Big Brother Is Watching Canadians
Canadians were shocked to discover that their government has quietly
compiled a gigantic federal database containing up to 2,000 pieces of
information on virtually every citizen in that nation.
The database became public knowledge in mid-May, when Canadian privacy
commissioner Bruce Phillips released a report saying that the Human
Resources department had created it. The massive database has information
on virtually every Canadian citizen. The information on file includes such
highly personal matters as income tax records, health records, employment
records, medical records, travel, ethnicity, citizenship, education,
marital and family status, disabilities, preferred language, and more.
Human Resources Minister Jane Stewart said the database - its official
title is "The Longitudinal Labour Force File" -- was completely legal and
was used only to help her department test the effectiveness of various
social programs.
Other Canadian officials, and Canadian civil libertarians, have expressed
outrage over the project.
American civil libertarians are worried that a similar database for U.S.
citizens will be the inevitable result of proposals by the government for
mandatory ID cards, work permits, gun registration, and numerous other
anti-privacy proposals floating around in Congress.
(Source: Reuters news article)
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