In February, the opponents of REAL ID were given a bit of hope when Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said that she wanted to repeal the REAL ID Act, the federal government’s failed plan to impose a national identification card through state driver’s licenses. But what has taken place since is no return to sanity, as political machinations have produced a cosmetic makeover called “PASS ID” that has revived the push for a national identification card.

The PASS ID Act (S. 1261) seeks to make many of the same ineffectual, dangerous changes the REAL ID Act attempted to impose. Fundamentally, PASS ID operates on the same flawed premise of REAL ID — that requiring various “identity documents” (and storing that information in databases for later access) will magically make state drivers’ licenses more legitimate, which will in turn improve national security.

Proponents seem to be blind to the systemic impotence of such an identification card scheme. Individuals originally motivated to obtain and use fake IDs will instead use fake identity documents to procure “real” drivers’ licenses. PASS ID creates new risks — it calls for the scanning and storage of copies of applicants’ identity documents (birth certificates, visas, etc.). These documents will be stored in databases that will become leaky honeypots of sensitive personal data, prime targets for malicious identity thieves or otherwise accessible by individuals authorized to obtain documents from the database. Despite some alterations to the scheme, PASS ID is stillbad for privacy in many of the same ways the REAL ID was. And proponents of the national ID effort seem blissfully unaware of the creepy implications of a “papers please” mentality that may grow from the issuance of mandatory federal identification cards. Despite token provisions that claim to give states the freedom to issue non-federal identification cards, the card will be mandatory for most — the PASS ID Act seeks to require everyone to show the federally recognized ID for “any official purpose,” including boarding a plane or entering a federal building.

At the moment, health care reform is commanding tremendous attention and effort on the hill, so the PASS ID Act seems to be on the backburner for now. But after the August recess, anything can happen. So stay tuned for more about PASS ID and critical opportunities to flag your opposition to this flawed national ID scheme.

Andrew Stein, 10, and his brother, Nathan, 7, are having a typical end-of-summer vacation: hanging out at the pool, visiting their grandparents and waiting for the beginning of school.

But this week they’re doing something most of their classmates will never do. The Stein brothers will be testing the new vaccine to prevent swine flu.

Because the younger population, from 6 months to 24 years, is at high risk of developing complications from the H1N1 virus, the National Institutes of Health is conducting a clinical trial specifically to make sure the vaccine is safe for children. Vaccine developers hope to get the doses out by mid-October, before the flu season really shifts into high gear.

Although both boys dislike needles, they are willing to make the sacrifice. “One boy that I knew at our school died from a type of the flu,” said Andrew, frowning. “So I wanted to prevent that as much as I could.”

The boys, who live in the suburbs between Baltimore, Maryland, and Washington, got their first inoculations at the vaccine satellite office in Frederick, Maryland. The trial is being conducted by the University of Maryland School of Medicine, one of 11 institutions across the country holding pediatric trials. Researchers will test the boys’ blood, have them keep journals and make sure they have no severe reactions after each vaccine.

The pediatric studies are divided into two groups within the United States. Half the sites will be comparing reactions between the H1N1 shot and the seasonal influenza vaccines on kids; the others will be looking at the effectiveness of a two-dose vaccine. The Steins are enrolled in the dosage trial.

The data are crucial for developing a safe vaccine, said Dr. Karen Kotloff, who heads both the pediatric and adult trials at Maryland. “The purpose of the studies we are doing is to try to collect information that will help to inform policymakers about the best way to give the pandemic H1N1 flu vaccine,” she said. “Whether we need one or two doses and what strength we need.”

Before they received their shots, both boys, along with their parents, Christy and Eric Stein, got an explanation of the procedure and were warned about possible complications. Nancy Wymer, who coordinates the study, says the boys will receive two inoculations over six weeks and will continue to check in periodically over the following six months. Dr. Sanjay Gupta reports on the H1N1 clinical trial »

Neither brother gave more than a grimace as he rolled up his sleeve and took a shot for science. Andrew Stein said it was no big deal. “It was in and out, in a couple of seconds.”

Why would parents have their children be part of such a trial? Most say to help other children. Christy Stein was involved in a pediatric trial for the swine flu vaccine in 1976 and understands what her sons are going through. But she also believes it’s good for the country’s public health. “I trust the people who are running the study,” she said. “And I’m not concerned about it at all.”

The studies are based on other influenza trials in the past. Many parents have already volunteered their children but openings still exist. Children 6 months to 35 months are needed, Kotloff said. “Like with any shot, children may have a sore arm. Your arm can be red…There might be some fever or achiness, but the symptoms go away in a couple of days.

“There can be allergic reactions, mostly rashes, but in some rare circumstances there can be severe allergic reactions,” she added. “Each volunteer is informed about these possibilities, so it’s up to the parents to make that choice.”

