Measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 continue ramping up, providing new opportunities for states to unleash advanced surveillance technologies on the public.  
In Hawaii this year, the Honolulu Police Department employed a robotic dog from the company Boston Dynamics to patrol and monitor a homeless community. Equipped with cameras, two-way communication, artificial intelligence, and autonomous data collection capabilities, the robot scans eyes to <a href="https://www.wbur.org/news/2021/07/30/boston-dynamics-robots-honolulu-police">detect for fevers</a> — which could signal a person has COVID-19 — and interviews those who have tested positive. 
Lt. Joseph O’Neal from the Honolulu Police Department publicly supported the use of the robot dog at a media demonstration. He <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJR8aEal76E">stated,</a> “A person will ask for food. They will ask for water. They’ll ask for masks. These were all things that we had to do face to face with someone, and we could facilitate through the robot. And that was the reason for it.”
He also downplayed human rights concerns, claiming, “Ours is pure humanitarian, and we have not had a single person out there that’s said, ‘That’s scary, that’s worrisome.’ It’s more of a positive interaction. In no way is it intimidating.”
Citizens from New York felt otherwise when the Boston Dynamics robot was released in the city late last year. “I can’t believe what I’m seeing. It felt surreal … It scared me,” <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z4hQ87u6S40&amp;t=33s">stated</a> NYCHA President of the Resident Association Melanie Auchello, who witnessed the robot respond to a domestic dispute at the public housing complex.
Several New York politicians also spoke out when videos of the robot were released on social media. Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) noted the robot’s dystopic quality, <a href="https://apnews.com/article/robotic-police-dogs-e32e371e8776b8565f1a0f6491e55c29">stating,</a> “This is some Robocop stuff. This is crazy.” Following pushback against the department, the NYPD returned the dog to Boston Dynamics and <a href="https://www.gpb.org/news/2021/05/01/creepy-robot-dog-loses-job-new-york-police-department">terminated</a> its $94,000 contract.  
According to <a href="https://techstory.in/over-rs-25-lakhs-crowdfunded-on-impactguru-com-in-just-2-weeks-to-save-19-year-old-anant-from-one-of-the-deadliest-brain-cancer/">Techstory</a>, Boston Dynamics worked with the Pentagon and DARPA during its early years to research robot development for military use, but more recently Boston Dynamics has released robots to governments in other countries.
A robotic dog from Boston Dynamics patrolled a park in Singapore last year, using a camera to allow its controllers to observe park-goers from a remote location. It also <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2DJmIjKtVkA">played</a> a pre-recorded message to visitors, reminding them to social distance: “Let’s keep Singapore healthy. For your own safety and those around you, please stand at least one meter apart. Thank you.”
The robot was initially used as part of a two-week trial to help manage social distancing, but the Singapore government has since escalated the use of surveillance robots to patrol shopping centers to <a href="https://www.pharmaceutical-technology.com/research-reports/singapore-deploys-public-compliance-robots-2/">monitor</a> “undesirable social behaviors like flouting COVID-19 safety measures (not wearing masks), smoking in forbidden locations, and incorrect bicycle parking.&#8221; The Singapore government has <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/singapore-robots-patrol-police-undesirable-behavior-robocop/">claimed</a> the robots are helping address a labor shortage by reducing the number of officers required for foot patrol.
Although resistance against policing robots is more pervasive in the United States, labor shortages and vaccine mandates continue to impact labor markets and police departments across the nation.
 Expansion of artificially intelligent surveillance technologies could become more appealing to curb the spread of COVID-19, but during a discussion on “The Ethics of Surveillance Technology during a Global Pandemic,&#8221; Carr Center Fellow and Professor of Law Vivek Krishnamurthy <a href="https://carrcenter.hks.harvard.edu/files/cchr/files/200402c_covid_discussion_paper.pdf">warned</a> they’ll be difficult to scale back once employed:
<blockquote>My longer-term concern is that measures that are enacted to fight a crisis tend to become the “new normal” after the crisis has passed. We saw this in the U.S. with the vast expansion in government surveillance powers enacted after September 11, pursuant to laws that remain on the books nearly twenty years later. If past is precedent, then I fear that many of the new surveillance tools that have been deployed to fight the coronavirus are going to be with us well after the virus is vanquished.  </blockquote>

