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June 13, 2007
Headlines - Paper Addresses Legal Education and the Promise of New Technology
- FTC Offers Information on Botnets, Hackers, and Spam
- DOD OIG Privacy Program and Privacy Impact Assessments
- DHS OIG Statements to Congress on Deepwater and Disaster Assistance Oversight
- Judiciary Chairmen Leahy, Conyers Issue Subpoenas For White House Officials, Documents
- Secret Surveillance Evidence Unsealed in Telecom Domestic Surveillance Case
- Federal Reserve Beige Book - June 13, 2007
- FEC Presidential Campaign Finance Contributions to All Candidates by State
- Report to the President on the Issues Raised by the Virginia Tech Tragedy
- More Americans Than Ever Serving on Juries
- Oversight Report on CDC Issued by Minority Office of the Federal Financial Management Subcommittee
- Google Agrees to Cut Data Retention Time in Response to EU Privacy Laws
- Senate Committee Releases Oversight Report on CDC
- U.S. National Strategy for Public Diplomacy and Strategic Communication
 Paper Addresses Legal Education and the Promise of New Technology Koo, Gene, New Skills, New Learning: Legal Education and the Promise of New Technology (March 26, 2007). Berkman Center Research Publication No. 2007-4, via SSRN. [thanks Darlene Fichter] "Today's legal workplace demands technology-related skills that the traditional law school curriculum does not cover. The original research conducted for this white paper finds that these skills include organizing complex distributed teams, exploiting data and information on the Web, and "meta-lawyering" (establishing systems of practice). The study also finds that traditional methods of training such as apprenticeship have eroded in recent years and that law schools often overlook skills education, leaving a large gap in training of all skills and not just technology-related ones. The paper discusses how thoughtful use of pedagogical technology can address these needs, arguing for integrated and authentic learning experiences rather than "teaching technology" in the abstract." FTC Offers Information on Botnets, Hackers, and Spam Press release: "Tens of thousands of consumers are unwitting accomplices of illegal spammers and at the mercy of identity thieves, warns the Federal Trade Commission. These consumers' computers have been secretly hijacked by criminals who install spam-sending software and spyware on the computers when consumers open malicious e-mail attachments or visit a malicious Web site. After gaining access to consumers' computers, the criminals can track consumers' Internet surfing, steal personal information, and turn the computers into spam "zombies" that are part of a "botnet" made up of thousands of home computers through which spammers route spam. In a new consumer alert, Botnets and Hackers and Spam (Oh, My!), the FTC urges consumers to secure their personal information and stop assisting spammers." See also the government consortium resource, OnGuard Online DOD OIG Privacy Program and Privacy Impact Assessments D-2007-099DoD Privacy Program and Privacy Impact Assessments (June 13, 2007) (Project D2006-D000AL-0087.000) PDF and Summary. "We performed the audit to determine whether DoD Components reported consistent and valid information to the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the Office of Management and Budget, and the Congress regarding management and protection of personal information related to the DoD Privacy Program. We also evaluated DoD compliance with Privacy Impact Assessment requirements and determined whether safeguards were established to prevent the compromise and misuse of personal information during its storage or transfer and were in accordance with Office of Management and Budget and DoD guidance implementing the Privacy and E‑Government Acts." DHS OIG Statements to Congress on Deepwater and Disaster Assistance Oversight Statement of Richard L. Skinner, Inspector General, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, June 12, 2007 (PDF, 10 pages) Statement for the Record, Matt Jadacki, Deputy Inspector General for Disaster Assistance Oversight, June 12, 2007 (PDF, 18 pages) Judiciary Chairmen Leahy, Conyers Issue Subpoenas For White House Officials, Documents Press release: "Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., and House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers, D-Mich., today issued subpoenas to two former White House officials compelling them to provide testimony and related information as part of ongoing congressional investigations into the mass firings of well-performing federal prosecutors and the politicization of hiring and firing within the Department of Justice. The Senate Judiciary Committee issued three subpoenas, two seeking the documents and testimony of Sara M. Taylor, former Deputy Assistant to the President and Director of Political Affairs, and another seeking White House documents relevant to the panel's ongoing investigation. The House Judiciary Committee issued two subpoenas, one seeking the documents and testimony of Harriet Miers, former White House Counsel, and another seeking White House documents relevant to the panel's ongoing investigation." Text of the cover letters sent to Sara Taylor, Fred Fielding; Text of subpoenas issued as well as relevant attachments; Backgrounder on key evidence of White House involvement in project to fire and replace prosecutors; House Committee subpoena for Harriet Miers; June 8, 2007 letter from Fielding refusing to cooperate with Committees, restating offer of off-the-record, backroom interviews only Secret Surveillance Evidence Unsealed in Telecom Domestic Surveillance Case Follow up to previous postings on the domestic surveillance program and AT&T's alleged participation, this press release today: "More documents detailing secret government surveillance of AT&T's Internet traffic have been released to the public as part of the Electronic Frontier Foundation's (EFF's) class-action lawsuit against the telecom giant. Some of the unsealed information was previously made public in redacted form. But after negotiations with AT&T, EFF has filed newly unredacted documents describing a secret, secure room in AT&T's facilities that gave the National Security Agency (NSA) direct access to customers' emails and other Internet communications. These include several internal AT&T documents that have long been available on media websites, EFF's legal arguments to the 9th Circuit, and the full declarations of whistleblower Mark Klein and of J. Scott Marcus, the former Senior Advisor for Internet Technology to the Federal Communications