The 11 main sites across the U.S, in nine states, are currently recruiting children for the vaccine trials. Thetwo-dose vaccine tests are being conducted at the University of Maryland Baltimore; Duke University in Durham, North Carolina; Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, Missouri; Children’s Hospital and Regional Medical Center in Seattle, Washington; and Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee.

And the trial comparing H1N1 and seasonal flu vaccines is at Hope Clinic, Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia; St. Louis University in Missouri; the University of Iowa in Iowa City; Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center in Cincinnati, Ohio; Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas; and the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston.

Each location has a Web site to sign up if more children are needed.

Andrew and Nathan are doing fine. They will keep a diary on how they feel and what, if any, reactions they have. Each was rewarded with a $40 gift card for his trouble. And even after being stuck with a couple of needles, Nathan Stein says it was worth it.

“Not just for the gift card,” he said, “but for being able to help other kids.”

Source: CNN

Other stories at We Are Change Colorado Springs

The H1N1 swine flu experimental vaccination, martial law and eugenics story (Part 1)

New Documantary Trailer Called Vaccine Nation

Welcome To Our Hell: The Model State Emergency Health Powers Act (MSEHPA)

Famed trend forecaster Gerald Calente is predicting that a third party candidate will be elected President in 2012. (If you don’t know who Calente is, read the postscript below.)

Is he right?

Well, some of the most widely-read liberal writers are saying that progressives are fed up with the Democratic party, and feel that they have been tricked and ripped off by the Democratic leaders.

As Glenn Greenwald writes:

In a superb post the other day, Digby recounted what fueled the Naderite movement in 2000 and warns, presciently I think, that the willingness of Obama/Emanuel so blatantly to disappoint those to whom they promised so much (especially young and first-time voters who were most vulnerable to Obama’s transformative fairy dust) will lead them either to support a third party or turn off from politics altogether:

Rahm Emanuel believes that the key to Democratic success is a coalition in which Blue Dogs and corporate lackeys mitigate progressive change on behalf of the moneyed interests which he believes the political system must serve. Regardless of his malevolent view of how the political system should work, on a political level, I think he’s living in the past. . . .

But on a political level, the left has been betrayed over and over again on the things that matter to us the most. The village is pleased, I’m sure. But the Democratic party only needs to look back eight short years to see just how destructive it is to constantly tell their left flank to go fuck themselves. . . .

At the time [in 2000] nobody believed that an incumbent Vice President in a roaring economy would have a race so close that the Republicans could steal it. But we know differently now don’t we? And you would think that the Democratic establishment would also know that because of that, it may not be a good idea to alienate the left to the point where they become apathetic or even well… you know. It can happen. It did happen. Why the Democrats persist in believing that it can’t happen again is beyond me. . . .

Obama mobilized a whole lot of young people who have great expectations and disappointing them could lead to all sorts of unpleasant results. Success is about more than simply buying off some congressional liberals or pleasing the village. It’s worth remembering that a third party run from the left is what created the conditions for eight long years of Republican governance …

After 2000, what is it going to take for the Democrats to realize that constantly using their base as a doormat is not a good idea? It only takes a few defections or enough people staying home to make a difference. And there are people on the left who have proven they’re willing to do it. The Democrats are playing with fire if they think they don’t have to deliver anything at all to their liberal base — and abandoning the public option, particularly in light of what we already know about the bailouts and the side deals, may be what breaks the bond.

It’s really not too much to ask that they deliver at least one thing the left demands, it really isn’t. And it’s not going to take much more of this before their young base starts looking around for someone to deliver the hope and change they were promised.

On most fronts that matter — civil liberties, national security, economic policy, servitude to corporate interests, even rising opposition to Obama’s long-promised escalation of the war in Afghanistan — that defines rather clearly what the Obama/Emanuel approach has been thus far.

What About the Right?

The Washington Examiner writes:

The fact that just doesn’t register with Washington GOP establishmentarians is that the Tea Party Protests seen around the country in April were aimed as much against them as they were against the tax and spending policies of Obama and the Democratic Congress.

There are millions of libertarians and traditional conservatives (or “paleo-conservatives”, in contrast to Neo-conservatives) in the U.S. who are very unhappy with the direction the Republican party has taken in recent years.

Post-Partisan Coalitions

There are many millions of liberals and conservatives who have become disgusted by their parties and have started judging candidates based upon what they are actually doing.

As just one example, there are millions of Americans who would support either Ron Paul as president and Dennis Kucinich as vice president or the other away around. Why? Both challenge the status quo, and have proposed legislation which will actually help the American people.

Conclusion
Based on the above trends, I believe that Calente could be right. A third-party candidate could win in 2012.

Source: Washington’s Blog

Other stories at We Are Change Colorado Springs

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The Truth About Unemployment

This is No Recession: It’s a Planned Demolition