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Amazon just made it easier for the CIA to spy on Americans BY NORMAN SOLOMON
T
he world’s biggest online retailer, Amazon, keeps expanding. A few months ago, the company signed a $600 million contract with the Central Intelligence Agency to provide “cloud computing” services. An official statement from Amazon headquarters declared, “We look forward to a successful relationship with the CIA.”
Amazon maintains a humongous trove of detailed information about hundreds of millions of people. Are we to believe that the CIA and other intelligence agencies have no interest in Amazon’s data? Even at face value, Amazon’s “privacy notice” has loopholes big enough to fly a drone through. It reads: “We release account and other personal information when we believe release is appropriate to comply with the law; enforce or apply our Conditions of Use and other agreements; or protect the rights, property, or safety of Amazon.com, our users, or others.” Amazon now averages 162 million unique visitors to its site every month. Meanwhile, the CIA depends on gathering and analyzing data to serve U.S. military interventions overseas. During the last dozen years, the CIA has conducted ongoing drone strikes and covert lethal missions in many countries. At the same time, U.S. agencies like the CIA and NSA have flattened many of the previous obstacles to their worst Big Brother tendencies. Amazon is, potentially, much more vulnerable to public outrage and leverage than the typical firms that make a killing from contracts with the NSA or the CIA or the Pentagon. Every day, Amazon is depending on millions of customers to go online and buy products from its sites. As more people learn about its work with the CIA, Amazon could—and should—suffer consequences. Movement in that direction began with the Feb. 20 launch of a RootsAction.org petition addressed to Amazon’s founder and CEO Jeff Bezos: “We urge you to make a legally binding commitment to customers that Amazon will not provide customer data to the Central Intelligence Agency.” The people who run Amazon figured they could rake in big profits from the CIA without serious public blowback. We have an opportunity to prove them wrong. Norman Solomon is cofounder of RootsAction.org and founding director of the Institute for Public Accuracy. He lives in Marin County. Open Mic is a weekly feature in the ‘Bohemian.’ We welcome your contribution. To have your topical essay of 350 words considered for publication, write openmic@bohemian.com.
Respect the Performers
Saw the show last night in Sebastopol— amazing to see the iconic Sylvia Tyson in person, plus the talent of Cindy Cashdollar on pedal steel, lap steel and dobro. The Community Center was jammed. Not so fun was the boorish behavior of some audience members. After one song that had the dobro quieter in background, a woman yelled out “Up the dobro!” Puh-leeze! This isn’t your server in a restaurant. Then, too, many audiences members of a certain age left between sets, at around 10:30pm. Certainly we tire more easily as we get older, but come on! Respect the performers. Ms. Tyson is 73, yet graciously stayed after the final song. Would love to see these ladies again, together or separately.
BARRY Via online
Fox in the Henhouse The U.S. Department of Agriculture is still expanding the list of retailers carrying meat unfit for human consumption (about 8.7 million pounds shipped through 2013 by Rancho Feeding Corporation of Petaluma) to Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, New Mexico, Oregon, Washington, not to mention 970 locations in California alone
interests come into play only when large numbers of us get sick. Having the USDA protect consumers is like asking the fox to guard the henhouse.
The Obama administration should reallocate responsibility for all food safety to the Food and Drug Administration. In the meantime, each of us can assume responsibility for our own safety by switching to the rich variety of soy-based meat products.
STEVEN ALDERSON Santa Rosa
Love Conquers All Kudos to Leilani Clark for the article “A Better Discipline” (Jan. 22). It was well written and researched. The concept was news to me. I think it also could have general application in our professional and social lives. I’m paraphrasing the apostle Paul, but his assertion that charity (love) conquers all may be true.
CALVIN STEEVER Santa Rosa
Climate Change Is a Fact What are we doing about climate change in Sonoma County? Many of our citizens have been working admirablly to lower our county’s greenhouse gas emissions. However, we could be doing much more, and we must. What will help us accomplish that is a well thought-out and implemented county plan, one that brings the organizing capacities of our governmental and nongovernmental agencies more fully into the effort.
The recall comes in the wake of the USDA’s new “inspection” program that allows the meat industry to increase the speed of processing lines and replace federal inspectors with plant employees. According to USDA inspector general, this has resulted in partial failure to remove fecal matter, undigested food and other contaminants that may contain deadly E. coli and listeria bacteria.
We are given the opportunity to voice our suggestions on how the county should address climate change through Climate Action community workshops. The final public comment workshop is Feb. 27, 6pm, at the Sebastopol Grange.
Traditionally, the USDA has catered more to the interests and profitability of the meat industry than the health and safety of American consumers. Consumer
Sponsored by the Regional Climate Protection Authority (RCPA), the Climate Action 2020 initiative will develop a plan and implementation policy to lower