDelivery
    • Infineon Technologies North America
    • Intuit
    • L-3 Communications
    • Qualcomm
    • Reed Elsevier
    • Phillips Nizer, LLP
    • Chartis Insurance
    • Mitsubishi
    • Palindrome Technologies
    • Power & Telephone Supply Co.
    • Salare Security, LLC
    • Sentar, Inc.
    • TASC
    • The Association for Manufacturing Technology (AMT)
    • Wipro Technologies, Inc.
  • Lockheed Martin
  • Microsoft
  • National Cable & Telecommunications Association
    • A+E Networks
    • ActiveVideo Networks, Inc.
    • Acumen Solutions, Inc.
    • Advance/Newhouse Communications
    • Advanced Digital Broadcast, Inc. (ADB, Inc.)
    • Africa Channel
    • Alcatel-Lucent
    • Alticast, Inc.
    • AMC Networks Inc.
    • ARRIS
    • Aurora Networks, Inc.
    • Azar Computer Software Services, Inc.
    • BCM
    • Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ
    • Beechwoods Software, Inc.
    • BelAir Networks
    • BendBroadband
    • BET Networks
    • BigBand Networks, Inc.
    • BlackArrow, Inc.
    • Blonder-Tongue Labs, Inc.
    • BlueHighways TV
    • Bond & Pecaro
    • Bonneville Distribution
    • Bortz Media & Sports Group, Inc.
    • Brigade Capital Management LLC
    • Broadlogic Network Technologies Inc.
    • Broken Bow TV
    • Cablevision Systems Corp.
    • Carlsen Resources, Inc.
    • Casa Systems
    • Castalia Communications Corp.
    • CatholicTV
    • CEA Associates, LLC
    • Charter Communications
    • CHR Solutions
    • Cim-Tel Cable, Inc.
    • Cisco Systems
    • Clear Creek Mutual Telephone
    • Clearleap, Inc.
    • CLIINTEL
    • Coaxial Cable TV Corp.
    • Coblentz, Patch, Duffy & Bass LLP
    • Colton Cable TV & Telephone Co
    • Comcast Corporation
    • Comcast Programming
    • Com-Link, Inc.
    • CommScope, Inc.
    • Conax As
    • Consolidated Cable Solutions
    • Convergys
    • Cox Communications, Inc.
    • C-SPAN
    • Current TV
    • Cycle30, Inc.
    • Davis Wright Tremaine LLP
    • Discovery Communications, Inc.
    • Disney Media Networks
    • Dow Lohnes, PLLC
    • Duff & Phelps, LLC
    • Eagle Cablevision, Inc.
    • Eagle Communications
    • EATEL Corp.
    • Ebru TV
    • EchoStar Technologies, L.L.C.
    • Edwards Wildman Palmer, LLP
    • Ensequence, Inc.
    • Entone, Inc.
    • Entropic Communications, Inc.
    • Ericsson
    • ESRI
    • Euronews
    • EWTN Global Catholic Network
    • FamilyNet, Inc.
    • Fox Networks Group
    • France 24
    • Front Porch Inc.
    • Funai Electric Co., Ltd.
    • Game Show Network (GSN)
    • GCI Cable Inc.
    • Goltv, Inc.
    • Gospel Music Channel
    • Great Lakes Data Systems, Inc.
    • Hallmark Channel (Crown Media Holdings)
    • Hamilton County Cable TV Inc.
    • HDNet, LLC
    • Hearst Corporation
    • Hogan Lovells US LLP
    • Home Box Office (HBO)
    • Home Shopping Network
    • Hood Canal Cablevision
    • Horror Entertainment, LLC dba FEARnet
    • Hostopia.com Inc.
    • HRTV: HorseRacing TV
    • Huawei Technologies USA
    • icueTv, Inc.
    • Imagine Communications
    • iN DEMAND
    • InfoSpace, Inc.
    • Infosys Technologies Limited
    • Insight Communications, Inc.
