By Bob Parks ——Bio and Archives--August 28, 2009
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Internet companies and civil liberties groups were alarmed this spring when a U.S. Senate bill proposed handing the White House the power to disconnect private-sector computers from the Internet. They’re not much happier about a revised version that aides to Sen. Jay Rockefeller, a West Virginia Democrat, have spent months drafting behind closed doors. CNET News has obtained a copy of the 55-page draft, which still appears to permit the president to seize temporary control of private-sector networks during a so-called cybersecurity emergency.But if it’s Obama, they could live with that.
The new version would allow the president to “declare a cybersecurity emergency” relating to “non-governmental” computer networks and do what’s necessary to respond to the threat. Other sections of the proposal include a federal certification program for “cybersecurity professionals,” and a requirement that certain computer systems and networks in the private sector be managed by people who have been awarded that license.Of course, friends of Obama would have access (either by his good graces or bribes). After all, what do you think would be the criteria for obtaining this “license”? If this were to become law, the president would be able to shut down any business he wanted (as most are somehow reliant on the Internet to function), hold up payroll checks, halt the free flow of information, and once his administration had such control they could control who succeeds and who doesn’t, period. Change we still can’t believe.
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Bob Parks is a is a member/writer of the National Advisory Council of Project 21. Bob’s websites are Black & Right and youtube.com/BlackAndRight