December 22, 2009

Civil Liberties, Health Care, Food Policies

Parents in England Lose Right Over Sex Education

November 5, 2009

Telegraph - Pupils in England will be given classes in sex and relationships from the age of five under Government plans to cut teenage pregnancies.

Children will learn about body parts, the facts of life and puberty in primary school. At secondary school, they will be taught about pregnancy, contraception, HIV and homosexual relationships, it was disclosed.

All mothers and fathers will be able to keep children out on moral and religious grounds but will lose the right of withdraw when they turn 15. The ruling will affect 600,000 pupils a year...

Man Quits Job Over Water Fluoride

December 18, 2009

The Morning Bulletin - After 15 years loyal service with Fitzroy River Water, Graham Demeny says his career is down the gurgler because of fluoride and an uncompromising council.

Graham, who was responsible for making Rockhampton’s drinking water safe, resigned earlier this month after his request for a transfer within Rockhampton Regional Council was refused.

He said he questioned the safety of adding fluoride to the city’s water supply and ethically wasn’t prepared to do the job.

From today fluoride will be added to drinking water in Rockhampton, The Caves and Gracemere.

Protesters, including councillor Glenda Mather, will rally against the situation this morning outside City Hall...

Privacy Group Sues DoJ Over 'Digital Strip Search' Data

December 21, 2009

The Register - A privacy group has filed a lawsuit against the US Department of Justice for allegedly failing to disclose information about the use of devices that capture black 'n' white images of people stripped naked.

The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) brought the suit against the DoJ in the US District Court of Columbia late last week.

According to EPIC, the Transportation Security Administration confirmed that the "Whole Body Imaging" (WBI) machines were being used in at least one Virginia federal court by the US Marshall Service.
"EPIC submitted a FOIA [Freedom of Information Act] request for information about these devices, including the contracts with the manufacturer of the machines, and information about technical specifications and training materials," said the group in a statement.

"The Marshall Service failed to respond adequately to the request," it claimed.
EPIC had requested the following:
All unfiltered or unobscured images captured using Whole Body Imaging technology

All contracts entered into by the U.S. Marshals Service pertaining to Whole Body Imaging systems, including contracts for hardware, software, or training

All documents detailing the technical specifications of Whole Body Imaging hardware, including any limitations on image capture, storage, or copying

All documents, including but not limited to presentations, images, and videos, used for training persons to use Whole Body Imaging systems

All complaints related to the use of Whole Body Imaging and all documents relating to the resolution of those complaints

All documents concerning data breaches of images generated by Whole Body Imaging technology.
EPIC has a copy of the filing here. The DoJ could not immediately be reached for comment at time of writing. ®

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