Long term and youth unemployment a crisis in America.

onaissues:

CISPA passed the House and heads to the Senate this week. PCMag.com has put together a primer on the controversial bill, concerns about it’s impact on online privacy and how it’s related to SOPA/PIPA.  

What is CISPA? CISPA stands for Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA).

What does it do? CISPA would allow for voluntary information sharing between private companies and the government in the event of a cyber attack. If the government detects a cyber attack that might take down Facebook or Google, for example, they could notify those companies. At the same time, Facebook or Google could inform the feds if they notice unusual activity on their networks that might suggest a cyber attack.

Sounds OK. What’s the problem? Backers argue that CISPA is necessary to protect the U.S. against cyber attacks from countries like China and Iran. But opponents said that it would allow companies to easily hand over users’ private information to the government thanks to a liability clause. This, according to the Electronic Frontier Foundation, “essentially means CISPA would override the relevant provisions in all other laws—including privacy laws.”

Read more on PCMag.com

futurejournalismproject:

When the Government Comes Knocking, Who Has Your Back?

Hat tip to Josh Stearns for making us aware of this 2012 report.

Via the Electronic Frontier Foundation:

When you use the Internet, you entrust your online conversations, thoughts, experiences, locations, photos, and more to companies like Google, AT&T and Facebook. But what happens when the government demands that these companies to hand over your private information? Will the company stand with you? Will it tell you that the government is looking for your data so that you can take steps to protect yourself?

The Electronic Frontier Foundation examined the policies of 18 major Internet companies — including email providers, ISPs, cloud storage providers, and social networking sites — to assess whether they publicly commit to standing with users when the government seeks access to user data. We looked at their terms of service, privacy policies, and published law enforcement guides, if any. We also examined their track record of fighting for user privacy in the courts and whether they’re members of the Digital Due Process coalition, which works to improve outdated communications law. Finally, we contacted each of the companies with our conclusions and gave them an opportunity to respond and provide us evidence of improved policies and practices. These categories are not the only ways that a company can stand up for users, of course, but they are important and publicly verifiable.

While some Internet companies have stepped up for users in particular situations, it’s time for all companies that hold private user data to make public commitments to defend their users against government overreach. The purpose of this report is to incentivize companies to be transparent about what data flows to the government and encourage them to take a stand for user privacy when it is possible to do so.

Read through for the report’s findings.

The Baritone from SCP Streetcornerprophet.com on Vimeo.

The baritone is about the evolution of an opera singer.

SCP Talks To The Community: Moazen Jewelry from SCP Streetcornerprophet.com on Vimeo.

Twin sisters Faith and Hope are young African American women entrepreneurs whose mission is to celebrate culture and make an impact in the communities where they do business.

nprfreshair:

The late Chinua Achebe talking to Terry Gross in 1988 about the parable of the tortoise and the leopard:

The leopard meets the tortoise on a lonely stretch of road.The leopard has been trying to catch the tortoise for a long time. The tortoise is a trickster and so obviously has been escaping and then, on this day, the leopard finally catches up with him and says, ‘Aha! Now I’ve got you. Prepare to die.’ And the tortoise says to [the] leopard, ‘Can I ask you one last favor?’ And the leopard says, ‘Yes, why not?’ And the tortoise says, ‘Give me a short time to prepare myself for death.’ And the leopard looked around and said, ‘I don’t see why not. Yes, go ahead.’

But then, instead of standing still and thinking as the leopard had expected, the tortoise began to dig and scatter sand all over the road, throwing sand in all directions with his hands and feet. And the leopard says, What’s going on why are you doing that?’ And the tortoise says, ‘I’m doing this because after I am dead I want anyone passing by this spot and seeing all this sign of struggle on the road to say, ‘A man and his match struggled here.’”

Image of Chinua Achebe via the PEN American Center

Community Voices: Digital Literacy Project from SCP Streetcornerprophet.com on Vimeo.

Community Voices: Digital Literacy Project is a series on digital literacy and combatting the digital divide.

medium from SCP Streetcornerprophet.com on Vimeo.

SCP interviews Tommie Robinson, local Charlotte artis, and nationally known portraitist.

More Than Skimming the Surface from SCP Streetcornerprophet.com on Vimeo.

SCP talks to local artist and nationally known muralist Tommie Robinson.