Plain Concepts Company Introduces Boston Dynamics’ Spot The Robot Dog

Hawaii Using Robot Dog To Patrol Homeless Community For Signs of COVID-19

COVID

Robots

As police officers and labor unions across the nation continue to fight vaccine mandates, many law enforcement officials are preparing to lose their jobs.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/police-officers-across-nation-fight-vaccine-mandates">The Daily Wire reported</a> Wednesday:
<blockquote>City employees in Chicago were required to report their vaccination status to the city on Friday, but more than 3,200 Chicago police officers were refusing to do so as of Monday, according to the police union. Chicago police officials warned last week that officers who refuse to comply with the vaccine mandate may face being disciplined or fired.</blockquote>
In response to Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s mandate, Sen. Mike Braun of Indiana <a href="https://twitter.com/SenatorBraun/status/1450588518888136704">stated</a> earlier this week that Chicago police officers who are at odds with the city’s order are welcome to serve Indiana. He followed up with a tweet Thursday, sharing an article from <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/indiana-invites-chicago-cops-to-move-to-state-were-hiring">The Daily Wire</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/SenatorBraun/status/1451261736644927492">stating</a>, “My office has already heard from many Chicago police interested in serving Hoosiers.<a href="https://twitter.com/charlibond_"> @charlibond_</a><a href="https://twitter.com/realDailyWire"> @realDailyWire</a>”.
With thousands of Chicago police officers refusing to comply with Lightfoot’s mandate, Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy shared similar sentiments as Sen. Braun in response to a headline from <a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/breaking/ct-vaccine-mandate-memo-fraternal-order-of-police-chicago-20211018-wmzako7jyzbuvdhn3bqdekguwu-story.html">Chicago Tribune</a>. The article reported on the city’s no-pay order for officers who are unwilling to disclose their vaccination status.
Gov. Dunleavy shared the article Wednesday and<a href="https://twitter.com/GovDunleavy"> tweeted</a>, “Across the country, members of law enforcement are being targeted &amp; even fired for refusing to either get vaccinated or disclose if they have been. Alaska&#8217;s law enforcement community invites you to consider the 49th state where we back the blue.”  
Gov. Dunleavy has stated he will not impose vaccine mandates for state employees, which could generate interest from troopers who are unwilling to comply with regulations in other states. According to <a href="https://www.adn.com/politics/2021/10/21/law-enforcement-officers-fired-under-lower-48-covid-19-vaccination-rules-are-welcomed-to-alaska/">Anchorage Daily News</a>:
<blockquote>Austin McDaniel, a spokesman for the Alaska Department of Public Safety, said the agency has seen an increase in ‘lateral trooper applications’ this year. Those are police officers in other departments who are interested in becoming troopers. He said it isn’t clear whether that’s because of vaccination mandates, but new statistics could be available by early December. He also confirmed that the department isn’t specifically targeting fired officers for recruitment but is willing to take their applications.</blockquote>
While Alaska and Indiana offer refuge to discharged cops from cities like Chicago — where reported incidents of violent crime are 149% <a href="https://www.areavibes.com/chicago-il/crime/">higher</a> than the national average — many officers may choose to leave the force entirely.
Media outlets are scoffing at the dilemma police officers are facing, with some <a href="https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/the-police-e2-80-99s-farcical-war-on-vaccine-mandates/ar-AAPQ3DW">calling</a> it “farcical”, but many law enforcement agents who have dedicated their lives to serving and protecting their cities have to make a painful decision to either get the jab or hang up their badges.
Former Police Sergeant David Gutierrez made that decision in September. He served nearly 30 years in the San Jose police department, but he resigned due to the vaccine requirement for all city employees. In an interview with <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qI9kOw4K6is">Fox News,</a> he stated, &#8220;I just want to thank God for giving me the strength to step out of my comfort zone.&#8221; He said the choice was “emotional” and “very difficult, especially after serving for that many years and putting on the uniform so many times.&#8221;

Chicago police shooting leaves at least 3 officers and suspect injured, authorities say

Alaska Now Welcomes Police Officers Who Defy Vaccine Mandates: ‘We Back The Blue’

