Sunday, July 08, 2012

Is This Problematic?

It's an executive order. You know one of those Presidential edicts which establish authority without being hindered by legislation. There are a lot of them. Some are simply business as usual. Some are extensions of existing policy. Some are quite clearly fulfillment of the legislative direction established by Congress and authorized for the executive branch to handle.

Communication in Emergency

Reads pretty much like boiler-plate to me. That is until you get to this power:
Sec5.6. The Federal Communications Commission performs such functions as are required by law, including: (a) with respect to all entities licensed or regulated by the Federal Communications Commission: the extension, discontinuance, or reduction of common carrier facilities or services; the control of common carrier rates, charges, practices, and classifications; the construction, authorization, activation, deactivation, or closing of radio stations, services, and facilities; the assignment of radio frequencies to Federal Communications Commission licensees; the investigation of violations of pertinent law; and the assessment of communications service provider emergency needs and resources 
Should I worry?

2 comments:

MagiK said...

Ed I read through this earlier the entire Order is disturbing, there is a LOT of language of Federal confiscation of private property and services in there....The Federal Government until Obama came along was quite capable of communicating over Restricted Government channels this order is completely unnecessesary for government communications this is about cutting off Civilian/Public services when his highness sees fit.

Dweezil Dwarftosser said...

I have no doubt that it is clearly a means which an outlaw government could use to
(1) Cut off reporting of dissenting views on syndicated and networked talk radio and TV.
(2) Immediately shut down cell phone audio and text messaging, as well as much twitter messaging.
(3) Require GPS or other location reporting to the government of all active cellphone and internet phone-carrier transmissions.
(4) Shutdown of VHF corporate-use (private) frequencies that could be of use to dissidents.

It's a good thing we don't have anyone in our government running it as a criminal enterprise, huh?
[snicker]