Katie Doyle, Girl About Town

Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2002 - 12:44 a.m.

RANT ALERT

:( Lola is not happy.

I spent the very early morning laboring over taxes which should have been done yesterday, if not April 1. That was followed by a mad dash at a turtle's pace thru the unholy HELL that is Los Angeles traffic. Apparently every freaking driver in LA thought it was Friday today, because they were ALL out en force and driving at a speed that even snails mock. And then I found out my unemployment, which is already a month late, has been suspended pending an investigation, because I put "self" down as who I worked for for the measly $15 I made one week at contract labor. Which I did because the payer informed me they were NOT (emphasis theirs) my employer, so I figured that meant I had to tell EDD I worked for myself. Which apparently EDD takes a dim view on, looking at it as meaning I have a "personal desire" not to work, so they shouldn't help me out while I'm looking for a new job. Forget the fact the post production industry is going nowhere really fast, which is why I'm in school *at night* right now to learn a new trade. Forget as well the fact that I've never in my fucking life ever taken government hand-outs in any way, shape or form, and have paid my freaking taxes to support every fucking deadbeat in the state and country who bilks the system, INCLUDING, but not limited to, all the losers in production who decide to take a break and draw it just because they don't feel like looking for work when a gig ends. Whatthefuckever.

I need chocolate.

You know, Bush can take off to frickin' Crawford every single weekend to the tune of over a quarter of a million dollars of taxpayers' hard-earned money, but God forbid *I* should earn $15 at contract labor when I've been unable to find a fricking job and have been reduced to taking fucking scut work just to try and make some of my own fucking money. Did you guys know it costs $100,000 just to get Air Force One to the damn tarmac? Oh yeah. Every freaking time our illustrious idiot of a president gets on that damn plane, it costs a bare minimum of $100,000. And he's flying it to Crawford, Texas, almost every weekend of his fucking job. But yeah, my $268 BEFORE TAXES is backbreaking and suspect because I took some spare work up. I reported the income, AND I'm allowed to make $25 before they start reducing my benefit, so what the hell?

And as if I were not already then in a foul mood, on top of that, in the headlines today, I see the Freedom of Information Act today has taken yet another hit in the name of "National Security." And yet, Loserboy opposes ballistic fingerprinting on the grounds that it violates a gun owner's privacy. How the fuck does it do that, George? For those of you who don't know what ballistic fingerprinting is, it requires gun makers to file into a law-enforcement database the distinctive and unique markings every gun leaves on fired shell casings. In this manner, the police/FBI can check the database when they find a shell casing at the scene of the crime - a sniper shooting in the Washington DC area, say - and find out where that gun is and who may have committed the crime - say, murder.

Wow. I can see how *that* would suck.

And I am against gun control.

At the moment, even with only NY and Maryland requiring the data, from March 2000 to July 2001, 8,800 matches were linked to 17,600 crime scenes. Isn't that awful? 50% success rate in identifying a specific weapon, and therefore, who might have been in possession of it at the time of the crime. Sure, I can see how it's more important we don't risk "violating gun owner's privacy." Sure. Totally reasonable.

This from the fucking moron violating Americans' civil right to privacy every single day. To whit thus far:

That great new "Patriot Act" that Bush and Ashcroft are so proud of? You know, the one that they rolled out with a warning to all Americans to watch what they say against the government? Yeah. That enables federal agents to search your home without notifying you they're going to or that they did. The government can take photographs, the contents of your hard drive and other property, as part of the now permanent law, NOT subject to Congressional review. This supposedly only applies to non-citizens, but use your head and tell me what's to keep it that way. Our federal agencies already abuse the law; how long do you think they'll keep their mitts outta your house just because you're a citizen?

And you don't have to actually do anything wrong, guys. They just have to say it's part of an ongoing investigation. And all you have to do to draw attention to yourself is to badmouth the government and get overheard. Or read.

All your computer activity online is open for scrutiny, btw. Including your private email.

In addition, Uncle Sam can also look into and requisition your personal and private records, whether or not you can be directly tied to a terrorist or foreign government. This includes your bank records, e-mails, library records, how you use your atm/debit card, what books you buy, and even those nifty little discount cards that grocery stores issue, AND, anyone this information is requested from is PROHIBITED BY LAW from informing you the information was requested. THAT, my friends, is a clear violation of your rights and the Freedom of Information Act.

And that's just a partial listing. But hey. Let's not ballistic fingerprint a gun. We might violate a gun-owner's right to privacy.

Chocolate.

Lots of it.

Right now.

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