This greatly disturbs me and I am sure many others.  It would seem there is a never-ending assault on the liberties of Americans.  Every step taken towards regulating or securing the internet, especially in regards to an Identification system, is most definitely a step towards building a database.

What load of nonsense and lies...when they say below that "There's no chance that "a centralized database will emerge," and "we need the private sector to lead the implementation of this"

Ya right!  Whatever!  And not only this...but they want us...the private sector...to lead implementation of this system.  That is like the doomed making their own coffins so that they are sure it fits right after they are shot on the firing line.  Give me a break!  We have to say no to this as long as possible.

I should add that this does not come as a surprise that surveillance and security are beginning to ratchet up.  The final pieces have to be put into place if we are to live in the times of the last days where a world government is able to set up total hegemony over all information and data created by it's citizens or serfs.

They will use it for control and monitoring.  We will be forced to sign onto the system before we post anything...and eventually whatever we post (if not already) will be used as information against us...as they determine it should be used.

It's like the redcoats all over again...except this time they have a lot more power in your personal business and desire to control your dissenting thoughts.

I am not anti-government...but I am anti Orwellian government.  I have no desire to live in a society that is monitored by a controlling, and godless ruling class.  But where can one go to escape this ridiculous and overbearing beast of a government.

We must stand and stop the assault on liberty...at least be aware of what they are doing, so we can continue to have the liberty that is the profound building block of American principles.

The Strong Watchman

Original Article at: cbsnews.com

STANFORD, Calif. - President Obama is planning to hand the U.S. Commerce Department authority over a forthcoming cybersecurity effort to create an Internet ID for Americans, a White House official said here today

It's "the absolute perfect spot in the U.S. government" to centralize efforts toward creating an "identity ecosystem" for the Internet, White House Cybersecurity Coordinator Howard Schmidt said.

That news, first reported by CNET, effectively pushes the department to the forefront of the issue, beating out other potential candidates including the National Security Agency and the Department of Homeland Security. The move also is likely to please privacy and civil liberties groups that have raised concerns in the past over the dual roles of police and intelligence agencies.

The announcement came at an event today at the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research, where U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke and Schmidt spoke.

The Obama administration is currently drafting what it's calling the National Strategy for Trusted Identities in Cyberspace, which Locke said will be released by the president in the next few months. (An early version was publicly released last summer.)

"We are not talking about a national ID card," Locke said at the Stanford event. "We are not talking about a government-controlled system. What we are talking about is enhancing online security and privacy and reducing and perhaps even eliminating the need to memorize a dozen passwords, through creation and use of more trusted digital identities."

The Commerce Department will be setting up a national program office to work on this project, Locke said.

Details about the "trusted identity" project are unusually scarce. Last year's announcement referenced a possible forthcoming smart card or digital certificate that would prove that online users are who they say they are. These digital IDs would be offered to consumers by online vendors for financial transactions.

Schmidt stressed today that anonymity and pseudonymity will remain possible on the Internet. "I don't have to get a credential if I don't want to," he said. There's no chance that "a centralized database will emerge," and "we need the private sector to lead the implementation of this," he said.

Inter-agency rivalries to claim authority over cybersecurity have exited ever since many responsibilities were centralized in the Department of Homeland Security as part of its creation nine years ago. Three years ago, proposals were were circulating in Washington to transfer authority to the secretive NSA, which is part of the U.S. Defense Department.

In March 2009, Rod Beckstrom, director of Homeland Security's National Cybersecurity Center, resigned through a letter that gave a rare public glimpse into the competition for budgetary dollars and cybersecurity authority. Beckstrom said at the time that the NSA "effectively controls DHS cyber efforts through detailees, technology insertions," and has proposed moving some functions to the agency's Fort Meade, Md., headquarters.