Verified by 
In his classic novel 1984, George Orwell introduced us to Big Brother, groupthink and disinformation. Regrettably, it would seem that his prescient version of what the future might look like was not so misplaced.
If you live in New York City, you are on camera an average of 29 times a day. If the GPS tracking device in your cell phone is turned on when you call 911, your personal information - name, address, etc. -- along with your exact location pops up on the screen in front of the dispatcher. Citibank has begun introducing cardless ATMs that use a retinal scanner for identification. The laptop that I am typing on right at this very moment has a fingerprint reader to ensure security...it turns on for no one but me. All of that leads me to this...
Yesterday I was listening to a broadcast of NPRs Talk of the Nation on something called micro-marketing. It seems that when voters attend certain campaign functions, they are given an ID badge that has a unique electronic identification tag embedded in it. Cameras are set up on stage facing the audience, and these cameras transmit images to computers using facial recognition software to "read" the reactions of constituents during various parts of the proceedings. The constituents are identified remotely via their ID badges and then receive propaganda in the mail on the various talking points to which they had a reaction.
Am I alone in thinking that, aside from an egregious invasion of privacy - there is apparently no participant disclosure -- to the point of being a violation, this is just plain creepy?
I make my living reading people. I am a technorati with a cyber-pedigree that stretches back to almost a decade before the Internet was a public forum. But, frankly, being made aware of yet another invasive switchback on the information superhighway makes me think it's time to unplug, fall off the grid and go live in an Ute.
© 2008 Michael J. Formica, All Rights Reserved
