Liberty? Republican Transportation Bill To Allow Real Time Data Collection From Your Car

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It’s long past the time when the American people need to wake up to the fact that both political parties are out to destroy their Liberty, one just happens to do it faster than the other.

For example, both Republican President Bush and Democratic President Obama have done their best to fund and expand the Green technology (aka Smart Grid) that will allow the Gov/Utility to track your activities in your own home from whats in your trash to your Internet use and even your ice cube production.

As disturbing as that is… lately it has become worse…

How?

Well the Republicans have recently decided to once again destroy your right to privacy… but this time they are trying to do it in their “Constitutionally Correct” Transportation bill (The bill lists the sections of the Constitution that makes it ‘Constitutional’.)

Republican Representative John Mica (FL) introduced a bill called the “American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act of 2012″, aka H.R. 7, earlier this year. That same bill had the support of the GOP leadership as recently as March 21st. (remember this little fact as you read my article.)

On the surface, the bill seems to be a quasi ‘Green’ bill that was created in order to attempt to get Democrats on board. It included an “Infrastructure Bank”, like Obama’s ‘Jobs” bill, and other ‘Green’ initiatives but one thing in particular jumped out at me. Sections 7014 through 7020 all have something to do with installing a National “Intelligent Transportation System.”

What is an Intelligent Transportation system?

Well Intel, the company who makes the computer processors, made this video about Intelligent Transportation Systems:

After watching this slightly disturbing video (Notice the camera in the cabin of the vehicle and how it’s tracking your location etc.) I went to the Department of Transportation’s website to learn more about Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS)…. and what I found will (or won’t) surprise you.

“Several concurrent technological trends have the potential to reshape the traditional infrastructure-based, passive acquisition data paradigm. First, vehicles and hand-held devices are increasingly capable of systematically collecting and communicating a broad range of probe data. Probe data inherently describe the motion and state of mobile entities in the system (as opposed to data describing entities passing fixed locations). Vehicles capable of acting as probes span the full range of light vehicles, roadway and rail transit vehicles, and freight carriers. Second, modern wireless communication technology permits an active exchange of data with and between vehicles, travelers, roadside devices, and system operators. An active paradigm allows for a systematic yet dynamic and selective exchange of vehicle status and traveler behavior data. This is inherently different than the uniform capture of vehicle location and speed data generated through passive detection. Integrating probe data sources with traditional infrastructure-based data sources into multi-source data streams may enhance the capability of current forms of system control or significantly reduce their costs. Multi-source data streams may also enable non­traditional, transformative forms of system control and management. These transformative forms of management may have the potential to increase system productivity and traveler mobility significantly while concurrently reducing environmental and safety impacts.

The U.S. DOT ITS JPO is engaged in assessing the potential of the multi-source, active-acquisition data paradigm to enhance current operational practices and transform future surface transportation systems management. This research is a collaborative initiative spanning the Intelligent Transportation Systems Joint Program Office , Federal Highway Administration, the Federal Transit Administration , and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). One foundational element of connected vehicle research is the Real-Time Data Capture and Management Program. Program objectives include:

• Enable systematic data capture from vehicles, mobile devices, and infrastructure;
• Develop data environments that enable the integration of data from multiple sources for use in transportation management and performance measurement;
• Reduce costs of data management and eliminate technical and institutional barriers to the capture, management, and sharing of data

The Real-Time Data Capture and Management Program plays a key role supporting other connected vehicle initiatives identified in strategic plans in the areas of Safety, Mobility, and Environment. Many of these initiatives will require systematic capture and management of data over time to realize their objectives.”

First, according to the DOT’s page titled “Real-Time Data Capture and Management Program: Transforming the Federal Role” , is to give the Federal Government a strong role in the influencing and facilitating of enhanced data capture and management:

“The Real-Time Data Capture and Management Program seeks transformational change in the capture and management of data from surface transportation systems data. In particular, the program seeks to exploit potential opportunities in flexible and dynamic data communication between vehicles, infrastructure-based technologies, and mobile devices (i.e., transition from passive to active data capture). In addition the program wishes to explore transformational change enabled by providing travelers and decision-makers with a rich set of integrated data obtained in concert from the full complement of fixed and mobile entities in the transportation system (i.e., transition from single-source to multi-source data capture and management). In order to achieve these objectives, however, the program must also transform the mechanisms that allow researchers, public sector agencies, the private sector, and other interested parties controlled access to utilize and share data resources. The program envisions a strong federal role in influencing and facilitating enhanced data capture and management practices. This includes identifying and developing mechanisms to achieve program goals, in addition to fostering deployments and implementations consistent with the program’s vision.

The Real-Time Data Capture and Management Program, following the tenet “collect once, preserve, use many times,” supports the development of the broadest possible collection of applications and fully leverages federal research investment. This entails a move beyond traditional “collect, use once and neglect” data capture and management. For the Real-Time Data Capture and Management Program, this implies reconsidering all aspects of how public sector agencies (including the federal government) procures, acquires, captures, stores, manages, and shares data.”

Second part of the answer is in the Republican Transportation bill part (b) of Section 7016 where it says that the Federal Government will “expedite” and work with private corporations to ensure this technology is not only developed in cites and all over the country but installed in your car:

(b) Purposes- The Secretary shall implement activities under the intelligent system transportation program to, at a minimum–

`(1) expedite, in both metropolitan and rural areas, deployment and integration of intelligent transportation systems for consumers of passenger and freight transportation;
`(2) ensure that Federal, State, and local transportation officials have adequate knowledge of intelligent transportation systems for consideration in the transportation planning process;
`(3) improve regional cooperation and operations planning for effective intelligent transportation system deployment;
`(4) promote the innovative use of private resources;
`(5) facilitate, in cooperation with the motor vehicle industry, the introduction of vehicle-based safety enhancing systems;
`(6) support the application of intelligent transportation systems that increase the safety and efficiency of commercial motor vehicle operations;
`(7) develop a workforce capable of developing, operating, and maintaining intelligent transportation systems; and
`(8) provide continuing support for operations and maintenance of intelligent transportation systems.’.

So if we combined the data that will be collected through the Smart Grid and the data that will be collected through the Intelligent Transportation System we end up with a United States where the Government will know everything it’s citizens do 24 hours a day 7 days a week in Real Time no matter if they are at home, work or even driving around in their car. All thanks to the that ugly two headed monster…

The Democrat and Republican Parties…