Just 'cause you're paranoid, it doesn't mean they're not out to get you

Let's see....

We've got Congress about to approve legislation sharply increasing federal agents' ability to obtain records relating to private transactions by individuals without court oversight or even a belief the person is involved in anything illegal.

We've got touch-screen voting machines with buggy software which are open to hacking and manipulation, leave no paper trail as a backup check, and are made by companies headed by Republican partisans, one of who promised to "deliver Ohio in 2004."

And we've got proposals for RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) chips with the ultimate intent of being able to track the location of every manufactured item in the world individually.

Paging Mr. Orwell.... Paging Mr. Orwell....

Update November 21: "Congressional negotiators approved a measure on Wednesday to expand the F.B.I.'s counterterrorism powers, despite concerns from some lawmakers who said that the measure gave the government too much authority and that the public had been shut out of the debate," reports the New York Times for November 20.