http://travel.yahoo.com/p-interests-24971907
Having no money can have its advantages.
One government file I’m not in.
Ralph
Government surveillance is not really the problem. Your credit card company knows far more about you, and has you under far more pervasive surveillance, than the government. The govt. is subject to some regulation when it engages in surveillance, altough the Bush admin. ignored most of it. But credit card companies, credit reporting agencies, and retailers are subject to far less regulation.
Have you ever had a situation where you make a purchase that’s unusual, and the credit card company calls you, to see if your card was stolen? Your purchases are under surveillance. Modern cars record the speed, direction, break usage etc. as you drive, so if you have an accident, the insurance company can judge whether or not to pay (http://www.harristechnical.com/cdr.htm). Your car has you under surveillance. Besides every store you go into, every ATM, having cameras, your cell phone, Your web browser–they are all reporting back what you do and what you like and what you think, so manufacturers can more closely target you with products.
I worry abut govt. surveillance, but it pails compared to what private industry does
We need to put the credit card companies in charge of Homeland Security and Immigration and Naturalization Service.
David Hill said:That would mean two more phone calls at dinner time. Ralph
We need to put the credit card companies in charge of Homeland Security and Immigration and Naturalization Service.
In the past I worked for a small software company that most people considered Big Brother. You wouldn’t believe the amount of information that exists in databases all around the world about YOU. Very scary stuff if it got into the wrong hands. We did work for private companies that specialized in collecting data on Joe Blow public and reselling it to corporate America or anyone else with cash flow.
Jon.
If you use EZ Pass or any other RF-ID tag for automatic toll collection you are being tracked when traveling by road as well. There are Tag Readers all along the highways (at least in the in the North East), not just at the toll barriers. The time will come when this technology will also be used to calculate sped and issue tickets.
Ralph Berg said:Press #2 for English.David Hill said:That would mean two more phone calls at dinner time. Ralph
We need to put the credit card companies in charge of Homeland Security and Immigration and Naturalization Service.
One called me last night, and put me on hold for the next operator.
Some of the politicos in the Great State of California are proposing to require linked GPS systems in cars. They would track the mileage (and therefore position) of a vehicle and tax would be charged for the amount of mileage and type of road used. Talk about government intrusion!
Mike expressed more concern about what information financial and commercial institutions have than what government has. I don’t like anyone tracking my finances, purchases, whereabouts, or communications, but it is now a fact of today’s life. While I don’t like either one, I am much more concerned about the government gathering of information than the corporate gathering of information.
The government has the ability and authority to come get you and make you disappear for whatever reason they choose. Amazon still can’t break your door down at 5:00am. The major difference in my opinion, is whether you believe in the sovereignty of individual rights or in the absolute authority of the government.
Happy RRing,
Jerry
The government’s authority is constitutionally limited. We have the right to protection from undue search and seizure. Govt. needs a warrant. Sure, that authority is sometimes abused, which is what the ACLU is for…
We are in an odd place right now vis a vis privacy. Credit agencies know far more about us than the govt., and what they know if far more important, you could argue, in the sesen that it touches more closely on who think we are as individuals. Amazon knows a lot about my likes and dislikes, so much so that if I ask them to recommend books to me, their recommendations are amazingly good. They then sell that info to other retailers. In a sense they are selling my property, since property in self is the foundation of individualism. You could argue I voluntarily gave them that info when I used their website. Maybe so. You could argue that in exchange for giving up my privacy, I get way better shopping opportunities. That’s a very different sense of the relationship between individualism and individual rights than we started out with in 1776
Jon Radder said:RFID's are just now starting to get press but they have been in use for years and years and years. One of the first industries to use RFID's was the tire industry. They've been used so long it's safe to say that 100% of the tires on the road today have tags in them.
If you use EZ Pass or any other RF-ID tag for automatic toll collection you are being tracked when traveling by road as well. There are Tag Readers all along the highways (at least in the in the North East), not just at the toll barriers. The time will come when this technology will also be used to calculate sped and issue tickets.
Jon.