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To all of our readers who are tax evaders living in Greece, the gig may be up. That is right. The Greek government is using Google Earth to find tax evaders. How will they do this? Very easily. They are using Google Earth to see people who have pools, and Villas and other stuff that they’ve been lying about on their taxes for years. Yesterday, we included a story in on our Monday Morning News Kick Off post about the use of Google Earth to find unpermitted swimming pools in a Long Island town. So, the government is using GEOINT to help increase its revenue. So, what is the lesson learned here? Perhaps pay your taxes and get a permit for your pool. It’s that simple.

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Welcome to the Monday Morning News Kick Off post from got geoint? We hope everyone enjoyed their downtime this past weekend. As always, we have pulled together all the actionable news you need to kick start the work week. Once again, we have a mix of stories from the latest on WikiLeaks to an innovative use of Google Earth: to track down unpermitted backyard swimming pools. So, as we always say, fire up that second cup of coffee and read on.

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Welcome to the Monday Morning News Kick Off post from got geoint? As always, we hope everyone had a restful weekend and are geared up for a productive work week. What does this week have in store for us? Well, our crystal ball is a bit fuzzy this morning, but we expect it won’t be as crazy as last week — with the Washington Post story, Clapper confirmation hearing and more — but one never knows. We do know that this weeks MMNKO post has some very compelling news — from more Clapper confirmation news to a story of a meteorite crater being found via Google Earth. So, as we always say, fire up that second cup of coffee and read on!

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Leave it to Google Earth to create a 3-D tour of pretty much anything that is current or happening in sports or popular culture. So, with the World Cup around the corner, guess what they are up to? If you said, developing a 3-D tour of all 10 World Cup stadiums and the nine host cities on Google Earth or Earth View in Google Maps, you are correct. Google is also providing Street View images of seven of the 10 stadiums. So, for all of you rabid soccer fans out there who can’t make it to South Africa for the World Cup, you can at least see all the stadiums in 3-D. And, be sure to check out the video from Google we have embedded into this post. Oh, and go USA!

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The National Sept. 11 Memorial & Museum and Google Earth have partnered to allow online visitors to the World Trade Center site will be able to explore the actual site via 3-D. Museum officials announced today that the 3-D model will help the public visualize the memorial and its lower Manhattan setting. With the new tool, visitors will be able to zoom in and look at each tree and cobblestone or zoom out and look at the entire project. “The ability to visualize the memorial in its geographic context even before it is constructed is key to understanding its place in New York City’s landscape,” Bruce Polderman, product manager for Google, said in a news release. Check out the Google Earth tool here. And, read more from the NY Times here.

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In what many are calling an innovative way for showcasing the magnitude of the oil devastating oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, Google Earth is using data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to created an overlay that can display the current oil spill over any region (NYC region pictured). Google Earth expert Paul Rademacher has built a convenient Web site using the Google Earth plug-in that allows users to place the overlay on any region for comparison. Not that we need to see an overlay of the oil spill over our home towns to know that this is a serious problem. Speaking of serious problem, it is estimated that 3.5 million gallons of oil have leaked into the Gulf of Mexico since the April 20 disaster with 210,000 more gallons entering the water each day. And, by Father’s Day, this leak is expected to surpass the Exxon Valdez disaster as the nation’s worst oil spill.

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Here’s a word to the wise when it comes to ditching an old boat, or car for that matter. Think twice. Google Earth is now being used by law enforcement for collecting evidence when it comes to dumping old “assets.” Last month, it was reported that a Florida deputy sheriff used a satellite image from Google Earth to track down the owner of a 1-ton boat who had illegally dumped it in a vacant lot. The suspect was arrested on a felony charge of littering more than 500 pounds of waste and faces a maximum penalty of $5,000 and five years in prison. So, if you are thinking about offloading that old broken down barnacle barge, rather than ditching it in a vacant lot, perhaps just give it to your brother-in-law?

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By documenting satellite images of the earth, as well as images from the street, Google Earth and Google Street View often stumble upon some pretty interesting things. Do you recall our story last year about Google Street View capturing an image of Oasis frontman, Liam Gallagher, enjoying a pint of beer outside of a local pub in north London. Of course, he would be enjoying a pint of beer – he is a rock star. That is what they do! What is amazing is that Google Street View captured him in the act. Well, it seems that many in the UK are “throwing a wobbly” (that’s British slang expression for pitching a fit, in case you did not know) about how Google Earth has captured some critical football matches. Of course, we are not talking about good old fashioned Joe Namath-style American football. We are talking about soccer — yes, very confusing. Check out this Guardian UK story. Of course, it is impossible to tell the score of the game, but you all just wait. One day, we all will be able to watch the Super Bowl in real time from streaming satellite imagery. All in due time… And, check out this blog post from Spatial Law and Policy about the EU potentially being short-sighted when it comes to Google Street View. Perhaps Liam Gallagher complained about having his image on Street View??

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Once again, Google Earth is breaking boundaries, and it ties in well with our recent FFT post about the history of GEOINT. Google Earth has now made available historical aerial images taken during the Second World War depicting the extent of the devastation in several European Cities caused by bombing raids during World War II. The Google Earth mapping software has been uploaded with the wartime images from 35 European cities and towns such as Berlin, Bordeaux, Hamburg, Cologne and Dresden, showing the effect of the extensive bombing campaigns on the old continent. These images clearly display the destruction of allied bombing raids, then offers current satellite photos for comparison. Check out the Google blog here for more information, and also be sure to check out the actual images here.

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USGIF member company GeoEye announced yesterday that it has partnered with Google Earth and has made available satellite images of the aftermath of the Haiti earthquake. The devastating earthquake hit Haiti on Monday has caused untold property damaged and casualties. As we posted yesterday, GEOINT plays a critical role in natural disasters and GeoEye is certainly helping by providing the data and imagery needed to assess the situation. And, as Admiral Murrett said “GEOINT saves lives.” Along those lines, the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) announced its efforts on the Haiti front. And, finally, USGIF member company FortiusOne has been busy updating its public site with quake and demographic data. To learn more about FortiusOne’s efforts click here.

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