And that reminds me of one hell of a scary car ride. We were members of the
Ethical Humanist Society of Long Island and were going there one evening for
some sort of meeting or to hear a lecture or something. Of course, we always
had to get rides with other members who lived relatively close to us. Back
then, we were living in Wantagh or Levittown, depending on your point of view.
It was actually Levittown, but the people on our block didn't want to be known
as Levittown residents so they had the addresses on our block changed to
Wantagh and we got our mail from the Wantagh post office. Anyway, that night,
the members who were going to the meeting and lived close to us, were an old
couple, about 90 years of age. The wife was , perhaps, in her late eighties,
but she couldn't drive. The husband was 90 and had very poor vision, and he was
the driver. We had to go on two parkways, in the dark. He drove very slowly
with his wife telling him about the things that he wasn't seeing and sort of
guiding him. It's a miracle that we got there in one piece.
Miriam
-----Original Message-----
From: blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
<blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> On Behalf Of Carl Jarvis
Sent: Tuesday, July 09, 2019 6:24 PM
To: blind-democracy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [blind-democracy] Re: And I Thought 1984 Could Never Happen!
Back in my life as a sighted man...sort of...I did have a learner's permit and
took drivers Ed in high school. But I quickly realized that I was crazy if I
thought I could drive under normal conditions.
So I obtained a Washington State Identification Card. Like the driver's
license, it bore my most unflattering photo. At one time I did not need to
renew it for 7 years. I believe it's fewer years now, but I just reapply
through the mail.
My first wife, Judy, and I were married ten years and never owned a car. At
barely four feet eleven inches, and uncertain regarding her own driving
abilities, we rode with other folks...some of whom should not have been allowed
behind the wheel.
My second wife, Trish, and I stored her brother's car while he and his wife
worked in Alaska. Bill, her brother, said, "Go ahead and drive it anytime you
want." It was a Gremlin, a piece of tinfoil wrapped around a scooter motor.
But one day I said to Trish, "I'll bet I can teach you to drive." And I did!
I don't brag about this, since she turned into one wild and crazy driver. But
we used to laugh about the thought of a cop pulling us over, and him yelling at
her, "you blind, or something?" And we'd say, "No, but my teacher is." It was
illegal as all Hell, but when Bill reclaimed his car, we bought a Subaru.
Brand new for just over $5,000. That was 1972.
Carl Jarvis
On 7/9/19, Miriam Vieni <miriamvieni@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
One advantage of being blind, you can't drive a car. But if you get a
non driver's license for ID purposes, I guess it's no advantage.
Miriam
-----Original Message-----
From: blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
<blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> On Behalf Of Carl Jarvis
Sent: Tuesday, July 09, 2019 4:17 PM
To: blind-democracy <blind-democracy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: [blind-democracy] And I Thought 1984 Could Never Happen!
Ah, but I do miss the innocence of my youth. Those were the days when
we thought our biggest fear was contacting a case of the Clap. How
little did we know.
Carl Jarvis
Subject: [EXTERNAL] FBI, ICE Using Facial Recognition To Bulk-Scan DMV
Photos In "Unprecedented Surveillance Infrastructure" | Zero Hedge
https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019-07-08/fbi-ice-bulk-scanning-dmv-ph
otos-facial-recognition-unprecedented-surveillance
FBI, ICE Using Facial Recognition To Bulk-Scan DMV Photos In
"Unprecedented Surveillance Infrastructure"
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) along with Immigration and
Customs Enforcement (ICE) has been using state driver's license
databases to run photos of millions of Americans through
facial-recognition systems without their knowledge or consent, according to
the Washington Post.
inline-images/racial%20rec
block quote
Thousands of facial-recognition requests, internal documents and
emails over the past five years, obtained through public-records
requests by Georgetown Law researchers and provided to The Washington
Post, reveal that federal investigators have turned state departments
of motor vehicles databases into the bedrock of an unprecedented surveillance
infrastructure.
