-Caveat Lector- ------- Forwarded message follows -------
[Ick. Another example of why government privacy invasions are so chilling. --Declan] --- From: "John Cieciel" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "dec" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subject: State of mistrust Date: Thu, 21 Feb 2002 15:06:03 -0600 <http://www.goupstate.com/docs/Opinion/Editorials/5878.asp>http://www. goupstate.com/docs/Opinion/Editorials/5878.asp J. Cieciel --- Published: February 21, 2002 State of mistrust South Carolina agencies continue to violate citizens' privacy. This time the state is distributing our children's DNA. Lawmakers need to institute firmer rules on the collection and distribution of individuals' personal information. ________________________________________________________________ _ Once again South Carolina's state government has proven that it can't be trusted with the personal information it demands from its citizens. South Carolinians had hoped it was a fluke when the state sold the information on 3.5 million people's driver's licenses to a New Hampshire company without their permission or even notification. Citizens thought that the outrage from that incident surely would make state officials more responsible about how they handle the personal information citizens are forced to give the state. But last week South Carolinians learned that -- without their knowledge or permission -- the state had created a DNA library on our children. By law, babies are tested for specific genetic diseases after they are born. The state Department of Health and Environmental Control has been saving all of those samples since 1995 in a special deep freeze facility. State officials told us not to worry. These genetic blueprints of our children are safe with them. This information could not be misused. This week we learned that the information has already been misused. Without the permission of these DNA donors or their parents, the state has given some of the samples to a genetics laboratory and gave others to the State Law Enforcement Division to help start a DNA databank there. Are there any parents left who still trust the state with this information? It's not likely. Do South Carolinians want a genetics lab experimenting on their children's DNA? Did state officials ever think to ask? And what right does SLED have to include our innocent children's DNA in its databank? Legislative remedies for this problem have been discussed in Columbia. They range from the immediate destruction of the DNA samples held by DHEC to a system in which parents can instruct the state not to keep their children's samples. Clearly, the state must institute a process that -- at a bare minimum -- requires DHEC to get parental permission to keep the samples. [...] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- --- POLITECH -- Declan McCullagh's politics and technology mailing list You may redistribute this message freely if you include this notice. Declan McCullagh's photographs are at http://www.mccullagh.org/ To subscribe to Politech: http://www.politechbot.com/info/subscribe.html This message is archived at http://www.politechbot.com/ ---------------------------------------------------------------------- --- ------- End of forwarded message ------- <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/";>www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance�not soap-boxing�please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'�with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds�is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html <A HREF="http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html";>Archives of [EMAIL PROTECTED]</A> http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ <A HREF="http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/";>ctrl</A> ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
