They say the Defense Department invented the Internet, but I have an alternate theory: I think Al Gore made a wish on The Monkey's Paw, and one day we'll find out the ironic price to be paid for that granted wish.
In a recent study by the Pew Research Center, 42 percent of the experts surveyed agreed with the following statement:
"By 2020, the identification ID systems used online are tighter and more formal -- fingerprints or DNA-scans or retina scans. The use of these systems is the gateway to most of the Internet-enabled activity that users are able to perform such as shopping, communicating, creating content, and browsing. Anonymous online activity is sharply curtailed."Is that 42 percent comprised of Orwellians who also believe the Mayan calendar predicts a 2012 apocalypse? Does publishing a stupid little blog post like this, for example, really require that level of security? Surely the 54 percent who disagreed saw things in a completely different light?
Mmm, not so much, really. In their expert opinion, "the identification systems used on the Internet [will be] applied to a wider range of activities," although it will be "still relatively easy for Internet users to create content, communicate, and browse without publicly disclosing who they are." [emphasis mine]
Remember when the Internet seemed to be all about anonymity? In the future, will we reminisce about the days when one could post snarky comments, adopt a false persona, and surf for free porn on the internet without having one's retina scanned and think, Good times?
But enough with the dystopian thoughts. I'm off now to watch the lovely bitcherinas ice-dance for Olympic gold... and to think of a way to get that monkey's paw out of Al Gore's hands.
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