Chicago Police

Police

Vaccine Mandate

From the president’s handling of Afghanistan to the economy, there are various reasons Biden’s overall job approval continues to <a href="https://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/other/president-biden-job-approval-7320.html">slump</a>, with only 42.8% of Americans approving of his performance as of October 20.
Approval of Biden’s immigration oversight is even worse, plummeting to 32.1% in average polling data taken from Sept. 15 to Oct. 18 (<a href="https://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/other/president-biden-job-approval-immigration-7359.html">compiled</a> from FOX News, Politico/Morning Consult, Grinnell/Selzer, Quinnipiac, The Hill/Harris, Economist/YouGov and Harvard-Harris).
Biden’s attempt at immigration reform has centered on tearing down Trump-era policies, which has included halting construction on the border wall and taking special aim at the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), also referred to as “Remain in Mexico”.
According to the <a href="https://www.dhs.gov/news/2019/01/24/migrant-protection-protocols">Department of Homeland Security (DHS)</a>, the MPP “are a U.S. Government action whereby certain foreign individuals entering or seeking admission to the U.S. from Mexico – illegally or without proper documentation – may be returned to Mexico and wait outside of the U.S. for the duration of their immigration proceedings, where Mexico will provide them with all appropriate humanitarian protections for the duration of their stay.”
The policy was implemented in January of 2019 and reviewed by the DHS in October of 2019. The <a href="https://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/publications/assessment_of_the_migrant_protection_protocols_mpp.pdf">assessment</a> found the “MPP has demonstrated operational effectiveness” and that over the first nine months following its implementation, “DHS has returned more than 55,000 aliens to Mexico under MPP. MPP has been an indispensable tool in addressing the ongoing crisis at the southern border and restoring integrity to the immigration system.”
Regardless of the favorable findings by the DHS, Biden took to social media to blast the MPP during his campaign, <a href="https://twitter.com/joebiden/status/1237893066981117956?lang=en">tweeting</a>, “Donald Trump&#8217;s ‘Remain in Mexico’ policy is dangerous, inhumane, and goes against everything we stand for as a nation of immigrants. My administration will end it.”
He made good on his promise to unlawfully suspend the successful policy early in his term, resulting in lawsuits from both Texas and Maine. The hearings concluded in August, with U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk<a href="https://ago.mo.gov/docs/default-source/press-releases/mpp.pdf?sfvrsn=f2722fb5_2"> finding</a> that the federal government “failed to consider several critical factors, including the benefits of the remain in Mexico policy” and ruling the Biden administration to “enforce and implement MPP in good faith until such a time as it has been lawfully rescinded in compliance with the [Administrative Procedure Act] APA”. 
Unfortunately, the injunction did not come soon enough to blunt the effects of Biden’s hasty attempts at immigration reform, which have resulted in one of the worst border crises the United States has ever experienced.
During the 2021 fiscal year, which ended in September, the U.S. Border Patrol <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/border-arrests-record-levels-2021/2021/10/19/289dce64-3115-11ec-a880-a9d8c009a0b1_story.html">detained</a> more than 1.7 million migrants on the southern border — the highest total ever recorded — yet just short of completely embarrassing Biden’s campaign <a href="https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-donald-trump-foreign-policy-delaware-wilmington-1149b07b899e0bb9b50b30348f0983d8">goal</a> to “make it better, not worse”, and to not move too quickly in reversing Trump’s policies — in order to avoid ending up with “2 million people on our border.”

Large Migration Surge Crosses Rio Grande Into Texas

Biden’s Failed Attempts At Immigration Reform Have Tanked His Approval Ratings

Border Crisis

Illegal Immigration

A 911 caller in Denver <a href="https://denver.cbslocal.com/2021/10/18/911-denver-on-hold-caller/">described</a> the experience as “terrifying” when her emergency call was left on hold. Karen Schuster dialed in to report a car accident and was answered by a pre-recorded message: “You have reached Denver 911 communications. Do not hang up. All call takers are currently busy. Please stay on the line for the next call taker.”
She anticipates she was on hold for two to three minutes, far surpassing nationwide standards, which require 90% of calls to be answered within 10 seconds, and 95% to be answered within 20 seconds. Schuster hung up and called back, only to receive the same disturbing message. “I was angry because I think this is a basic service that we should be having here in Denver as part of an emergency response,” she said.    
First responders eventually arrived after another witness on the scene was able to get through to an agent. But Schuster’s frightening experience is becoming more common throughout the city. In September, average callers to Denver 911 were kept on hold for 23 seconds, and over 1,000 emergency callers had to wait for a response for at least two minutes.  
Denver’s Director of Emergency Communications Andrew Dameron <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zLm0JomCFDg">shared</a> his concern with CBS Denver: “The possibility that even one person could wind up not getting the help they need in the time they need it absolutely makes me feel uncomfortable.”
Dameron’s discomfort reflects a growing shortage of emergency call center employees across the state and the nation. While 93 call center representatives are needed to adequately handle incoming emergency calls in Denver, only 61 call takers are currently working during a time the city is seeing a surge in emergency calls, averaging more than 181,000 calls each month — the highest volume in over five years.
It’s doubtful emergency response times and labor conditions will improve in the foreseeable future. Millions of jobs remain unfilled across the nation, with a record-breaking number of employees who <a href="https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/JTSQUL">quit</a> jobs in September (i.e., 4.3 million). That number includes many 911 agents who left due to high job stress and low pay. With vaccine mandates spreading throughout all industries and states, exacerbated staffing shortages continue to loom on the horizon.
As of Sept. 30, Denver’s mandate for employees to be fully vaccinated went into effect, impacting city and county workers and those who work in “high-risk settings” (including healthcare and education employees). According to <a href="https://kdvr.com/news/coronavirus/covid-19-vaccine/denver-vaccine-mandate-police-fire-sheriff-quit-fired/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://kdvr.com/news/coronavirus/covid-19-vaccine/denver-vaccine-mandate-police-fire-sheriff-quit-fired/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1634849326543000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFja4gkN5GQVo-34zo8RnTNIzVpKA">Fox31 Denver,</a> “The number of sworn [first responder] personnel in Denver who resigned or retired over the employee vaccine mandate totals 27”, and “Another 34 employees face possible discipline for not complying with the mandate &#8230;”
Discipline hearings were set to begin last week, which could result in further terminations. Even if the additional loss of employees is marginal, it’s clear that the city is not in a position to lose any more of its emergency responders.