    • Inspiration Networks (INSP)
    • Integrated BroadBand Services, LLC
    • Intraway Corporation S.R.L.
    • ION Media Networks
    • itaas, Inc
    • Juniper Networks
    • Karmaloop TV
    • Keene Valley Video, Inc.
    • Kennedy Network Services, Inc.
    • KPMG
    • Lifetime Entertainment Services
    • Lode Data Corporation
    • Massillon Cable TV
    • Mav’rick Entertainment Network, Inc.
    • McGuire Wood LLP
    • Mediacom Communications Corporation
    • METASWITCH
    • MGM HD
    • Midcontinent Communications
    • Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky & Popeo, P.C.
    • Mixed Signals, Inc.
    • Momentum Telecom Wholesale
    • Motorola, Inc.
    • Moultrie Telecomm. Inc.
    • Mountain Zone TV
    • MTV Networks
    • NagraVision S.A.
    • NAPCO Security Technologies, Inc.
    • National Geographic Channel (NGC)
    • NBC Universal
    • NDS Americas Inc.
    • Nelson County Cablevision Inc.
    • NEUSTAR, Inc.
    • NHK Cosmomedia America, Inc
    • New Visions Communications, Inc.
    • One World Sports
    • Outdoor Channel
    • Ovation TV
    • Pace Micro Technology PLC
    • QVC, Inc.
    • Qwest Communications
    • Rasenberger Media LLC
    • RBC Daniels
    • RCH Cable
    • Red Bull Media House North America
    • ReelzChannel
    • Rentrak Corporation
    • Retirement Living TV, LLC
    • RFD TV
    • Rovi Corporation
    • Scripps Networks Interactive
    • SeaChange International
    • Service Electric Cablevision
    • SES World Skies
    • Sherman & Howard L.L.C.
    • Si’ TV
    • Sigma Systems
    • Silver Star Communications
    • Sjoberg’s, Inc
    • Smithsonian Networks
    • SomosTV LLC
    • Sony Movie Channel
    • Starz Entertainment Group
    • Strategy & Technology Ltd.
    • Suddenlink Communications
    • Synacor, Inc.
    • Synchronoss Technologies, Inc.
    • TBN – Trinity Broadcasting Network
    • TeleCommunication Systems, Inc.
    • Television Cable Co. of Andalusia
    • Tellabs, Inc.
    • TelVue Corporation
    • The eScapes Network LLC
    • The Sportsman Channel, Inc.
    • This Technology, Inc
    • Time Warner Cable
    • Times Fiber Communications, Inc.
    • TiVo, Inc.
    • TMNG Global
    • Toner Cable Equipment, Inc.
    • Turner Cable Networks
    • TV Guide Network Group
    • TV One
    • Universal Electronics, Inc.
    • Universal Remote Control, Inc.
    • Univision Communications Inc.
    • US Cable Corporation
    • Veria TV
    • Veronis Suhler Stevenson
    • Viacom/CBS
    • Viamedia
    • Visual Advertising Sales Technology
    • Vivicast Media, LLC
    • Vozzcom, Inc.
    • Waitsfield Cable Company
    • Waller Capital Corporation
    • Wealth TV
    • Weather Central, LLC
    • Weather Channel, Inc., The
    • White & Case LLP
    • WideOrbit Inc.
    • Wilson West Communications Inc.
    • Womble Carlyle Sandbridge & Rice
    • Worldcast
    • Youtoo TV
    • Zodiac Interactive
  • NDIA
  • Oracle
  • Symantec
  • TechAmerica: Full list not readily available
  • US Chamber of Commerce: Includes more than 3 million businesses
  • US Telecom – The Broadband Association: Full list not available
  • Verizon

