Homeland Security has gone too far!

I am really outraged by this new Homeland security policy. I know I don't travel outside the US... well, ever really, but I think that we the people of this great nation need to start banding together as a nation to prevent this type of abuse of power.

I understand that when going through customs you are subject to [bend over and] give up all your rights and have everything you bring with you inspected, but this policy goes far beyond inspecting what you bring with you. Plus, there is no good that can come from this policy. If someone wants to transport data that could be harmful to transport into or out of this country, they could use the Internet and render this policy useless. Not to mention, how long will it be before CD and DVD ripping software will be catagorized as a circumventive technology and then declaired illegal under the provisions of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA).

Seizure of laptops on international flights poses a risk to anyone who saves personal data on their computer. I do not trust homeland security to do the right thing. Plus TSA agents are not highly trained experts.

I can't believe that we let this happen. First we allow congress to steal the public domain from us, and now we let homeland security take our laptops for no reason! I fear this policy could be used to enforce copyright laws that I feel are unethical. It is the job of the copyright owner to find violators of their copyrights. I also feel that copyright law needs to be reformed to a pre-1984 mentality (no reference to the book specifically intended.) [I feel] copyright laws should only apply to the commercial use of content covered by the copyright. For example, if I hold a copyright, that should only mean you can't publish and sell that content. However (ironically) in 1984 that changed to cover free distribution because the VCR manufacturers and retailers were found responsible for the violation of copyrights performed by the users recording TV shows. Anyway... back topic at hand.

I could understand if this policy applied to non-US citizens entering or leaving the country, but we are supposed to have rights. We are supposed to have the right to privacy, and I feel the government should not have the authority to allow an organization to violate that right.

I am not sure what we have to do, but something needs to be done. I would love to have some suggestions as to what should be done.



That's my two cents.