this is one of THE most shocking things i have read in a long time

as is mentioned in corey's posting on boing boing and by some in the comments section,

what happens when those young children (most kids ARE underage in highschool) UNDRESS in front of their laptops? is that child porn? YOU EFFING BET IT IS. i hope the people responsible for making the decision to (allegedly) do this GET SUED MONETARILY AND LOSE SO THEY HAVE TO PAY UP AND I HOPE THEIR ASSES GET TOSSED IN THE SLAMMER FOR A GOOD LONG TIME.

what they (allegedly) did was illegal, immoral and just downright FUCKING DIRTY bid-nez

School used student laptop webcams to spy on them at school and home
By Cory Doctorow

According to the filings in Blake J Robbins v Lower Merion School District (PA) et al, the laptops issued to high-school students in the well-heeled Philly suburb have webcams that can be covertly activated by the schools' administrators, who have used this facility to spy on students and even their families. The issue came to light when the Robbins's child was disciplined for "improper behavior in his home" and the Vice Principal used a photo taken by the webcam as evidence. The suit is a class action, brought on behalf of all students issued with these machines.

If true, these allegations are about as creepy as they come. I don't know about you, but I often have the laptop in the room while I'm getting dressed, having private discussions with my family, and so on. The idea that a school district would not only spy on its students' clickstreams and emails (bad enough), but also use these machines as AV bugs is purely horrifying...............