Pete writes “Reason Online has a nifty article about the upside to surrendering some privacy.
“It’s more difficult to appreciate how information swapping accelerates economic activity. Like many other aspects of modern society, benefits are dispersed, amounting to a penny saved here or a dollar discounted there. But those sums add up quickly.
Markets function more efficiently when it costs little to identify and deliver the right product to the right consumer at the right time. Data collection and information sharing emerged not through chance but because they bring lower prices and more choices for consumers.”
The icing on the gravy is the personalized covers subscribers are receiving, showing an aerial photo of their homes. They even did one of John Ashcroft’s home.”
Zero privacy nothing new
Zero privacy concerns have been around for decades. Hell, even Asimov wrote about the too easy access to personal information. His solution, however, was not to tighten up the security on personal information, but to make all information about everybody equally accessible. “A nice enough idea,” I thought when I read his essay, “but lets see if the elected parasites are willing to set the trend with full disclosure of their lives.” What do you want to bet that the arrogant rich, even those not in public office, will never go for it? George Bush should be the one the set the example here, but he’s got too much invested in covering up his various pecadilloes.