The San Francisco 911 Emergency Call Center on Mon. July 31, 2017 in San Francisco, Ca.

Denver 911 Call Center Is In Critical State, Emergency Callers Are Left On Hold As Vaccine Mandate Discipline Looms

Denver

The woke revolution eats its own, yet again. This time, it’s happening in the halls of one of the world’s oldest and most esteemed universities. The University of Cambridge is home to a vast library of literary treasures — from ancient Sumerian texts to rare editions of Shakespearian poetry. It now also stewards a university student union-published <a href="https://www.cambridgesu.co.uk/resources/guides/spottingterfideology/">guide</a> that teaches students how to identify trans-exclusionary radical feminists (TERFs).
As defined by the guide, TERFs hold “a conservative, binary, essentialist conception of sex as the be-all-end-all, and a deep hatred for trans women, couched in the language of feminism and feminist theory” and that “there should be no room for transphobia or TERFs in feminist organizing.”
The document, which has been<a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2021/10/13/backlash-cambridge-uni-womens-officer-issues-terf-spotting-guide/?li_source=LI&amp;li_medium=liftigniter-rhr"> labeled</a> a “witch-finder’s charter” by Cambridge Professor James Orr, was released just days after Professor of Philosophy Kathleen Stock from University of Sussex was targeted by protests and campaigns led by a group of non-binary, trans, and queer students.
The anonymous group launched a protest and accompanying social media campaign to rally for her dismissal, triggering a flood of online threats and abuse toward Stock. The protest stemmed from outrage over her feminist position that has been labeled “transphobic,&#8221; including a<a href="https://fairplayforwomen.com/kathleen/"> statement</a> of concern for the safety of women in the U.K., where “genitally-intact male trans women who self-declare as ‘women’ already have access to some women-only spaces: prisons, hostel dormitories, sleeper carriages, changing rooms.”
University officials have come to Stock’s <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/education-58841887">defense</a> and advocated for rights to free speech, but she has stated that she feels uncertain of her future and safety. As she reported to <a href="https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/inside-the-cloak-and-dagger-campaign-against-kathleen-stock-6rcdpm855">The Times</a>, “[The police] have advised me to have cameras on my front door. They have given me advice about moving around. They have put a marker on my phone, if I phone 999 there is an automatic call-out to my house.”
Professor Stock has now joined the ranks of other so-called TERFs, such as J. K. Rowling, and most recently,<a href="https://www.foxnews.com/media/handmaids-tale-author-outrages-liberals-column-women-erasure"> Margaret Atwood</a>. While these women do not self-identify as TERFs, a section from the Cambridge guide titled “Spotting TERFs in the Field” points out, “Most TERFs don’t call themselves TERFs”, ironically paralleling “misgendered” trans people who don’t call themselves as some people refer to them.
The guide further explains, “TERFs will refer to issue of trans people in bathrooms or changing rooms as being about ‘predators’ and co-opt the language of sexual violence to refer to trans people existing in public spaces.”
Philosophy of Religion Professor James Orr has drawn a comparison between Cambridge’s “How to Spot TERF Ideology” and a guide for hunting witches:
<blockquote>This is an extremely sinister development, and it is effectively incentivizing behavior among students that is wholly opposed to the flourishing of any serious intellectual culture. These are perfectly plausible and defensible positions to hold. Not immoral and not even close to being unlawful and should be able to be expressed freely, especially if you think they are wrong. How long before people wake up to this crisis?</blockquote>

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Jenna Tobin

Hawaii Using Robot Dog To Patrol Homeless Community For Signs of COVID-19

Alaska Now Welcomes Police Officers Who Defy Vaccine Mandates: ‘We Back The Blue’

Biden’s Failed Attempts At Immigration Reform Have Tanked His Approval Ratings

Denver 911 Call Center Is In Critical State, Emergency Callers Are Left On Hold As Vaccine Mandate Discipline Looms

Elite University Student Union Pushes ‘Transphobia’ Witch Hunt, Releases Guide For Spotting ‘Trans-Exclusionary Radical Feminists’