Special thanks to Digital Trends for the above list.

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Politics and Legislation

 

Groups Attempt to Influence Supreme Court on

 

Eric Lichtblau, The New York Times News Service:

“Justice Clarence Thomas likens all the outside political pressure that the Supreme Court is facing over its review of the Obama administration’s sweeping health care law to the distraction faced by a free-throw shooter confronted with fans waving wildly behind the basket…. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which has helped lead opposition to the health care law, has been hosting moot court sessions to prepare lawyers involved in the case.”

http://truth-out.org/news/item/8084-groups-attempt-to-influence-supreme-court-on-health-care

 

Cash-for-access scandal leaves David Cameron’s UK government reeling

 

By msnbc.com and news services

LONDON — The government of British Prime Minister David Cameron was reeling on Monday after a video emerged showing his Conservative Party’s top fundraiser claiming to offer access to senior politicians in exchange for large donations.

In a sting operation, The Sunday Times (the newspaper operates behind a paywall) secretly videotaped fundraiser Peter Cruddas discussing donations. The film showed him telling undercover reporters: “200 grand ($317,000), 250 is premier league … it’ll be awesome for your business.”…..

 

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32545640

http://worldnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/03/26/10863431-cash-for-access-scandal-leaves-david-camerons-uk-government-reeling

 

 

Economy

 

Loan Forgiveness Good for the Economy, and Maybe Fannie and Freddie Mac Too

 

By Jesse Eisinger, ProPublica:

“New analyses by mortgage giants Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae have added an explosive new dimension to one of the most politically charged debates about the housing crisis: Whether to reduce the amount of money beleaguered homeowners owe on their mortgages. Their conclusion: Such loan forgiveness wouldn’t just help keep hundreds of thousands of families in their homes, it would also save Freddie and Fannie money. That, in turn, would help taxpayers, who bailed out the companies at a cost of more than $150 billion and are still on the hook for future losses.”

http://truth-out.org/news/item/8085-loan-forgiveness-good-for-the-economy-and-maybe-for-fannie-and-freddie-mac-too

Wall Street gold rush in foreclosed homes

Investors seeking higher yields are drawn to foreclosures because the rental market is red hot. But the heated competition for foreclosed homes is reminiscent of the frothy expectations that seem to accompany each new Wall Street investing craze.

http://profit.ndtv.com/News/Article/wall-street-gold-rush-in-foreclosed-homes-300450

 

Feds say Wells Fargo won’t turn over documents

 

SAN FRANCISCO

Federal securities regulators are asking a federal court to order Wells Fargo & Co. to turn over documents in an investigation of the bank’s sale of $60 billion in mortgage-backed securities.

The Securities and Exchange Commission said in a statement Friday that Wells Fargo agreed to produce the documents under subpoenas dating to September of 2011, but the bank has failed to hand over much of the requested material.

The agency has asked U.S. District Court in San Francisco to order the nation’s largest mortgage lender to turn over the paperwork. The SEC is investigating possible fraud in the bank’s sale of securities that were made up of multiple mortgage loans between September 2006 and early 2008.

http://www.businessweek.com/ap/2012-03/D9TN1VM00.htm

 

Big Banks Continue to Suck at the Government Teat With Never-Ending Stealth Bailouts

 

WashingtonsBlog

Open-Ended Bailouts Are Continuing

We’ve previously documented the fact that bailouts of the big banks are continued in stealth mode up to the present day.

True, the banks claim they’ve repaid the Tarp bailout funds … but nearly half of the banks “repaid” such bailout funds by borrowing from other government bailout funds (and the rest could only repay money by fudging their accounting and using stealth bailouts which are are a little harder to detect).

Indeed, the government has decided on perpetual bailouts for the too big to fail banks.

Some of the ongoing stealth bailouts include:….

http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2012/03/big-banks-continue-to-suck-at-the-government-teat-with-never-ending-stealth-bailouts.html

 

 

Wars and Rumors of War

 

The Dangerous Mess in Syria Grows Murkier

 

By Eric Margolis

March 25, 2012 “Information Clearing House” — Syria’s murky, multi-level conflict continues to grow worse. So does public confusion here in the west as the US, British and some European media keep depicting Syria’s civil war as a simple passion play pitting the evil Asad regime in Damascus against mostly unarmed democratic protestors.

We saw this same one-dimensional, deceptive reporting recently in Libya that was designed to support foreign intervention. It’s as incomplete today about Syria as it was in Libya which, by the way, is turning into a dangerous mess.

