I was reading a discussion related to a story about how soon every email in the UK will be monitored by the government, and someone brought up this quote: “Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants; it is the creed of slaves.” And I had to… Continue reading Necessity and Tyrants
Category: politics
Why is Big Brother Ticketing You?
A very good question: Some people just don’t like the idea of being watched. Being monitored and punished at the behest of a law-enforcement robot sounds like something out of a science fiction movie, and not an especially cheerful science fiction movie. Others worry about safety. Red-light cameras are supposed to make us safer by… Continue reading Why is Big Brother Ticketing You?
The TSA’s Photo ID Rules are Useless
The rules that the TSA has rolled out regarding photo IDs and their requirements for getting onto passenger airplanes are usless. In fact, you could argue that they are worse than useless, since they create a false sense of security – and they cost us a lot of money (both directly and indrectly). But don’t… Continue reading The TSA’s Photo ID Rules are Useless
The Difference Between the Government and the Mafia
I saw this in a discussion over on Slashdot about New York sales/use tax – someone mentioned that “New York has always been a bit bizzare about taxes.” Someone else replied with: They’re not bizarre; they’re just greedy for every dollar they can get their grubby little paws on. Just remember that the only difference… Continue reading The Difference Between the Government and the Mafia
Sousveillance
This is encouraging: Now a countervailing storyline is starting to get some traction in real life: the increasing citizen use of technology to “watch from below.” The practice has been called “sousveillance,” a word that comes the French word “sous” (from below) with the word “viller” (to watch). Instead of Big Brother using a panopticon… Continue reading Sousveillance