BY JAMES WERNICKE
Candidate for
Los Alamos County Council

Los Alamos Libertarian candidates Chris Luchini and James Wernicke will host a candidate meet & greet and free screening of the Academy Award-winning documentary Citizenfour on Wednesday, Sept. 30 at 6:00 p.m. at SALA. Luchini is running for County Assessor and Wernicke is a candidate for County Council.

Admission is free and everyone is welcome.

Directed by Laura Poitras, Citizenfour documents Edward Snowden’s 2013 disclosure of NSA surveillance programs and raises enduring questions about privacy, government power, and the tradeoffs made in the name of public safety.

Those questions have become increasingly relevant in Los Alamos as the County pursues automated license plate readers and other technologies that routinely collect, retain, and potentially share information about people who are not suspected of crimes, despite strong public opposition.

Luchini and Wernicke believe public safety is important, but they question whether the benefits of continuous surveillance outweigh the financial cost, loss of privacy, potential for misuse, and the effect pervasive monitoring can have on the relationship between citizens and their government.

Come meet the candidates and join the conversation.