Author archives

Report Recommends Regulatory Reforms to Balance Document Security and Public Access

The University of Maryland Center for Public Policy and Private Enterprise announced the availablity of a report, The Unintended Audience: Balancing Openness and Secrecy – Crafting an Information Policy for the 21st Century (76 pages, PDF), that addresses post 9/11 limitations on public access to unclassified but “sensitive” government documents, and the associated impact of …

Subjects: E-Government, Freedom of Information, Government Documents, Legal Research

Sunshine Week Showcase

This page, which will be updated throught Sunshine Week, provides summaries and links to selected national and state sources on the open government issue. Related resources: Government secrecy: dark cloud over open society – Inside the First Amendment, by Paul K. McMasters, First Amendment Center ombudsman Michigan Freedom of Information Act

Subjects: Freedom of Information

Pharming Poses Potential for Widespread Fraud

From Wired, Pharming Out-Scams Phishing: “First Pharmers simply redirect as many users as possible from the legitimate commercial websites they’d intended to visit and lead them to malicious ones. The bogus sites, to which victims are redirected without their knowledge or consent, will likely look the same as a genuine site. But when users enter …

Subjects: Cybercrime

Report on Women and Entrepreneurship

More than 30 Million Women Worldwide Are Entrepreneurs; Mentoring and Support Networks Are Vital To Success: “Forty-one percent of entrepreneurs are women, according to a cross-national study of thirty-four countries. The first Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) report on women’s entrepreneurial activity was released today by The Center For Women’s Leadership at Babson College. The GEM …

Subjects: Internet

LLRX Court Rules, Forms and Dockets

Just a reminder that LLRX.com’s Court Rules, Forms and Dockets remains the only comprehensive, free, regularly updated guide of its kind on the web. Suggestions for new links are always welcome. “This site includes links to over 1,400 sources for state and federal court rules, forms and dockets. You can browse to find the resource …

Subjects: Legal Research

Memorable Quotes from Dan Rather

From the National Journal, this article is worth savouring for those who appreciated what are referred to as “Ratherisms”. Example: “Let’s pause and take a deep breath, appreciate it for what it is. This is the dance of democracy. This is as close as we come to a kind of a sacred time in this …

Subjects: Free Speech

Admiral Issues Report on Detainee Operations

Released March 10, 2005 to the Senate Armed Services Committee, this Review of DoD Detention Operations and Detainee Interrogation Techniques (21 pages, PDF), authored by Vice Adm. Albert T. Church III, determined that there was “no policy that considered or condoned torture…” Statement of Senator Carl Levin at the Senate Armed Services Committee Hearing on …

Subjects: Congress, Government Documents

Blogshine Sunday

Bloggers Look for “Sunshine” on Public Access to Government Documents – FreeCulture.org announces Blogshine Sunday “On March 13, news organizations across the United States will participate in “Sunshine Sunday” by running stories and editorials in support of public access to government information. Simultaneously, bloggers throughout the U.S. and beyond will spotlight their own experiences with …

Subjects: Blogs, Freedom of Information, Government Documents