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"The American Civil Liberties Union of Washington today [12/10/02] said it is offering free legal advice to booksellers in the state who receive subpoenas or search warrants seeking disclosure of customer purchase records. [...]

"The ACLU’s action comes in response to the USA PATRIOT Act, which has given federal law enforcement agencies new tools to demand records from booksellers. Passed in 2001, the PATRIOT Act empowers the government to obtain records of a person’s book purchases as part of an intelligence investigation, without evidence that the buyer is suspected of committing a crime.

"In recent years, there has been an increase in subpoenas to bookstores demanding evidence about customers’ reading habits. In one notable incident, Special Prosecutor Kenneth Starr demanded that Barnes & Noble and Kramerbooks in Washington, DC divulge information regarding all purchases by Monica Lewinsky. Booksellers in Washington state, ranging in size from Amazon.com to the small Arundel Books in Seattle, have received subpoenas to disclose customer records."

Given the amount of Amazon and other bookselling that takes place through blog referral commerce, and the extensive electronic identity residues that remain, it makes sense for every person who reads or writes a blog to support the efforts of the ACLU.

Noted at the invaluable TalkLeft.

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