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Category Archives: Congress

An Aggressive Supreme Court Reshapes the US as Its Standing Erodes

Bloomberg – free link: “A conservative supermajority is remaking US laws on the environment, health and firearms, even as public confidence declines and ethical questions grow. The Supreme Court, in the midst of a run of decisions that have stress-tested the core principles of US democracy, has rarely been so aggressive in using its powers —… Continue Reading

How AI could take over elections and undermine democracy

Via LLRX – How AI could take over elections and undermine democracy – Archon Fung, Professor of Citizenship and Self-Government, Harvard Kennedy School, and Lawrence Lessig, Professor of Law and Leadership, Harvard University, pose the question: “Could organizations use artificial intelligence language models such as ChatGPT to induce voters to behave in specific ways? Sen. Josh… Continue Reading

Humans Are Biased. Generative AI Is Even Worse

Bloomberg Opinion [alt free link] – Stable Diffusion’s text-to-image model amplifies stereotypes about race and gender — here’s why that matters: “The world according to Stable Diffusion is run by White male CEOs. Women are rarely doctors, lawyers or judges. Men with dark skin commit crimes, while women with dark skin flip burgers. Stable Diffusion… Continue Reading

Freedom of speech and LGBT rights: Americans’ views of issues in Supreme Court case

“A majority of Americans think business owners should be able to refuse to provide services in situations where providing them may “suggest support for beliefs about lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender (LGBT) issues” to which they have personal or religious objections, according to a new Pew Research Center survey. In earlier surveys, the public has… Continue Reading

An interactive guide to rights the Supreme Court has established and could take away

ProPublica – Supreme Risk – “Last summer, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the constitutional right to abortion established 50 years ago in Roe v. Wade, raising concerns about the future of other rights rooted in Supreme Court rulings. Although most rights are secured by statutes and regulations, others are guarantees extrapolated by the court from… Continue Reading

ISOO Publishes its FY 2022 Annual Report to the President

“Today, ISOO published its FY 2022 Annual Report to the President. Each year, ISOO reports to the President on the implementation of the Classified National Security Information (CNSI) and Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) programs, following requirements in Executive Orders 13526 and 13556. These Reports summarize ISOO’s oversight activities and make key recommendations that seek to… Continue Reading

How AI could take over elections and undermine democracy

Via LLRX – How AI could take over elections and undermine democracy – Archon Fung, Professor of Citizenship and Self-Government, Harvard Kennedy School, and Lawrence Lessig, Professor of Law and Leadership, Harvard University, pose the question: “Could organizations use artificial intelligence language models such as ChatGPT to induce voters to behave in specific ways? Sen.… Continue Reading

Generative Artificial Intelligence and Data Privacy: A Primer

Congressional Research Service (CRS) – Generative Artificial Intelligence and Data Privacy. A Primer May 23, 2023: “Since the public release of Open AI’s ChatGPT, Google’s Bard, and other similar systems, some Members of Congress have expressed interest in the risks associated with “generative artificial intelligence (AI).” Although exact definitions vary, generative AI is a type… Continue Reading

Why voters who value democracy participate in democratic backsliding

Nature Human Behavior, Accepted: 3 April 2023. Why voters who value democracy participate in democratic backsliding “Around the world, citizens are voting away the democracies they claim to cherish. Here we present evidence that this behaviour is driven in part by the belief that their opponents will undermine democracy first. In an observational study (N… Continue Reading

A Democracy Crisis In The Making: June 2023 Edition

States United Democracy Center, Democracy Foward, Law Forward report – A Democracy Crisis In The Making: June 2023 Edition: Key Takeaways: 38 states are considering 185 bills that would make it easier to overturn the will of the voters — and harder for trusted election officials to do their jobs. At least eight states have… Continue Reading

How AI could take over elections and undermine democracy

Archon Fung, Professor of Citizenship and Self-Government, Harvard Kennedy School and Lawrence Lessig, Professor of Law and Leadership, Harvard University – The Conversation: “…Imagine that soon, political technologists develop a machine called Clogger – a political campaign in a black box. Clogger relentlessly pursues just one objective: to maximize the chances that its candidate –… Continue Reading

Short Supply – The Health and National Security Risks of Drug Shortages

U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs – Majority Staff Report, Short Supply – The Health and National Security Risks of Drug Shortages – March 2023: “Shortages of critical medications continue to rise—including drugs used in hospital emergency rooms and to treat cancer, prescription medications, and even common over-the-counter treatments like children’s cold… Continue Reading