20,555
edits
Changes
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
SW: →The Chamber and large corporations: - add section
In 2010, chambers in San Antonio, New York, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut began publicly moving away from the U.S. Chamber, disavowing the 2010 political attack ads that the U.S. Chamber had been broadcasting in their communities. Newer chambers, like the South Carolina Small Business Chamber of Commerce, have declined to affiliate with the national group and have been among its most vocal critics: "They get the majority of their funding from big businesses. That's who drives their decisions," explains Executive Director Frank Knapp, noting that, unlike the U. S. Chamber, his group supported the health care bill and financial reform, and favors legislation to curb [[global warming]].<ref name=sm/>
==Alleged spying on critics==
In 2010, [[Aaron Barr]], CEO of the technology security company [[HBGary]] Federal, alleged that he could exploit social media to gather information about hackers like those who supported [[WikiLeaks]]. In early 2011, Barr claimed to have used his techniques to infiltrate the [[Wikileaks]] supporter [[Anonymous]], partly by using IRC, Facebook, Twitter, and social networking sites. His e-mails depict his intention to release information on the identities of Anonymous members and to sell it to possible clients.<ref name="arstechnicacom1">
[http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2011/02/how-one-security-firm-tracked-anonymousand-paid-a-heavy-price.ars How one man tracked down Anonymous - and paid a heavy price] By Nate Anderson, updated 2-10-2011, Ars Technica, retr 2011-02-11
</ref> In early February of 2011, the activist group [[Anonymous]] hacked the firm's website, copied tens of thousands of documents from HBGary, posted tens of thousands of company emails online, and usurped Barr's Twitter account.<ref name="arstechnicacom2">
{{cite web| last=Bright|first=Peter| title=Anonymous speaks: the inside story of the HBGary hack| url=http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2011/02/anonymous-speaks-the-inside-story-of-the-hbgary-hack.ars/ |work=Law & Disorder: Tech Law and Policy in the Digital Age |publisher=Ars Technica| accessdate=18 February 2011| location=San Francisco| date=2011-02-15}}</ref>
According to some of HBGary's e-mails, the [[Chamber of Commerce]] hired the lobbying firm [[Hunton & Williams]], and attorneys for the law firm then solicited a set of private security firms — HB Gary Federal, Palantir, and Berico Technologies (collectively called Team Themis) — to develop a sabotage campaign against progressive groups and labor unions, including the group [[ThinkProgress]], the labor coalition [[Change to Win]], the labor union [[SEIU]], [[U.S. Chamber Watch]], and [[StopTheChamber.com]]. Later emails revealed that the private spy company investigated the families and children of the Chamber’s political opponents. The apparent spearhead of this project was Aaron Barr, who circulated numerous emails and documents detailing information about political opponents’ children, spouses, and personal lives.<ref>Joseph Romm, [http://climateprogress.org/2011/02/13/shocker-chamber-of-commerce-lobbyists-solicited-firm-to-investigate-opponents’-families-children/ "Bombshell: Chamber of Commerce lobbyists solicited firm to investigate opponents’ families, children"] ThinkProgress, Feb. 13, 2011.</ref>
On February 10, 2011, the Chamber of Commerce issued a statement denying they hired HBGary,<ref name="commerce1">
{{cite web| last=Collamore |first=Tom| title=More Baseless Attacks on the Chamber| url=http://www.chamberpost.com/2011/02/more-baseless-attacks-on-the-chamber/| publisher=US Chamber of Commerce| accessdate=18 February 2011| work=Chamber Post |location=Washington | date=2011-02-10}}
</ref> calling the allegation a "baseless smear", and blaming the [[Center for American Progress]] and its blog, [[ThinkProgress]] for "the illusion of a connection between HBGary, its CEO Aaron Barr and the Chamber."<ref name="commerce2">
{{cite web| last=Collamore |first=Tom| title=Another Smear from the Center for American Progress| url=http://www.chamberpost.com/2011/02/another-smear-from-the-center-for-american-progress/| publisher=US Chamber of Commerce| accessdate=18 February 2011| work=Chamber Post |location=Washington | date=2011-02-11}}
</ref>
==Affiliated centers / organizations==
