Beyond Orwell

I read an article today that troubled me greatly (when am I NOT troubled greatly these days?). It was in a magazine that was printed on paper and everything - I didn't even need a computer to read it!

But seriously . . .

The magazine is called Utne and I first saw it at my Acupunturist's office. I flipped through it a couple of times while waiting for my appointment and it looked pretty good so I bought a copy to read at home.

The article, titled Microsized Surveillance, is about RFID or Radio Frequency Identification. By the name you can basically guess what this is all about - crumb-sized microprocessors encoded with data (called "tags") that can be scanned using a wireless device.

According to the article, WalMart, in conjunction with Procter & Gamble, has already used these tags to trigger hidden webcams. When shoppers lifted a container of lipstick, their image was broadcast to a P&G research facility.

If that gives you the creeps too then it will likely disturb you to hear that the FDA recently approved an RFID implant the size of a grain of rice that contains emergency health data. Kind of like the implants they have for dogs so that if the dog is lost, the owner can be contacted. Except in this version, you're the dog and you could be tracked everywhere you go, everything you pickup in a store, everything you buy, eventually everything you own would be tagged (which would make shopping much easier for burglars).

Just imagine what the Department of Homland Security wants to do with this. According to the article, they've already invested $4 million in the technology.

It's not that I didn't know this stuff existed - I know Big Brother is already tracking all of us more that we really want to think about - but has it really come to this? I honestly didn't think it would come to this in my lifetime. I guess that's pretty PollyAnna of me but I make a real effort not to dwell in the negative (despite my rantings on this blog).

I feel like the more I learn the more depressed I get. It really is true that ignorance is bliss, it's so much easier to be a sheep and eat all the shit they shovel into our collective consciousness. The less you know the easier it is to simply go on with your life as if everything is just fine and George & Dick are taking care of us and they're getting the "bad men" and don't worry your pretty little head.

WAR IS PEACE

FREEDOM IS SLAVERY

IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH

By the way, you can't see the whole article online for free but you can buy it for $2.95 - or you could just buy the whole magazine for $5 at your local Whole Foods (or other similar type store).