A MODERN AMERICAN DECLARATION OF LIBERTY<
Please read, and if you are so disposed, sign and pass it on.
Posted on 06/30/2013 5:04:52 PM PDT by lee martell
After discovering that most (if not ALL) of our e-mail correspondence has been snooped on, recorded, categorized, collected and in some cases, harvested and monetized to the highest bidder, I'm probably not alone in thinking, this will be a huge benefit the U.S. Postal Service.
I would think that more people are thinking over the benefits of using good old snail mail, yes, physical mail, that most people can't be bothered with anymore. Of course, the NSA of whomever could spy on our letters too, but chances are, they will only photograph the front and the back of these pieces of social chatting unless there are clear reasons to de otherwise.
I miss writing letters. I generally don't because most people are not writers by nature, considering a thought, the putting thought to word and word to paper, a tedious exercise. In the days before computers, up to the late 1990's I used to have pen pals, actual pen pals in various parts of Europe. These contacts in France, Russia and Germany inspired me to study languages. I'm one of those quirky folks who considers learning the Cyrillic Alphabet (or trying to) as fun. We will see if the current boatload of white house scandals has any upward effect of letter writing. Who knows, maybe cursive writing will come back into vogue. Well, maybe. .
“Committees of Correspondence” - I hope I don’t get in trouble with the NSA for using that term...
Let them read my electronic email and listen to my calls this is not my America anymore. this is obumblers aMeriKa.
All snailmail letters are tracked. remember the little long sticker on the front of the envelope?
Write a letter? By hand? Can I print it or do I have to use my cracker letters?
The loon who sent “ricin” letters to Bloomberg was caught due to the letters being tracked back to a system that photographs envelopes as they move through sorting machines at specific locations.
While the system isn’t known to see inside the envelope, that technology does exist.
Please read, and if you are so disposed, sign and pass it on.
I wonder: how long until they have that integrated into the PRISM pipeline too?
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You can read all about it here, and in a million other places. The software is free. Note that the linked document is a manual that explains all functions of the software. There are manuals for beginners too, they only deal with what most users need.
Messages of this sort can be posted on publicly accessible message boards that do not track addresses, or that are based in free countries. Then, for all practical purposes, nobody can tell who posted what, and who read it, and who was able to decode the message.
The Mail Isolation Control and Tracking (MICT) program is only one of a few programs used to track snail mail.
Its actually a fairly simple program that uses a high speed digital camera to photograph front and back of all envelopes passing through some USPS hubs.
While the system isn’t known to see inside the envelope, that technology does exist.
Maybe the old steam open the envelop method that the Stasi used, as shown in the movie “The Lives of Others.”
Why not, Holder holds Markus Wolf in such high esteem.
IT BECAME TOO MAINSTREAM!
First, as one who has taken a few years of Russian language classes, be prepared to “unlearn what you have learned”, in regard to the Cyrillic alphabet. But, have fun, just the same.
(I took the classes as what were once called ‘electives’ in high school, in 1968, because I ‘knew’ that we would one day be doing business with them on the large scale.)
Now, as for actual handwriting, first the tools.
— A nice, simple not expensive fountain pen, with a ‘medium’ nib, filled by replaceable cartridges, filled with non-permanent ink. (If you decide, later, there is a lot more inks of note, and the filling mechnics to explore, should you get to the decision to continue with a fountain pen, or not.)
— Second, a published book on handwriting, in either the Palmerian or Spencerian style of writing, or a website, since we are so married to these machines:
http://www.iampeth.com/books/palmer_budget/palmers_budget_page17.html
The Palmerian style was also called American Business Writing, at one time.
I started with one of those fountain pens that used to hang on the pins in the supermarkets, years before the Millenium. I now own a nice elder Parker 45, and a Parker Jotter fountain pen. I still use the cartridges, even with ink reservoir inserts being available, should I wish to use different inks.
I wish you well.
Thanks Terry, You sound like a person of taste and refinement.
The first time I heard a street musician/panhandler refer to herself as a "busker", I got side cramps from laughing so hard. I asked her what it meant, and of course, she couldn't tell me...but that's what they call it in Portland.
Scouts Out! Cavalry Ho!
Ah, would that be Sheaffer? Did you ever try their Peacock Blue ink?
No, not a Schaeffer. I do remember quite a few Schaeffers, in quite of a few fellow classmates, in high school. I, also, did see quite a few ‘blue-spotted’ shirt pockets, too.
I was one of the contrary ones, using Flair pens, when I could get away with it, except in my Russian language class, it had to be ball-point.
My usage of a fountain pen came later, in the ‘90’s, and the pen I referred to, was the Parker Vector, with a ‘fine’ nib.
Since, I have latched onto a Parker Rialto, and a ‘45’.
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