Did you know that??? Google Maps knows....

[BILL WARD]

They know exactly where we've all been! That's creepy!


nah mate. the CREEPY piece is "what are they doing with it" !!!!!!!!!

[Rick Granick]

I use a lot of the current technologies, but I do feel a little of what Mar feels. With data storage getting cheaper all the time, as much information as can be collected will be collected and saved. Most of the time, for most of us, this is probably not a problem. My concern is the potential for selective use of this information to punish people who upset the status quo.
Rick

[Bill Henry-]

Senators Chuck Schumer-D, and Lindsey Graham-R are cosponsoring a bill to make biometric cards mandatory for all U. S. citizens. The rationale is to prevent undocumented, illegal aliens from being able to get jobs. Under their bill, all U. S. citizens would have to be fingerprinted and show the card when apply for employment.

Gee, wouldn't microchips implanted in our bodies be more efficient and less prone to tampering? It's for our own good, after all.

[Framar]

Google is just the tip of the proverbial iceberg.

[Rick Granick]

I wonder if the proverbial iceberg is kept in a giant freezer in the basement of the Library of Congress.
Rick

[Pat Murphey]

I used to think that the plethora of information out there imposed a form of privacy because no one could find things in buried in the overwhelming volume. Google is demonstrating that with today's software and computing power that information can be sorted and displayed in ways never dreamed of a few years ago. Something to think about, because the data being "out there" ship has sailed.

[Rick Granick]

The sheer volume can create a needle-in-a-haystack situation for the watchers. The FBI has complained about having to search through a lot of calls to order pizzas etc. However, as you point out, software refinements continue to make the process easier. Maybe the worst potential consequence for most of us will be a bombardment of targeted ads. But maybe not.

As I said, my concern is the potential for selective use of information to punish people who upset the status quo... We all do things which could, if desired, be exaggerated through media exposure or otherwise into annoying, or reputation-destroying, career-endangering publicity. While I have no direct evidence to support it I can't help but believe that, for instance, Elliot Spitzer's behavior was known and kept in abeyance until he started actively warning about the financial shenanigans that were causing the disaster-to-come with the economy.

J. Edgar Hoover was well-known for keeping "gotcha" files on people for potential abuse in selective enforcement.

I believe that well-connected corporate interests have far too much control over the political process (as is amply demonstrated by the current inability of the process to protect some semblance of a public interest from the predatory greed of the financial, pharma, insurance, and other sectors). Especially now that the Supreme Court has ruled that corporations can spend as much as they want in the political arena, those politicians who are courageous enough to oppose special interests could be in for a very hard time. This could happen at a local level too as angry, frustrated citizens speak out against perceived harm to our interests. Although it is, of course, our right to petition for redress of grievances, the potential for misuse of personal information to besmirch someone's character might create a chilling effect against exercising this right for many who might consider it. The way things have trended, how unlikely would it really be that in the near future an attempt could be made to equate civil disobedience with terrorism. It's a matter of degree, and the political world generally doesn't "do nuance".

Maybe this is a paranoid view. Maybe not. I would just say that there's a tipping point somewhere, past which we should be wary of blindly venturing.
Rick

[Paul N]

Did you know that you can enter the following (and more) in Google search window and get an answer?

• Financial questions: 23% of $1295, for example
• Mathematical questions: (16081 * 113898) / 2
• Flight info: Jetblue flight 182
• Time and Date: What time it is in Tokyo
• Conversions: 1/4 cup in teaspoons

I bet you didn't....

[Bill Henry-]

You’d win, Paul. I didn’t know that.

According to Google 1/4 cup = 0.015625 US gallons and at 11:00 a.m. EST in New Hampshire it is 1:30am Friday (CST) in Alice Springs, Australia.

But, something’s fishy. How come they are 30 minutes off the rest of the world? Or, … maybe it’s us?

[Pat Murphey]

Originally Posted by Bill Henry-

You’d win, Paul. I didn’t know that.

According to Google 1/4 cup = 0.015625 US gallons and at 11:00 a.m. EST in New Hampshire it is 1:30am Friday (CST) in Alice Springs, Australia.

But, something’s fishy. How come they are 30 minutes off the rest of the world? Or, … maybe it’s us?

There are 30 minute time zones.