The US government plans to deploy a laser scanning system that can detect even tiny quantities of chemicals in people's clothing and people's bodies.

Schools in Puyallup, WA, are installing palm scanners for students to identify themselves with.

I think palm scanners are much less bad than fingerprint scanners, because people don't leave palmprints on everything they touch. Perhaps the palm scanners are ok, if the state can't get any personal data from them.

Greg Palast: the Nelson Mandela Barbie doll.

Australia plans to imprison refugees on accusation, without trial, by requiring them to sign a "code of conduct" in which they promise not to commit crimes.

This means that if they are accused of crimes, rather than trying them like anyone else, functionaries can decide they have "violated the code of conduct," cancel their visas, and imprison them right away.

Meanwhile, the government has changed another "code of conduct", for ministers, to allow them to own stock in businesses.

Since these ministers were chosen to serve the interest of business anyway, if they have another personal reason to do that it might change nothing.

The arrogant international "tribunal" set up by a US-Ecuador investment treaty has already twisted the law and the treaty to make excuses to declare Chevron the winner against Ecuadorians.

I wonder why Ecuador has not withdrawn from this treaty. Even if the treaty should not properly apply to this case at all, other cases will arise in the future. The treaty can do no good, only harm.