Police have long had access to fingerprints, DNA and other “biometric data”
taken from criminal suspects. But the DMV records contain the photos
of a vast majority of a state’s residents, most of whom have never
been charged with a crime. - Washington Post block quote end
Disturbingly, neither Congress nor state legislatures have authorized
this type of system, and none of us agreed to it when we obtained licenses.
"They’ve just given access to that to the FBI," said Rep. Jim Jordan,
ranking GOP member of the House Oversight Committee. "No individual
signed off on that when they renewed their driver’s license, got their
driver’s licenses. They didn’t sign any waiver saying, ‘Oh, it’s okay
to turn my information, my photo, over to the FBI.’ No elected
officials voted for that to happen."
"Law enforcement’s access of state databases," and in particular those
of the DMV, is "often done in the shadows with no consent," added
House Oversight Committee Chairman Elijah E. Cummings (D-MD).
And as has been reported for some time, law enforcement has been
relying on facial recognition technology as a routine investigative
tool for years - and it's going to get worse.
block quote
Since 2011, the FBI has logged more than 390,000 facial-recognition
searches of federal and local databases, including state DMV
databases, the Government Accountability Office said last month, and
the records show that federal investigators have forged daily working
relationships with DMV officials. In Utah, FBI and ICE agents logged
more than 1,000 facial-recognition searches between 2015 and 2017, the
records show. Names and other details are hidden, though dozens of the
searches are marked as having returned a “possible match.” -
Washington Post block quote end
Also disturbing is the fact that law enforcement often uses facial
recognition to investigate low-level crime, with searches "often
executed with nothing more formal than an email from a federal agent
to a local contact,"
according to the Post.
"It’s really a surveillance-first, ask-permission-later system," says
Project on Government Oversight watchdog lawyer Jake Laperruque.
"People think this
is something coming way off in the future, but these
[facial-recognition] searches are happening very frequently today. The
FBI alone does 4,000 searches every month, and a lot of them go through state
DMVs."
Targeting illegals with licenses?
The Post also brings up the fact that undocumented residents who
obtain driver's licenses in states which allow this may be subject to
immigration enforcement due to the facial recognition technology.
block quote
Though Utah, Vermont and Washington allow undocumented immigrants to
obtain full driver’s licenses or more-limited permits known as driving
privilege cards, ICE agents have run facial-recognition searches on
those DMV databases.
More than a dozen states, including New York, as well as the District
of Columbia, allow undocumented immigrants to drive legally with full
licenses or driving privilege cards, as long as they submit proof of
in-state residency and pass the states’ driving-proficiency tests.
Lawmakers in Florida, Texas and other states have introduced bills
this year that would extend driving privileges to undocumented
immigrants. Some of those states already allow the FBI to scan
driver’s license photos, while others, such as Florida and New York,
are negotiating with the FBI over access, according to the GAO. -
Washington Post block quote end
"The state has told [undocumented immigrants], has encouraged them, to
submit that information. To me, it’s an insane breach of trust to then
turn around and allow ICE access to that," according to Georgetown Law
Center on Privacy and Technology senior associate Clare Garvie, who led the
research.
block quote
The FBI’s facial-recognition search has access to local, state and
federal databases containing more than 641 million face photos, a GAO
director said last month. But the agency provides little information
about when the searches are used, who is targeted and how often
searches return false matches. - Washington Post block quote end
When asked about the surveillance, the FBI told the Post to refer to
last month's congressional testimony from Deputy Assistant Director
Kimberly Del Grecco, who said that facial recognition was necessary
"to preserve our nation’s freedoms, ensure our liberties are
protected, and preserve our security."
Racist technology?
Civil rights advocates have decried the use of facial recognition
technology due to the fact that it is far less accurate when trying to
identify people of color. According to the report, "The software’s
precision is highly dependent on a number of factors, including the
lighting of a subject’s face and the quality of the image, and
research has shown that the technology performs less accurately on people
with darker skin."
Whatever the objection, we're now at the point where our ability to
drive a car or enjoy the out-of-doors is subject to constant
electronic surveillance of varying accuracy.
