Stripmining the American Mind

[surprise surprise sed Gomer -- this blog's been re-enabled -- y making my statement about yesterday's disabling appear the ravings of a Paranoid Evildoer . . . O Nurse Ratched, please get the Syringe ready!]

:O)



Thieves Steal Personal Data of 26.5M Vets

By HOPE YEN, Associated Press Writer 52 minutes ago [5/22/06]

WASHINGTON - Thieves took sensitive personal information on 26.5 million U.S. veterans, including Social Security numbers and birth dates, after a Veterans Affairs employee improperly brought the material home, the government said Monday.


The information involved mainly those veterans who served and have been discharged since 1975, said VA Secretary Jim Nicholson. Data of veterans discharged before 1975 who submitted claims to the agency may have been included.

Nicholson said there was no evidence the thieves had used the data for identity theft, and an investigation was continuing.


Methodology: spooks investigating spooks

Finding: spooky


"It's highly probable that they do not know what they have," he said in a briefing with reporters. "We have decided that we must exercise an abundance of caution and make sure our veterans are aware of this incident."

Veterans advocates expressed alarm.

"This was a very serious breach of security for American veterans and their families," said Bob Wallace, executive director of Veterans of Foreign Wars. "We want the VA to show leadership, management and accountability for this breach."

Ramona Joyce, spokeswoman for the American Legion, agreed that the theft was a concern. "In the information age, we're constantly told to protect our information. We would ask no less of the VA," she said.


yet another Spokeswoman, Speaking for voiceless and powerless m-e-n

where were you on draft day, Ramona?

i don't recall seeing you in line at the induction center



Nicholson declined to comment on the specifics of the incident, which involved a midlevel data analyst who had taken the information home to suburban Maryland on a laptop to work on a department project.


an English 1A student at the local community college could concoct better cover-disinfo than this preposterousness




The residential community had been a target of a series of burglaries when the employee was victimized earlier this month, according to the
FBI in Baltimore. Local law enforcement and the VA inspector general were also investigating.


see Methodology and Finding, supra


"I want to emphasize there was no medical records of any veteran and no financial information of any veteran that's been compromised," Nicholson said, although he added later that some information on the veterans' disabilities may have been taken.

Nicholson said he does not know how many of the department's 235,000 employees go thorough background investigations. He said employees who have access to large volumes of personal data should be required to undergo such checks, but he does not believe the VA employee was involved in the theft.

"We do not suspect at all any ulterior motive," he said.


supra


The department has come under criticism for shoddy accounting practices and for falling short on the needs of veterans.

Last year, more than 260,000 veterans could not sign up for services because of cost-cutting. Audits also have shown the agency used misleading accounting methods and lacked documentation to prove its claimed savings.


endless billions for bombs and "defense" and sub-sub-contractors and korporate kronies and spookettes and Der Secured Homeland

foot-up-the-ass (and far, far worse) for the guys whose butts went on the line -- many by force of law -- for Der Homeland

despicable

how DO you sleep at nite?

not well, methinks

don't keep many mirrors in the house either, i'll bet

[whoops! our "friends" just joined me online . . . welcome, fellow "patriots" . . . what took you so long? busy studying "borrowed data"?]

:O)


"It is a mystifying and gravely serious concern that a VA data analyst would be permitted to just walk out the VA door with such information," Illinois Rep. Lane Evans, the top Democrat on the Veterans Affairs Committee, said in a statement signed by other Democrats on the panel.
Sen. John Kerry D-Mass., who is a Vietnam veteran, said he would introduce legislation to require the VA to provide credit reports to the veterans affected by the theft.


bluther blahh btttat pustachio?

nurkle grrzrrkle globbledee mcsplootle?

ah, yes: Skull-and-Bones Kerry, co-conspirator of Skull-and-Bones Bushy, ever-ready with comforting tripletalk and la-la-la legislation and another poisoned handshake

our wardens and torturers, our smoothtongued sadists, are At Their Posts

listening and watching

watching and listening

"This is no way to treat those who have worn the uniform of our country," Kerry said. "Someone needs to be fired."

count on it, fatboy

but it won't be whatever Sad Scapegoat you monsters decide to trot out

The VA said it was notifying members of Congress and the individual veterans about the burglary. It has set up a call center at 1-800-FED-INFO and Web site, for veterans who believe their information has been misused.

call in and provide them with more info, so your country can verify the data it stole from you

Or, well

Cough, ka

Hacks

ptoooey!

It also is stepping up its review of procedures on the use of personal data for many of its employees who telecommute as well as others who must sign disclosure forms showing they are aware of federal privacy laws and the consequences if they're violated.

Deborah Platt Majoras, chair of the Federal Trade Commission, said her task force has reached out to the three major credit bureaus to be alert to possible misuse.

Debbie's Task Force is Reaching Out!

duck 'n cover!!

the Global Gulag wanted yet more information on the vets it's been mindfucking and experimenting on over the past few decades, and apparently hit some bureaucratic snag enroute to Total Information Awareness

thus, this absurd cover story, fronting a scapegoat and allowing Our Leaders to scrounge around for whatever uber-kontrol tidbits they desire

evil and sad, as usual, of course

but just as pathetic, ludicrously amateurish