The biggest
threat to privacy is us?
I ran
across an article written on privacy law by Alex Kozinski- Chief Judge, United States Court of Appeals
for the Ninth Circuit. The article was published in the Stanford Law Review.
Kozinski uses an Issac Asimov story
to illustrate the fact that in his opinion our privacy is shrinking due to cell
phones and the internet. He is basically saying that because we as a flattening
society (to use a Thomas Friedman term)
don’t take as much care with our privacy as those in the past did that we are
becoming more and more subject to governing bodies usurping our rights. Meaning
the cell phone is akin to the proverbial cookie-crumb trail, while social media
and online activity play the part of our written rap sheet.
I disagree with much of what Kozinski is
saying. Just because I expose myself in
one format doesn’t mean that my rights should be trampled on in another format.
You know my location because of my cell phone? I don’t have much of a choice to
NOT own a cell phone. To say that technology is responsible for the crumbling
of the people’s hold on their rights is pure hubris. He makes it seem like my
privacy being violated is an inevitable domino effect. I do, however agree that
one must be careful about what they post and where. Or not taking their privacy
seriously by blabbering in public about weird personal issues into their cell
phones. I also agree with the fact that some of us have already gone far enough
to the point that our trail may not be able to be cleaned up. In the end, I
feel like this is cop-out written by a Luddite from a bygone era, in a position
of power that is busy wagging his fingers at us like we’re a bunch of
irresponsible children. Though, truthfully, some of us are irresponsible
children with our posting.
These are strange and ever quickly changing times.
I urge you to think before you post in any and all online formats. In the words
of Ice Cube: “Check yourself before you wreck yourself”. Indeed, Cube. Indeed.
First i gotta give it up to the cube, that man said it well. Second i think i understand what your trying to say or what the guy is talking about and i have to agree with what friedman is saying. With all the non-sense people post,they are exposing content that would otherwise remain hidden from the main stream and the goverment or anyone that is out to enact new governing laws, by using social media they are exposing these problems or law breaking activities or whatever the case may be,and they are feeding the minds of the law makers with these and bringing about concerns that would have otherwise gone unnoticed. So the fact that our rights are being taken away from us constantly, everyday, because of the things social media exposes is no surprise at all and in my opinion he is exactly right about our privacy and rights being taken away because of it. Is it right? Hell No!!!! but this is the world we live in now. I agree with you that your rights shouldn't be trampled on in any format but realistically you put it out there and you are subject to the consequences, and you may just be the one that is adding to the list wrongs, that they will scold or worse jail you for in the future.
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