Chevron gets access to online information about ecology activists

[eridani]

As bad as NSA is, this is far worse IMO. EFF is on the case, though.

http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2013/07/11-3

The US government is not the only entity who, with judicial approval, is amassing massive amounts of personal information against their so-called enemies.

A federal judge has ruled to allow Chevron, through a subpoena to Microsoft, to collect the IP usage records and identity information for email accounts owned by over 100 environmental activists, journalists and attorneys.

The oil giant is demanding the records in an attempt to cull together a lawsuit which alleges that the company was the victim of a conspiracy in the $18.2 billion judgment against it for dumping 18.5 billion gallons of oil waste in the Ecuadorean Amazon, causing untold damage to the rainforest.

The "sweeping" subpoena was one of three issued to Google, Yahoo! and Microsoft.

"Environmental advocates have the right to speak anonymously and travel without their every move and association being exposed to Chevron," said Marcia Hofmann, Senior Staff Attorney with the Electronic Frontier Foundation, who—along with environmental rights group EarthRights International (ERI)—had filed a motion last fall to "quash" the subpoenas.

[G_j]

1. frightening ..nt

[HiPointDem]

2. "victim of a conspiracy" = someone spied on them as they were breaking the law. like they are

spying and conspiring, and have always spied & conspired.

but it's only illegal when the 'little people' do it, like everything else these days.

[TheKentuckian]

3. Insane! How does a company have standing to even ask for such things?

The Federal government is fucking completely captured and as such is more dangerous than beneficial.

A Federal government that will not guarantee or natural rights and will not or cannot act as an opposing gravity to the corporation is worthless. One that actively partners with the corporation and hands over our rights on command makes that government a direct threat to the self determination and sovereignty of a free people and seemingly a greater danger than the corporations could be on their own.

[Catherina]

4. Far worse? It's chilling but I think it's a sad extension of the same thing

All of Mercosur in Latin America just dumped proprietary software and is switching to open source instead. All of the ALBA country presidents know their email was intercepted by the US. Three of them have officially announced that. The US made it undeniably clear in the case of Ecuador when they sent certain reporters the contents of Snowden's private email to the President, and Reuters/AP published it before the President had even opened it.

The ALBA (Boliviarian Alliance for the Americas) countries are all in solidarity fighting Chevron, it's Ecuador's court case but the other countries joined in announcing they'd seize Chevron's assets if Chevron didn't respect the Ecuadoran courts' ruling that it owes $19.04 Billion to Ecuador. Venezuela especially holds billions in Chevron assets and has threatened to seize them and hand the profits over to Ecuador.

Many of the activists this judge just betrayed are working with those governments to stand with the little people.

It's all related. I don't think it's worse, just more of the same. If NSA wasn't in the picture, all those activists wouldn't have been identified so easily.

This is directly tied to the secret TPP that will allow corporations to overrule national courts.

They're all working in tandem.

This important story may seem like it's worse, but in my longview, this is a sub-part of an even bigger issue, a sub-part of the same beast. Stab it from all directions, at all sub-parts. It's going to take many blows to bring this monster down.

Rec'd.

[felix_numinous]

5. Kick!