Privacy is THE issue of the moment. I don't know how such an obvious fact escaped my attention but I'm fully aware of it and am amazed at how all pervasive an issue it has become.
The latest fiasco of body scanners in the U.S. has triggered my thoughts on this and the news that a man has been arrested for stripping down to his underwear in preference to being scanned or patted down seems to have been an inevitable development. I would have done the same thing in such circumstances.
The fact that he has been arrested for his actions is a reflection yet again on how bureaucratic procedure has no regard for logic but instead rates procedure above everything else.
Of course the youth of today, we are told have no qualms about privacy and celebrate every private detail of their lives on Facebook.
On the other hand, privacy as a right seems to have become big business for government which on the one hand wants to protect our privacy by legislating laws to facilitate such and on the other hand invading people's privacy in the interests of security and safety.
It seems that our privacy is sacred only when it concerns interactions between individuals but isn't sacred when the government needs to probe into our lives.
For example, as you can see from looking at this web site, the Australian government has imposed a host of regulations that protect individual privacy. If you've ever tried to speak to somebody over the phone about your electricity account,gas account,phone account or such, there is a list of questions that must be answered before the person you speak to can verify your I.D. in the interests of protecting your privacy.
Consider the Privacy Act and Facebook, here is a quote from the Australian Government web site.
Do I have rights under the Privacy Act when I use social networking sites?
This will depend on whether the social networking site is covered by the Privacy Act.
To be covered by the Privacy Act, an organisation must be based in Australia.
Some things to keep in mind about this include:
- If the social networking site is based in another country, such as the USA, then you may not have privacy rights under Australian law when you use the site.
- If the site is based in Australia, and it’s not a small business (a small business is an organisation with an annual turnover of $3 million or less) then the Privacy Act may apply.
- The Privacy Act doesn’t cover individuals acting in a personal capacity. So, individuals posting information on social networking sites would usually be exempt from the coverage of the Privacy Act (though their actions may be covered by other laws).
So, what does privacy mean?
It's about what we as individuals choose to reveal about ourselves and what we choose not to reveal. Privacy is about how we feel and what we choose to present to the world as "us".
In a world without privacy such as that of the failed Soviet communist regime, the individual meant nothing and was worth nothing. So if we are stripped (no pun intended) of all our privacy, then what kind of individuals do we become and what kind of society do we inhabit?
5 comments:
I have found that the younger people are, the fewer boundaries they have. I am still amazed that people here happily use their debit card for any and every financial transaction. I have pointed out to them that by doing this, the bank has a record of how they spend their money and employees of the bank can see it and if the government chooses to audit, they get to see it. Frankly, it is none of their business where all your money goes yet they will have fodder to question what you do
Lexcen,
What makes what the TSA is doing even worse is that it looks like devote Muslims maybe largely except from it, and they are the one's mostly to try to blow up planes right now. Here's a story from Jihad Watch, that even you might have a hard time believing.
Report: Napolitano considering Hamas-linked CAIR's demands for Muslim women in airports, including the "self-pat-down"
Now how does that make you feel? Doesn't just tick you off?
I am aware of Muslims seeking exemption from body scans and pat downs at airports. I'm not surprised by Muslims seeking exemptions from a variety of laws and regulations. This just indicates how unwilling or incapable they are of adopting to western society. Of course it is ironic that those who are most likely to carry weapons on to a plane are those seeking exemption from security checks in whatever form they might be.
It also raises the question of whether Muslim privacy is more sacred than non-Muslim privacy?
Lexcen,
I agree, but what I find shocking through, is that it looks like they might actually get what they want. The fact that Napolitano would even consider giving them an exemption ticks me off. What on Earth is wrong with her? No, what in the universe is wrong with her?
Yes...groping everyone EXCEPT the people the very people that possibly should be groped! What a joke.
I heard a story of a US MARINE who was strip searched ON HIS WAY TO DEPLOYMENT IN AFGHANISTAN. And that's not the worst of it... His cigarette lighter was confiscated but....Wait for it...His side arm and rifle was permitted on board.
Go figure.
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