:: Event Horizon ::

:: Friday, July 19, 2002 ::

Postal Service Won't Enter 'TIPS'
The blogsphere (in deference to William Quick, I just don’t think we need the “o”) remains abuzz about the government informant program. The latest news is that the Postal Service will not participate. I'm relieved. There mere idea that your letter carrier may be noting what sort of mail you get and informing the government is pretty chilling. Suppose you have been researching a vacation in the Mideast and receive travel brochures from Saudi Arabia, might that be reported as suspicious? These fears are the "new normal" as they say. Personally, I think we should reject the new normal if it conflicts with our understanding of who were are as Americans.

:: Joel 3:39 PM [+] ::
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Anything Less Is Suicide
Architectural historian Sherri R. Tracinski has written an eloquent defense of a bigger and better WTC site. I agree wholeheartedly with her argument that current plans represent a defeatist attitude not in keeping with American history or American spirit. I just hope the Port Authority is listening.

:: Joel 1:34 PM [+] ::
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WTC Authority Reveals 6 Proposals
I am underwhelmed. None of the proposals for the rebuilding the World Trade Center site strike me as appropriate. I would like to see something that signals American resolve, something that honors the victims while suggesting the triumph of the human spirit. I would like to see something grand, on the same scale as the WTC, something that inspires awe and amazement at American resilience and determination. All six of these proposals fall well short of that mark. I hope they go back to the drawing boards and come up with something worthy of the spirit of America.

:: Joel 2:14 PM [+] ::
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U.S. Planning To Recruit One In 24 Americans As Citizen Spies
Seen anyone suspicious lately? Then tell someone fast! If you have a nose for gossip, are known for getting into other peoples business, and have nothing better to do than watch your neighbors, then Uncle Sam wants you! Join TIPS today and be the first on your block to be an official secret undercover informant. (Some restrictions may apply, offer not available in all areas, benefits given only to party members). Ok, maybe not. I have mixed feeling about this sort of thing, as you can tell. We all know that informant systems are more at home in totalitarian and fascist systems than in a democratic state. And this is not a mass citizen based program, not a countrywide extension of the neighborhood watch. As the official web site notes, TIPS is: “a nationwide program giving millions of American truckers, letter carriers, train conductors, ship captains, utility employees, and others a formal way to report suspicious terrorist activity…Every participant in this new program will be given an Operation TIPS information sticker to be affixed to the cab of their vehicle or placed in some other public location so that the toll-free reporting number is readily available.” So, as originally conceived, this program is limited in scope, is public, and meant to discover or deter terrorist activity directed at crucial infrastructure. This strikes me as a prudent thing to do. However, we must be cautious in the use of such a program and make sure that it does not expand beyond the original mandate. I find the idea of American citizens spying on other Americans to be morally repugnant and would much prefer that we keep a strong distinction between citizens and trained (and credentialed) government agents.

:: Joel 11:46 AM [+] ::
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