Commission, who bolsters and explains EFF's evidence. Oral arguments in the 9th Circuit appeal are set for the week of August 13." the unredacted Klein declaration the internal documents the unredacted Marcus declaration EFF's 9th Circuit brief more on the class-action lawsuit against AT&T Federal Reserve Beige Book - June 13, 2007 "June 13, 2007, Summary of Commentary on Current Economic Conditions by Federal Reserve District. Prepared at the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia based on information collected before June 4, 2007. This document summarizes comments received from businesses and other contacts outside the Federal Reserve and is not a representation of the views of Federal Reserve officials. Reports from the twelve Federal Reserve Banks indicated that economic activity continued to expand from mid-April through May. Seven banks described growth in their Districts as modest or moderate: Cleveland, Atlanta, Chicago, St. Louis, Kansas City, New York, and San Francisco. Dallas reported growth as moderately strong, and Minneapolis said the District's economy edged up. Philadelphia reported that growth was somewhat faster than in recent months, and Richmond said growth picked up a bit. Boston characterized reports from its contacts as generally positive." Links by District Federal Reserve Beige Book, Full Report, June 13, 2007 FEC Presidential Campaign Finance Contributions to All Candidates by State Federal Election Commission Presidential Campaign Finance Map. "Up-to-date campaign finance information for the 2008 Presidential Election is now available via an easy to use map of the USA." Report to the President on the Issues Raised by the Virginia Tech Tragedy Press release: Today, Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales, Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt, and Department of Education Secretary Margaret Spellings reported to the President about the issues raised by the Virginia Tech tragedy....We know that the federal government should not attempt to answer all the questions raised by this event, but does have a role to play in assisting the states in their efforts to protect the public. The Department of Justice will work with the states to ensure that federal firearms laws are effective in keeping guns out of the wrong hands, by encouraging states to submit appropriate information to the National Instant Background Check System." Report to the President on the Issues Raised by the Virginia Tech Tragedy, June 13, 2007 More Americans Than Ever Serving on Juries National Center for State Courts: "More than one-third of all Americans are likely to serve as jurors at some point in their lifetime, according to a newly released study by the Center for Jury Studies of the National Center for State Courts. This is a dramatic increase from 1977, when only 6 percent of Americans served as trial jurors. The increase most likely is the result of more inclusive master jury lists, shorter terms of jury service, and other changes in court policies designed to make jury service more convenient and accessible to citizens, the survey reports." Oversight Report on CDC Issued by Minority Office of the Federal Financial Management Subcommittee Press release: " CDC Off Center, a 115-page oversight report authored by the Minority Office of the Federal Financial Management Subcommittee, under the direction of ranking member Senator Tom Coburn, examines how CDC has tilted off center and makes recommendations about how it might get back on track. The American people expect CDC to spend its $10 billion budget this year treating and preventing diseases and dealing with public safety threats, including the threat of bioterrorism. While CDC will meet some of those expectations, if history is any guide, it will also waste millions of dollars." Google Agrees to Cut Data Retention Time in Response to EU Privacy Laws EPIC reports: "Google will cut the period that it retains user data from a maximum of 24 months to a maximum of 18 months, the company said in a letter (pdf) to the Article 29 Data Protection Working Party. Last month, the Working Party began to investigate (pdf) Google's privacy practices and asked whether the company has "fulfilled all the necessary requirements" to abide by EU privacy rules. In its letter, Google did not adequately explain why it needed to retain user data for 18 or 24 months, except to vaguely say that the data would help Google build new services, possibly help prevent fraud and abuse, and that the U.S. and EU member states might impose a 24-month retention requirement." See also this June 10, 2007 posting, Privacy Ranking Report of Internet Service Companies and this Official Google Blog posting by Peter Fleischer, Global Privacy Counsel, on the EU data rention issue. Senate Committee Releases Oversight Report on CDC Press release: "U.S. Senator Tom Coburn, M.D. (R-OK), a practicing physician, today released an oversight report on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), an agency with a $10 billion annual budget and a crucial public health mission. "Recent events have highlighted how critical CDC's mission is to the health of our nation. The American public, now more than ever, expects CDC to spend its funds preventing diseases and dealing with public safety threats, including the threat of bioterrorism. While CDC is meeting some of those expectations, it also wastes millions of dollars," said Dr. Coburn, ranking member of the Subcommittee on Federal Financial Management, Government Information and International Security (FFM)." The report, CDC Off Center, June 2007, is 115 pages, (PDF), and was "authored by the Minority Office of the Federal Financial Management Subcommittee, under the direction of ranking member Senator Tom Coburn, examines how CDC has tilted off center and makes recommendations about how it might get back on track. The American people expect CDC to spend its $10 billion budget this year treating and preventing diseases and dealing with public safety threats, including the threat of bioterrorism." U.S. National Strategy for Public Diplomacy and Strategic Communication Via NPR News Blog and PoliticalWarfare.org: "It took 18 months and some prodding from other agencies, but the State Department finally has a new strategy for communications and public diplomacy. The new plan is intended to help State Department diplomats around the world provide a unified message about U.S. policies and programs, something critics say has been lacking." U.S. National Strategy for Public Diplomacy and Strategic Communication (34 pages, PDF)
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