If you think the "cash for clunkers" program is all sweetness and light, and that this is an example of the federal government helping the little guy, well, think again. Apart from the very questionable constitutional basis for the program (what Constitution? Anybody see a Constitution around here?) Glenn Beck of Fox News points out that the government operated website threatens your privacy, and claims to own your computer if you happen to click on the wrong link.

Critics claim that Beck is making a mountain out of a mole hill. One of these is blogger Chris Thomas who writes of Beck's concerns:

Beck pitches the entire story as if regular consumers are going to log on to the cars.gov website and, in the course of their use, encounter this message and blithely click “ok,” thereby giving the government’s jackbooted thugs the right to check out their financial spreadsheets and boost a copy of their porn collection.

That’s not going to happen.

An astute viewer of Beck’s expose might notice that the website that Beck is browsing is blue whereas the cars.gov website is green. This is no trick of the studio lights; though he never mentions it, what Beck is demonstrating only occurs on the dealer side of the website. The consumer side - the side that anyone who is not an automotive dealer will access - is green. What Beck demonstrates is not even something that a casual user of the site could stumble upon; they would have to go looking for it.

Thomas is right, as far as he goes. Most consumers will not be faced with a message telling them that their computer and everything on it is now the property of the U.S. government. But that doesn't really improve the situation at all. Car dealers, being the entities most affected, are still supposedly private entities -- and an affront to their privacy is really no improvement over an affront to the privacy of the average citizen.

Thomas makes the other valid point that "a quick Google Search turns up more than 800 instances of the “Any or all uses of this system and all files on this system…” verbiage on a collection of public and private sites." But, what does that do to make the overreach less harmful? Actually, it makes it worse because the chance that the average citizen is going to run afoul of one of these sites is greater simply because there are more of them.

Critics have some good points to make about this, primarily when they point out that those accessing government sites need to be aware of the conditions under which they access those sites, then proceed on a "buyer beware" basis.

But that still misses the problem, namely, that government has far exceeded its constitutional bounds. If it were kept within its legitimate sphere by the Constitution, and by a wary citizenry demanding fidelity to the nation's founding law, we wouldn't see programs like the recent bailouts, nationalizations, spying programs, and cash for clunkers, among many more. And, as a result, we wouldn't have to worry about the abuses of power these programs may enable.

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Mikey Pinkie-rings said:

	This is what balance looks like.... Thanks. Thank you, JBS staffers for this balanced article. It is not hyperbole, but truly balanced. I am impressed with the restraint you guys have in not trying to make mountains out of molehills, but just pointing out the mountains that are truly mountains. Keep up the good work.
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August 03, 2009
Votes: +2

danwhitehead1 said:

Somehow - - - - - - this "clunkers for cash" crap makes me think of those stupid machines one sees in the supermarkets that advertise: "turn in your coins for "cash" ". Even if I did have a clunker, I think I'd rather keep it than to turn it in for some paper that will most likely be utterly worthless very soon. The same for coins; at least they can be melted down and turned into something you might be able to use for self defense (unlike paper). Another good one is: "sell us your "unwanted" gold or silver". I'd much rather keep the metal, know what I mean? Who do you suppose is behind all these snake oil huckster type scams?

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August 03, 2009
Votes: +2

Derak J said:

hmm,, wait, does this mean that the website asks the car dealer for all this information? Does he not collect your financial info and lots of other personal info, name, address, phone, possibly credit references, job references, the title on previous car, which has much of this on it anyway. So if the dealer allowed full gov access to his records, there are your records! The dealer has the ability to give away all your personal info if this is the case, and he would have this info if the credit for the other car was through his dealership or possibly their preferred lender. And BTW, if you agree to a loan through the preferred or default lender, look for a bank that will give you lower interest. I got one that was ridiculous and replaced it to save thousands, and I was offered one by a Bob Rohrman tent sale that was completely insane in interest rate.

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August 07, 2009
Votes: +2

waking up said:

	So then what Can your name, with this financial information, be crossed reference to other data bases such political affiliation, pro or anti 2nd amendment, abortion, etc? Duh
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August 10, 2009 | url
Votes: +1