From: wcs@anchor.ho.att.com (Bill_Stewart_HOY002_1305)
Date: Fri, 8 Oct 93 19:46:00 PDT
To: honey@citi.umich.edu
Subject: Re: brin on privacy
Message-ID: <9310090242.AA12484@anchor.ho.att.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain


peter writes
> david brin spoke in ann arbor recently [...]
> 
>     privacy laws will be used as a weapon by the Rich and Powerful to
>     restrict the free flow of information.
>
> brin feels that privacy laws will be ineffective against the RaP, will
> be sold to the rest of us through effective propaganda, and that they
> will be used by the RaP as a means to cement their power base. 

He's probably right.  (Of course, *most* laws made by the Rich and Powerful
will be used to cement their power base, so this is just a special case....)

Some examples that have been discussed on the net include the British
data privacy laws that limit the personal-information databases that you 
can keep without formal notification to the people contained in them
(and to the government.)  The fact that you've got a computer
and are using it in ways that indicate you have *some* database capability
but haven't registered has been used as an excuse to search people's computers.
Of course, if you *have* registered, then they can search to be sure
you don't have any data you've forgotten to mention....

> brin's message was basically a populist one.  he is concerned that the
> moguls of data will have the opportunity to control what we see and
> hear.  what i found most fascinating about his talk was that while i
> generally agree with the social objectives he backs, i am in 180 degree
> disagreement on how to accomplish these ends.

It's not an uncommon thing to find among people who believe in things
but don't think about the implications of implementing those beliefs, 
as well as with people who are messing with really complicated technology.

		Bill