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[Cecilff2]

http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9228950/White_House_order_on_emergency_communications_riles_privacy_group?taxonomyId=70&pageNumber=1

Long story short, the DHS now has the authority to seize control of Private or Commercial internet providers.

Sec. 5.2. The Secretary of Homeland Security shall: (a) oversee the development, testing, implementation, and sustainment of NS/EP communications, including: communications that support Continuity of Government; Federal, State, local, territorial, and tribal emergency preparedness and response communications; non-military executive branch communications systems; critical infrastructure protection networks; and non-military communications networks, particularly with respect to prioritization and restoration;

(e) satisfy priority communications requirements through the use of commercial, Government, and privately owned communications resources, when appropriate;

All they have to do is declare an emergency situation.

[Duuvian]

What constitutes a National Emergency? Also it seems to me that these sort of laws actually give an incentive to an organization like the DHS to qualify something as one, if not quietly encourage one in the first place. While that likely won't be the case, the theoretical incentive remains. My guess is some sort of cyber attack if not a physical terror attack.

[Strife26]

Doesn't do anything in any real terms, just gives them the right to do something they'd be happy to do anyway if they needed to.  Eh out of ten for my concern.

[lordcooper]

Two by two, hands of blue.

Just one more weapon they can use to try and suppress the inevitable Glorious Communist Uprising.

[Aklyon]

Lovely, more idiots with potential power over networking equipment they know fuck all about. We totally needed that, guys.
God-fucking-damnit. Why is the DHS still a thing.

[Svarte Troner]

Two by two, hands of blue.

Just one more weapon they can use to try and suppress the inevitable Glorious Communist Uprising.

The revolution will not be livestreamed.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Well, I think that satisfies my pointless thread contribution quota for the week.

[Urist Imiknorris]

My response is a resounding "meh" until I've read the order.

[MetalSlimeHunt]

Doesn't do anything in any real terms, just gives them the right to do something they'd be happy to do anyway if they needed to.  Eh out of ten for my concern.

It gives them legitimacy to do such a thing. That is a serious problem. Security and intelligence agencies are always happy to break the law, yes, but we call that corruption. It is a bad thing that the government is supposed to want to eliminate, not encourage.

[Urist Imiknorris]

Long story short, the DHS now has the authority to seize control of Private or Commercial internet providers.

So, this may just be me being stupid at 3 AM, but I don't see how this actually authorizes the DHS to do this. I see the bit about prioritization, but I don't see how it translates to the possibility of seizing networks.

[Duuvian]

Two by two, hands of blue.

Just one more weapon they can use to try and suppress the inevitable Glorious Communist Uprising.

Who said anything about Communism? If anything I'd shoot for better regulated Capitalism that took notes from 'Communist' countries. Not everything they do is evil. Some of what is called Communism just doesn't benefit the wealthy above everyone else. After all, rising standards of living (doctors, education) for the exceptionally poor in what were undeveloped countries a century ago.

Capitalism, not everything they do is evil. Some of it just doesn't benefit the less wealthy above everyone else. After all, factories making televisions and PCs that everyone but the most (rapidly increasing due to bad policy) impoverished have access to and the enjoyment of which at whatever amount they can sustain.

True communism is exceptionally hard to achieve and I don't think the world is ready for it in the most powerful government at this time; if it ever is. I say this because it wouldn't stay true communism for long, about as long as it takes for someone to gather enough resources to make the rules for other people.

What I think you are confusing with communism is I think effective bureaucracy. Which Americans don't have right now unless you have a very good imagination trying to meet a pre-conceived idea. Outside the military bureaucracy, but that's mostly dedicated to keeping the money flowing to the military by being competent at the purpose of the military. The rest are incompetent because it's effected and affected (and thus infected) by outside and internal influences that don't act in the public's interest but instead try to influence the government to pander to their own goals.

[Cecilff2]

Long story short, the DHS now has the authority to seize control of Private or Commercial internet providers.

So, this may just be me being stupid at 3 AM, but I don't see how this actually authorizes the DHS to do this. I see the bit about prioritization, but I don't see how it translates to the possibility of seizing networks.

I posted the quote of the relevant section.

satisfy priority communications requirements through the use of commercial, Government, and privately owned communications resources, when appropriate;

Read: We may need to utilize your entire "communication resource" at any time to satisfy our emergency situation.

[nenjin]

While I know there's more than enough tinfoil to go around on this....consider the implications of this in something like a disaster on the scale of hurricane Katrina. Government control of a communications network in a time of emergency can be a useful thing, when the entire infrastructure has taken a hit.

[Aqizzar]

All they have to do is declare an emergency situation.

Anyone else remember the plot of Deus Ex?  FEMA has already had the power to force the entire country into quarantine, up to and including seizing executive control of the government, on their say-so of a national emergency since, what, the 90s at least?  How many times have they used it?

Hell, the government already thinks it had power to Control the Internet, and it blew up in its face in 1993.  Turns out, a computerized telecommunications protocol specifically designed to re-propagate itself after a nuclear war cannot be "controlled" for anywhere by anyone at this stage of American wire development, no matter how big your knife-switch is.

[MetalSlimeHunt]

To be fair, if FEMA tried to seize control of the government people would probably violently resist them, and that's not even considering how the FEMA Death Camp Conspiracy wingnuts would react.