At some level most of us have probably long suspected the reality some of the troubling facts that are being revealed by the various official responses to the pandemic.
But it's still a bit jarring to get actual confirmation of such concerns. Here's one example:
To Track Coronavirus, Israel Moves to Tap Secret Trove of Cellphone Data
JERUSALEM — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel has authorized the country’s internal security agency to tap into a vast and previously undisclosed trove of cellphone data to retrace the movements of people who have contracted the coronavirus and identify others who should be quarantined because their paths crossed.
The Shin Bet has been quietly but routinely collecting cellphone metadata since at least 2002, officials confirmed. It has never disclosed details about what information it collects, how that data is safeguarded, whether or when any of it is destroyed or deleted, who has access to it and under what conditions, or how it is used.
...
Contrary to some Israeli reports, there is no plan to hack into Israeli citizens’ cellphones. But experts said that was simply unnecessary because the government already receives, as a matter of course, enough data from cellphone carriers to monitor the whereabouts of nearly anyone.
...
The former official added that after Edward Snowden, a former National Security Agency employee, leaked details about the United States government’s bulk collection of data on American citizens, igniting a furor, “we all laughed, that what the American intelligence community was trying to hide, and what caused such an uproar among the American public, is so clearly written in Israeli law.”
https://www.nytimes....e-tracking.html
That last quote establishes that everything in the article also applies to the U.S..
So here's to hoping that over the past 20 years you've never "crossed paths" with anyone who later goes on to commit major crimes or otherwise pissed off whatever government you happen to live under. If you had a cell phone with you the whole time, that is.
I imagine that this won't be the only disturbing revelation about what goes on behind the scenes of modern life as the situation continues to progress and various cultural and political facades are torn down (or crumble from within) under the unprecedented pressure this pandemic is placing on everything.
So we've just had it confirmed that retroactive surveillance is for real, which anyone paying attention already at the very least intuited.
We've also learned just how unprepared for even relatively minor disruptions to society we and our governments collectively are. I call this "minor" because the global shutdown is intentional and largely preventative rather than being forced by something completely beyond anyone's ability to do anything about it except picking up the pieces, such as an asteroid impact or a satellite and grid-melting solar flare. That's the level of upheaval and chaos that this situation is just a dress rehearsal for.
Another example IMO are the eyebrow-raising emergency powers available to the President here in the U.S. if he makes certain official declarations. It's one thing to suspect or assume that such measures would be Draconian and overreaching and likely even unconstitutional in some cases but it's something else to get unambiguous confirmation of just how much fuckery we're really being subjected to (and we're probably not getting the whole story by a long shot).
I figured it might be interesting to have a thread that chronicles the things that are being revealed thanks to this massive escalation of global Chaos that some folks would rather keep secret (and what the hell else is there to do right now?). So please add them to this thread as you encounter them, and at least a minimal degree of vetting of sources before posting a story or allegation would be preferable.
So what other problematic or concerning revelations of our unsustainable, razor's edge dystopia have y'all noticed or read about lately?
That kind of information will likely prove helpful for making plans about what to do next time, which won't be a dress rehearsal.
Edited by TVCasualty, 18 March 2020 - 09:46 AM.