My assessment based on reliable primary sources in Washington, Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon:

Support for the Asad family’s Ba’ath regime, now in power for 41 years, is clearly slipping. But important sections of the armed forces, the 17 intelligence and security agencies, the powerful Alawai minority, most Syrian Christians, tribal elements and much of the commercial middle and upper class still back the Asad’s. In spite of intense western efforts to overthrow him, Bashar Asad, a mild-mannered former eye specialist, is still hanging on….

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article30908.htm

 

Robert Bales – Lone Nut or Scapegoat?
What are the Americans hiding?

 

By Justin Raimondo

March 25, 2012 “Antiwar” – The murder of 17 Afghan civilians – most of them children – by staff sergeant Robert Bales may be far worse than we think at present. The semi-official story, as related by our compliant news media, is that a formerly model soldier went bananas under the pressure of war-related injuries, financial problems at home, and the all-purpose PTSD explanation for military misbehavior, whereupon he decided – at 3 am in the morning, after drinking with his army buddies – to walk the couple of miles to an Afghan village, shoot 16 people sleeping in their beds, pile the bodies atop a funeral pyre and set the whole thing alight.

How did he get out of the base at 3 am unchallenged and without anyone’s knowledge? How did he manage to do so much damage alone? These questions automatically register in the minimally critical mind – unless, of course, you’re an American reporter, who is quite used to accepting what our government tells us without question. On the other hand, without clear evidence of another – darker – scenario, all one can do is engage in problematic speculation. That problem has been solved, however, because evidence of an alternative explanation is now coming to light which throws the whole “lone nut” theory into question.

A few days before Bales went postal, there was a bomb attack on a US convoy in which a friend of Bales’s lost a leg: Bales’s lawyer has been detailing his client’s anger at this incident, implying it precipitated the murder spree. There are indications, however, that this is not the whole story. One local resident relates how the Americans paid a visit to the village where the killings took place and threatened residents with retaliation:….

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article30906.htm

 

Robots Kill, But the Blood Is on Our Hands

 

By David Swanson

March 25, 2012 “Information Clearing House” —In her spare time, between non-stop peace activism and leading international exchanges, Medea Benjamin has somehow managed to write the best book yet on the most inhuman form of war yet. The book is called Drone Warfare: Killing by Remote Control.

Even if you’ve been reading everything you could about drones, attending peace conferences, and protesting in the lobbies of drone companies like General Atomics, you will learn a great deal from this book. In fact, I’m willing to bet that even if you “pilot” drones from a desk for a living, you will learn a great deal from this book. And if you have not been paying attention to drones, then you really need to read this book.

Many Americans first heard about “unmanned aerial vehicles” as weapons when Colin Powell told the United Nations in 2003 that Iraq might use them to attack the United States. This turned out to be a projection as well as a lie. It was, of course, the United States that used drones, among other weapons, to attack Iraq for nine years, and the U.S. drones are still in the skies of Iraq today, as well in the skies of many other countries.

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article30912.htm

 

US Plans No Charges Over Deadly November Strike in Pakistan

 

The United States military has decided that no service members will face disciplinary charges for their involvement in a NATO airstrike in November that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers, an accident that plunged relations between the two countries to new depths and has greatly complicated the allied mission in Afghanistan.

An American investigation in December found fault with both American and Pakistani troops for the deadly exchange of fire, but noted that the Pakistanis fired first from two border posts that were not on coalition maps, and that they kept firing even after the Americans tried to warn them that they were shooting at allied troops. Pakistan has rejected these conclusions and ascribed most of the blame to the American forces.

http://truth-out.org/news/item/8087-us-plans-no-charges-over-deadly-november-strike-in-pakistan

 

UK Mercenaries tackle Somalia

 

March 25, 2012

Why send in conventional military units when you can deploy mercenaries into Africa to carry out special operations, commit atrocities and confiscate natural resources all off the books….

http://www.phantomreport.com/uk-mercenaries-tackle-somalia

 

U.S. pays Afghans $50K per shooting death

March 25, 2012

The United States has paid $50,000 in compensation for each Afghan killed in the shooting spree attributed to a U.S. soldier in southern Afghanistan, an Afghan official and a community elder said Sunday…..

