North East Digital Village

:: CIVICS :: ABOUT FREEDOM :: VOTING RIGHTS & DEMOCRACY :: GOVERNMENT OVERSIGHT :: DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE :: BILL OF RIGHTS :: ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION :: THE CONSTITUTION :: USA PATRIOT ACT :: INTERNMENT IN AMERICA :: CHILDREN'S RIGHTS :: EQUALITY :: VITAL RECORDS :: CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORM :: WHY NOT PEACE? :: IN MEMORY OF :: CONNECTICUT MEDIA ::

Village Civics

:: OPINIONS & OBSERVATIONS :: ABOUT SAFETY :: PUBLIC INFORMATION :: SOLDIERS FAR AWAY FROM HOME ::

Like most villages, the North East Digital Village is being built a little bit at a time. The Village has grown a lot over the years. Following the events of our time, the Village has tried to present information and resources consistent with our beliefs and interests. Some of what we do here is purely for fun, some to educate and some to support our opinion of sensible solutions to state, national and world issues. We don't ask that you agree, just that you take a look and take from our site what is useful to you. Beyond all, we support your right not to be just like us; not to think just like us. We ask the same from you.

Please stop back whenever you're in the neighborhood! ~JT

We dare not forget today that we are the heirs of that first revolution. Let the word go forth from this time and place, to friend and foe alike, that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans -- born in this century, tempered by war, disciplined by a hard and bitter peace, proud of our ancient heritage, and unwilling to witness or permit the slow undoing of those human rights to which this nation has always been committed, and to which we are committed today at home and around the world.
~ John F. Kennedy, Inaugural Address (Delivered January 20, 1961)

Opinions & Observations

Under the Radar: Ten Warning Signs for Today by Heather Wokusch.

Facing the Truth by Monica Benderman.

Again, We Did Know Better by Ron Glasser.

Suppressing the Truths of War by Mara Revkin.

Act On Impeachment, Now by Mary Ellen Marino.

Wrong and White and Red All Over by Ted Rall.

Injured Democracy Needs Honest Surgical Knife by Robert Shetterly.

Habeas Corpus: A Defense Against The Dark Arts by Caroline Arnold.

'Stripped' of Her Rights: Happy Independence Day America? by Leslie Sheridan.

Wrong Again: Bush’s Logic and Ours by Tom Engelhardt.

Bush's Wooden-Headedness Kills by Ray McGovern.

Yes, Bush Is Naked, What of It? Tony Karon.

King George W.: James Madison’s Nightmare by Robert Scheer.

President Hostile To Scientific Facts That Conflict With Right-Wing Views by Cynthia Tucker.

Reining In an Out-of-Control Executive by Marjorie Cohn.

Don't Fence in the Web! by John Nichols.

FTC on Net Neutrality: Absence of Evidence Is Not Evidence of Absence by Barry Payne.

Video depicting the reading of an class essay, "I Believe", written by Michelle Gardner-Quinn , 21 years old, read by several actresses. (Two days after Michelle Gardner-Quinn submitted her paper, she was kidnapped, brutally raped, and strangled to death.)

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About Safety

Be Aware & Be Safe from Identity Theft

How identity thieves get your personal information:
The Federal Trade Commission at
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/credit/idtheft.htm

• They steal wallets and purses containing your identification and credit and bank cards.
• They steal your mail, including your bank and credit card statements, pre-approved credit offers, new checks, and tax information.
• They complete a "change of address form" to divert your mail to another location.
• They rummage through your trash, or the trash of businesses, for personal data in a practice known as "dumpster diving."
• They fraudulently obtain your credit report by posing as a landlord, employer or someone else who may have a legitimate need for, and legal right to, the information.
• They find personal information in your home.
• They use personal information you share on the Internet.
• They scam you, often through email, by posing as legitimate companies or government agencies you do business with.
• They get your information from the workplace in a practice known as "business record theft" by: stealing files out of offices where you're a customer, employee, patient or student; bribing an employee who has access to your files; or "hacking" into electronic files.

If you've been a victim of identity theft, call the FTC's Identity Theft Hotline toll-free at 1-877-IDTHEFT (438-4338).

Ten Simple Things You Can Do to Fight Fraud

Take Charge: Fighting Back Against Identity Theft

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Public Information

Freedom of Information

"Knowledge will forever govern ignorance;
and a people who mean to be their own governors, must arm themselves with the power which knowledge gives."
James Madison

Learn about the federal Freedom of Information Act: The federal FOIA applies only to federal agencies and does not create a right of access to records held by Congress, the courts, or by state or local government agencies.

Learn about Using the Freedom of Information Act: a Step-by-Step Guide from the American Civil Liberties Union.

National FOI Coalition: joins First Amendment and open government organizations from individual states in a self-supporting alliance as they seek to protect the public's right to know through the education of media professionals, attorneys, academics, students and the general public.

Connecticut FOI: Link to Request Letter Generator
State of Connecticut Freedom of Information Commission
18-20 Trinity Street, Hartford, CT 06106
Vox: (860) 566-5682, Fax: (860) 566-6474
E-mail: FOI@po.state.ct.us

Twenty Things You Can Do and Learn On U.S. Government Web Sites

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WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT THE NATIONAL DO NOT CALL REGISTRY: Most telemarketers cannot call you if your phone number is listed in the National Do Not Call Registry. You can register your home and mobile phone numbers for free. Your registration will be effective for five years. TO REGISTER . . .

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