FC: More on DOJ's TIPS-informant program, from Der Spiegel

[Declan McCullagh <declan () well com>]

Previous Politech message:

"Harvey Silverglate on TIPS-informing, obstruction of justice"
http://www.politechbot.com/p-03781.html

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From: "Xeni Jardin" <xeni () xeni net>
To: "Declan McCullagh" <declan () well com>
Subject: Der Spiegel on TIPS: citizen-spy ratio would be higher than in fmr GDR
Date: Mon, 22 Jul 2002 09:11:15 -0700


Interesting analysis of TIPS in German-language Der Spiegel today, which
includes detailed comparison of the projected number of TIPS participants to
the number of citizen informants that cooperated with the state security
system in former East Germany. Story projects that the percentage of
citizen-spies under TIPS would be over four times greater than the
percentage of citizen-Stasi-informants in former GDR.

*Very* roughly translated excerpt, between babelfish and my extremely poor
grasp of German:

<<Bush wants a country full of informers

by Alexander Schwabe

Almost one year after September 11, US president George W. Bush is trying to
transform the country into a society full of informants. In August operation
"TIPS" starts, its newest weapon in the fight against terrorism. If the
pilot project should work satisfactorily, the informer ratio in the states
will soon be higher than it ever was in the GDR [former German Democratic
Republic, or East Germany--XJ].(...)

Above all, the authorities want to win over persons whose work places them
at the interface between public and private domains of society. Bus drivers,
postmen, telephone workers, truck driver...gas or water servicers...are to
go with sharpened senses and the will through the world to call a toll-free
number if something seems suspicious to them.

In ten cities in August the pilot project will start. One million informants
are to supervise their fellow citizens. If the attempt meets the ten largest
cities of the USA, this meant that there would be one million informants for
24 million inhabitants (just around four percent)...>>

German:
<http://www.spiegel.de/politik/ausland/0,1518,206079,00.html >

Google-translated to English:
<http://216.239.35.120/translate_c?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&langpair=de%7Cen&;
u=http://www.spiegel.de/politik/ausland/0,1518,druck-206079,00.html&prev=/la
nguage_tools>

----------------------------------------------
Xeni Jardin
freelance journalist + conference manager
xeni () xeni net | www.xeni.net




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