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-202_162-57404080/u.s-pays-afghans-$50k-per-shooting-death/

 

Report: Israeli soldiers scour Iran for nukes

 

Israel using permanent base in northern Iraq to launch intelligence missions in Iran in search of nuclear evidence, Western intelligence sources say.

Israel is using a permanent base in Iraqi Kurdistan to launch cross-border intelligence missions in an attempt to find “smoking gun” evidence that Iran is building a nuclear warhead, the Sunday Times reported Sunday.

According to Western intelligence sources, Israel has used sensitive equipment during its covert operations to monitor the radioactivity and magnitude of explosives tests. It was also reported that Israeli special forces used Black Hawk helicopters to carry commandos disguised as members of the Iranian military and using Iranian military vehicles……

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4207265,00.html

 

Leader of Mali military coup trained in U.S.

 

March 25, 2012

The leader of a military coup in the West African country of Mali received military training in the United States on “several” occasions, a U.S. defense official said Friday.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/leader-of-mali-military-coup-trained-in-us/2012/03/23/gIQAS7Q6WS_story.html?wprss=rss_national-security

 

Japan wants missile shield against N.Korean rockets

 

Uploaded by RussiaToday on Mar 23, 2012

North Korea has announced it will launch a rocket next month, which will put a satellite into orbit. But the U.S. and its allies see the plans as counter to international diplomatic efforts to deal with the reclusive state’s nuclear programme – and are worried the technology could be used to develop long range missiles in the future. It could also potentially violate UN Security Council resolutions, and threatens last month’s deal between North Korea and the Washington. Under this, Pyonyang was to freeze its uranium weapons program and its long-range missile activities – in return for American food aid. Japan’s has responded by deploying its own missile defense system to shoot down any rocket threatening its territory. For more on this, RT talks to Executive Editor of Black Agenda Report, Glen Ford, from London.

 

 

Drug lords targeted by Fast and Furious were FBI informants

 

March 25, 2012

When the ATF made alleged gun trafficker Manuel Fabian Celis-Acosta its primary target in the ill-fated Fast and Furious investigation, it hoped he would lead the agency to two associates who were Mexican drug cartel members. The ATF even questioned and released him knowing that he was wanted by the Drug Enforcement Administration.

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-fast-furious-20120322,0,3334424.story

 

Attacking Iran will spell Israel’s end: Cleric

 

A senior Iranian cleric says the Israeli threats of a military strike on Iran are mere “psychological warfare” as Tel Aviv fully understands any such venture would lead to its “total annihilation”.

“There has been some talk in the media for some time of a military move [against Iran] by the Zionist regime [of Israel] in particular; these menacing murmurs are nothing but psychological warfare,” Ayatollah Seyyed Ahmad Khatami said on Monday.

Last year during a period, foreign media created hype about a war [against Tehran] and anyone who paid attention to these media felt the US would attack Iran the following day,” he said.

The senior Iranian cleric, who is a member of the presiding board of the Assembly of Experts, said Israeli officials know that a military offensive against Iran would mean the complete annihilation of the Zionist regime

“We are not aggressors but our response to aggressors will be devastatingly crushing.”

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/233265.html

 

Iran nukes: How would the world know?

 

By Pam Benson

American officials are adamant. The U.S. will respond – possibly with military force – if Iran crosses a red line and decides to actually make nuclear weapons.

But will the U.S. know with an degree of certainty that a line has been crossed?

The decision itself to push ahead really comes down to one person, according to Director of National Intelligence James Clapper. Clapper told a Senate hearing recently that any decision would be based on “the supreme leader’s world view and the extent to which he thinks that would benefit the state of Iran or, conversely, not benefit.”

Clapper was referring to Ayatollah Ali Khameini, the supreme leader of Iran.

“It’s Khameini, period, full stop, end of sentence,” agreed Kenneth Pollack, an Iran expert at the Brookings Institution.

But trying to read one person’s mind is no easy thing, observed Secretary of State Hillary Clinton recently, noting how Iraq’s Saddam Hussein was misread by U.S. intelligence.

