Friday, September 13, 2002

Culture News from Wired News - Warm Party for a Code Group. Back in the early 1990s, a loose association of "cypherpunks" went head to head with the National Security Agency over encryption rights. Ten years later, the cypherpunks live on -- as suspicious and hostile as ever. And they're having a party. [Privacy Digest]     dennisRadio Encouragement  [] 1:40:47 PM      The Associated Press via NJ.com: Advocates argue over how much privacy genetic information should get in future . As scientists make daily advances with the human genetic code, Congress should act now to prevent Americans from facing genetic discrimination from employers and insurers, privacy advocates say. Genetic research could make it possible to identify an individual's lifetime risk of cancer, heart attack and other diseases. But that same information also could be used by employers for hiring, firing or promotions, or by insurance companies to determine how much to charge for their services or to deny coverage completely, privacy advocates said Thursday. But health and insurance advocates say there is no proof that anyone would do this, and lawmakers would be moving far ahead of reality by banning the use of genetic information. That statement is not quite true as you can see from an article referenced in our May 09,2002 issue. Political News from Wired News (May 09,2002 from our archive)- Milestone Settlement in DNA Case. Burlington Northern Santa Fe agreed Wednesday to pay $2.2 million to settle charges of illegally testing workers for genetic defects in the government's first case against workplace DNA discrimination. While the company, one of the country's biggest railroads, denies it violated the law, the case was a milestone in the brave new world of medical privacy battles and DNA-based job discrimination. The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, or EEOC, had charged Burlington Northern with genetically testing or seeking to test 36 employees -- mostly track workers who said they had job-related carpal tunnel syndrome -- without their knowledge as part of a comprehensive diagnostic exam. The EEOC also charged that employees who refused to take the test faced possible discipline. [Privacy Digest]     dennisRadio Encouragement  [] 1:36:50 PM

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License. © Copyright 2003 Larry Boy aka Dennis S. Last update: 6/4/2003; 12:05:35 AM. This theme is based on the SoundWaves (blue) Manila theme.