“People sometimes say and do things that are at variance with what one might expect,” the secretary of state said. “It’s still quite bewildering to me why Saddam Hussein wanted everyone to believe that he had chemical, biological and even nuclear weapons of mass destruction when apparently he did not…..

http://security.blogs.cnn.com/2012/03/26/iran-nukes-how-would-the-world-know/

 

South Korea warns it may shoot down North Korean rocket

 

Fears over suspected missile test overshadow international nuclear security summit in Seoul

South Korea has warned it might shoot down a North Korean rocket if it passes over its territory, as worries about what Washington calls a long-range missile test overshadowed an international nuclear security summit.

“We are studying measures such as tracking and shooting down [parts] of a North Korean missile in case they stray out of their normal trajectory” and violate South Korean territory, said Yoon Won-shik, a spokesman at the South’s defence ministry.

He called the launch “a very reckless, provocative act” that undermines peace on the Korean peninsula.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/mar/26/south-korea-shoot-down-north-korea-rocket?newsfeed=true

 

 

Articles of Interest

 

Incarceration Nation

 

By Fareed Zakaria

March 25, 2012 “TIME.com” — Mass incarceration on a scale almost unexampled in human history is a fundamental fact of our country today,” writes the New Yorker’s Adam Gopnik. “Over all, there are now more people under ‘correctional supervision’ in America – more than 6 million – than were in the Gulag Archipelago under Stalin at its height.”

Is this hyperbole? Here are the facts. The U.S. has 760 prisoners per 100,000 citizens. That’s not just many more than in most other developed countries but seven to 10 times as many. Japan has 63 per 100,000, Germany has 90, France has 96, South Korea has 97, and ­Britain – with a rate among the ­highest – has 153.

This wide gap between the U.S. and the rest of the world is relatively recent. In 1980 the U.S.’s prison population was about 150 per 100,000 adults. It has more than quadrupled since then. So something has happened in the past 30 years to push millions of Americans into prison.

That something, of course, is the war on drugs. Drug convictions went from 15 inmates per 100,000 adults in 1980 to 148 in 1996, an almost tenfold increase. More than half of America’s federal inmates today are in prison on drug convictions. In 2009 alone, 1.66 million Americans were arrested on drug charges, more than were arrested on assault or larceny charges. And 4 of 5 of those arrests were simply for possession.

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article30910.htm

 

Hill Poll: Voters expect personal views to decide health case

 

By Sam Baker

Half of likely voters want the Supreme Court to overturn President Obama’s healthcare law, according to The Hill’s latest poll.

Just 42 percent said the court should uphold the law, with 50 percent saying it should be struck down.

A majority of both men and women want the law voided. By a 52-percent-to-39-percent margin women are more opposed to it than men, who oppose it 48 percent to 45 percent, a difference that matches the poll’s 3-point margin of error.

http://thehill.com/polls/218005-hill-poll-voters-expect-justices-personal-beliefs-to-decide-health-case

 

IRS takes heat from both GOP, Dems over Tea Party groups’ tax-exempt status

 

By Bernie Becker

The Revenue Service is taking heat from both Republican and Democratic lawmakers for its oversight of certain groups engaging in political activity, in particular Tea Party organizations seeking tax-exempt status.

http://thehill.com/blogs/on-the-money/domestic-taxes/217987-irs-takes-heat-from-gop-dems-over-tea-party-groups-tax-exempt-status

 

Japan tsunami ‘Ghost Ship’ haunts Canada coast

 

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32545640

 

R2P: Imperial Conquest by Another Name

 

Uploaded by GlobalResearchTV

As the world recovers from one humanitarian peace bombing in Libya, and braces for another possible intervention in Syria, many are now asking how it is that the so-called liberal left have become cheerleaders for the very wars of aggression they once pretended to deride. As long-time investigate reporter Pepe Escobar explains, an obscure international doctrine called Responsibility To Protect or R2P has been the main tool for shaping this new paradigm for the continuation of NATO’s imperial power grabs around the world.

 

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